According to Finance Ministry State Secretary Andrej Šircelj, the sale of investments will be conducted in different ways, but all will be transparent.

Other factors besides the price will be taken into account in the decision making, he told the press.

The document differentiates between strategic, important and portfolio investments. In strategic investments the state will keep 50% plus one share, in important ones 25% plus one share, while the holding is not obliged to preserve a controlling stake in portfolio investments.

The government plans to preserve 25% plus one share in the NLB Bank, while Telekom Slovenije, Abanka have been classified as portfolio investments, as has Petrol although the energy segment of the company is exempt as an activity of strategic importance for the country.

The KAD and SOD funds and the SID export and development bank are to remain 100% state-owned.

In strategic investments, the holding is to pursue economic goals, but also development and other goals related to public services. In general these investments include companies that conduct public utility services or have jurisdiction over public affairs, the owners of key infrastructure and companies with a dominant market position.

Companies owning infrastructure will be able to sign long-term concession contracts for public-private management of infrastructure, with the concession payment transferred to the budget. If the infrastructural part is transferred onto another company in majority state ownership, the holding will be able to sell this company in its entirety.

Important companies include those where the holding wants to secure influence on strategic and development decision, keep the seat in the country and secure productive jobs.

With the consent of parliament the state will be able to reduce its stake to below 25%, provided this would secure significantly better conditions for a sale and that guarantees exist for long-term development.

The management of portfolio investments is meanwhile subject to strictly economic criteria. They include companies that are considered attractive to the market and those that need active restructuring participation of the owner before a sale.

The document will be available to the public after the government submits if for debate and adoption in parliament, which Šircelj said would probably already happen today.

No deadlines for the sale have been set. Beside the price, the ratings of the buyer, the business plan, the number of jobs and long-term plans will be considered, Šircelj said.

"This classification of investments shows that the government is continuing with the key projects it had defined at the start of its term - the incorporation of the Slovenia Sovereign Holding on one side and the fixing of banks on the other," Šircelj said.

The goals which the Slovenia Sovereign Holding needs to meet in the management of individual investments are to be defined in detail with a strategy which is to be drawn up by the holding's management and confirmed by the government. The five-year strategy will require the consent of the parliament.

Šircelj, who explained that the document was a slightly corrected version of the one drawn up by former Finance Minister Janez Šušteršič, announced that the government could already appoint the holding's supervisors at its next session.