The government of Slovenia has announced that it has adopted a National Strategy for Coal Mining. Accordingly, the country will stop using coal for electricity production by 2033 at the latest.
The strategy pursues the principle of a fair transition and takes into consideration the well-being of the people who are involved in the coal industry.
The strategy focuses on the closure of the Velenje coal mine and the transition and restructuring of Slovenia’s two coal regions, Savinjska-Šaleška and Zasavska. With the adoption of the strategy, the regions will have access to the EU Fair Transition Fund and receive €248.38 million. Mine closure works are expected to take 15 years after the end of active coal mining.
With this decision, Slovenia joins the EU member states that have already taken the decision to exit coal. Similar to Slovenia, the Czech Republic (2033), Romania (2032), Poland (2049), Bulgaria (2038/2040) and Germany are planning to exit coal after 2030.