The company was the predecessor of what is now Sij group, a Russian-owned employer of nearly 4,000 people, some 40% of the Slovenian metallurgy workforce.

"Sij Acroni is a proud heir of Gorenjska ironworks," CEO Branko Žerdoner said at the ceremony at a venue at a disused ironworks in Jesenice.

Thanks to constant development efforts and numerous investments, Sij has become a high-tech company and one of the best producers of thick stainless sheet metal in the EU. He said the company planned to invest another EUR 120 million in R&D in the next five years.

Alone since 2017, when the Zubitsky family acquired the company, Sij has seen investments to the tune of EUR 620 million.

Management board member Tibor Šimonka also touched on the expected economic downturn, saying that Sij is in control of things, thanks to a diversified production programme.

However, things will get trickier if the economic situation deteriorates, he indicated. "But we are a financially stable and highly technologically skilled company," he said, adding that every crisis also had a cleaning effect.

"We will exit it even stronger, because some of those who are not as good will likely be out of the game," Šimonka said. Economic Development and Technology Minister Zdravko Počivalšek expressed similar sentiment, saying Sij will be able to find buyers for its supreme products.

Sij Group alone generated more than a quarter of revenue generated by Slovenia's metallurgy last year, which amounted to EUR 3 billion.