The appeal was filed on Thursday by the Regional Environmental Association of Environmentalists (ROVO), which is most frequently represented in the public by Gorazd Marinček.

ROVO alleges in the appeal a wrongful or non-use of process and material regulations and violations of the rules in the procedure to issue the environmental permit.

It expects from the Environment Ministry as the body examining the appeal to fully annul the environmental permit.

ROVO expects the ministry to establish violations of several provisions of the acts regulating general administrative procedure, civil servants and civil administration, and waters, as well as the decree on the prevention of major accidents and mitigation of their consequences.

Marinček has told the STA that the biggest issue was violation of Article 69 of the waters act, which clearly and absolutely prohibits any use or storage of hazardous substances in all water protection areas.

"ARSO has failed to consider this provision and kept stating in all its answers and explanations that it is bound by the decree on the water protection area, which actually unlawfully allows the use of certain hazardous substances," he added.

Marinček wants the permit to be annulled and ARSO to repeat the procedure, which should exclude all officials who have drawn up the permit, as there is reasonable doubt about their impartiality. If the appeal fails, he has announced an administrative dispute.

The Austrian-Canadian automotive giant had planned to launch trial production in the first months of the year, but the appeal means that it would need to postpone the launch by at least a few weeks.

The Union of Environmental Movements (ZEG) is meanwhile to make a decision whether to appeal the environmental permit at the end of the week, according to its president Karl Lipič.

Commenting on the appeal, Magna Steyr told the STA that they were convinced that they had met all legal and other conditions for the permit, which they believe has been issued in line with all Slovenian regulations.

"We have built a modern industrial plant equipped with the best possible technology, with which we follow the highest international environmental and other standards," the company added.