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Slovenia aims green tech at US market

One of the European Union's smallest nations is reaching out to U.S. markets as a sort of Silicon Valley offering the latest "green" technologies — from solar-powered modular homes and eco-savvy boats to LED lighting already being used in foreign luxury cars.Slovenia, which became an EU member...

One of the European Union's smallest nations is reaching out to U.S. markets as a sort of Silicon Valley offering the latest "green" technologies — from solar-powered modular homes and eco-savvy boats to LED lighting already being used in foreign luxury cars.

Slovenia, which became an EU member in 2004, is a nation of 2 million bordering Italy and Austria that is "especially attractive to businesses looking to the future of technology," Prime Minister Borut Pahor told The Associated Press by email on Wednesday, days after leading his country's delegation to the U.N. General Assembly.

In New York last week, Pahor introduced 20 Slovenian companies at an independent business forum titled "Investing in Green." Slovenia is being touted as an ecologically-minded country that has developed innovative technologies matching global needs.

The country emerged from decades of communism in 1991, when it broke off from Yugoslavia to become an independent democracy. It has taken years of economic restructuring to create a new business system in line with market economies such as that of the United States.

Two-thirds of Slovenian exports go to European Union markets, and trade is lively with Russia, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

"While its stock exchange is Lilliputian, Slovenia offers some first-rate emerging markets stock opportunities," says Jonathan Pond, a Boston-based investment advisor.

Seventy-eight companies are listed on Slovenia's Stock Exchange, with a market capitalization total of $11 billion.

Pahor says his country aims to become a small European version of California's Silicone Valley, creating lucrative conditions for partnerships with American companies by offering tax breaks and dismantling antiquated laws and regulations that could slow business.

"We're trying to present Slovenia as a small nation that doesn't have political problems with anyone, and which has a good image both regionally and in the international community," says Pahor.

Last Friday's day-long New York forum — co-hosted by the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce and the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce — introduced American firms and investors to leaders in Slovenia's green-tech sector, including areas such as alternative energy, the automotive and transportation industries, engineering, and ecological building construction.

Even as the worldwide recession stresses Slovenia's resources — with the 2009 GDP contracting by 8 percent — its private entrepreneurs are forging ahead.

The RIKO housing manufacturer has developed prefabricated structures with the famed French designer Philippe Starck — stylish homes powered by solar energy and constructed of wood that regulates humidity and provides natural insulation.

Uros Merc, president of solar panel firm Bisol, says his company is willing to spend up to $15 million to begin operating in the U.S. He noted that Slovenian businesses currently have a total of only about $19 million invested in the U.S.

Another company, Ekobase Global, is testing its LED lighting on a native Indian reservation in Arizona before expanding to other U.S. locations.

Several other firms already have U.S. foothold. Seaway is a top-notch boat manufacturer. Its new Greenline 33 — just named European Powerboat of the Year — is being marketed in the United States and dozens of other countries. Under a photovoltaic roof, the boat's hybrid drive is powered by battery-based electricity that emits no exhaust fumes, backed by a diesel engine.

In this first year of production, more than 100 were sold, including 10 in the United States. The price is $120,000.

Telargo, a producer of global positioning systems for vehicle navigation, operates from its U.S. office in Jersey City, N.J., providing GPS and other services to companies including Fresh Direct, a New York food delivery company, and two automotive giants.

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Online:

Investing in Green: http://www.investing-green.org

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