The ministry, poultry company Perutnina Ptuj and the Farmland and Forest Fund reached a deal on Wednesday to secure the substitute land.

Minister Zdravko Počivalšek welcomed the deal at a press conference on Thursday, saying the key step now would be securing an environmental approval for the investment.

Perutnina Ptuj gave up the lease on 34 hectares of farmland in Rače from the state-run fund, which will be offered to the farmers who will sell their land for the Magna plant in Hoče-Slivnica municipality.

"I'm grateful to Perutnina Ptuj, which has proved that it is aware of the broader importance of the investment in the area," Počivalšek told reporters.

"The agreement makes it possible to enable the farmers living on land to exchange their plots for those almost nearer their home, while the rest want to sell their plots," he said.

The ministry had agreed with most of the farmers to buy the plots from them, while the agreement with Perutnina Ptuj would enable the finalisation of agreements with the remaining owners.

The minister also welcomed a poll in the Hoče-Slivnica municipality in which 86% of the 1,426 casting ballots supported the Magna investment. More than 9,000 people are eligible to vote in the municipality.

"I believe most of the locals and Slovenians support the investment, but the problem is that those in favour aren't as loud as the opponents."

The minister could not confirm reports that Magna had asked for an environmental permit to build a plant in Hungary, but commented: "After seeing some people here oppose the investment, they have obviously started looking for another option".

Talks with Magna are ongoing, while "an agreement will be signed once we are sure we'll create all the conditions for the implementation of the investment... Things are all but agreed."

The ministry would do everything in its power to persuade all the participants in the process of environmental assessment that the investment is fully compliant with legislation.

He said that Magna had not set a deadline for the environmental permit. There has been talk of time frames, but Počivalšek said these would not be met.

The minister would not comment on the constitutional review of lex Magna, which would enable expropriation of the owners declining to sell, saying he believed it would not be necessary to apply the law.

Meanwhile, the regional divisions of the Agriculture and Forestry Chamber in Maribor, Ptuj and Murska Sobota and the Slovenian Farmers' Union protested over the deal with Perutnina Ptuj.

Describing the deal as "horse trading" in farmland, they cited unofficial information that in exchange for yielding the plots in Rače, the poultry company would get an early extension of the lease of more than 4,000 hectares of land for another ten years.

Perutnina Ptuj denied the allegation, saying they had demanded nothing in exchange for the deal with the ministry, but that they renounced the lease of Rače plots for the purpose of a strategic investment.