The Infrastructure Ministry will organise four consultations to facilitate a broad debate before producing a draft document by the end of the year. The concept is to be passed by the parliament by the end of 2017.

The ministry presented on Wednesday an analysis of proposals submitted to the concept. Most of the proposals concern energy use, energy sources and strategic guidelines for the country's future energy programme.

The ministry labelled as key issues related to availability of energy sources, electricity production, heating of buildings and the use of energy in transport, according to Energy Directorate Danijel Levičar.

"We will seek consensus on guidelines for the energy concept. We tested the ground with a number of different stakeholders and will use this as a foundation for the document," Infrastructure Minister Peter Gašperšič told the STA at the sidelines of today's event.

The planned concept is to focus on environmentally sustainable energy sources, reliable supply and competitiveness. Its goal is gradually replacing fossil fuels with low-carbon energy.

The country would like to maximize its use of renewable energy sources such as hydro energy, biomass, solar energy, wind power, bio fuel and geothermal energy, and boost energy efficiency.

The most acceptable fossil fuel is gas, which is important for various industrial processes, while coal and lignite should no longer be used after 2055, according to the concept blueprint.

Moreover, the dependence on imports of petroleum products for transport should be halved by 2035, while heating oil should not be used after 2055.