New executives at GEN energija and GEN-I
Slovenia has appointed new leadership at state-owned GEN energija and electricity supplier and trader GEN-I, changing management at two of the country’s key energy companies as decisions on the proposed Krško 2 nuclear project move closer. GEN energija’s supervisory board named former minister Andrej Vizjak as chief executive for a four-year term. Jure Soklič was named to lead GEN-I.
Vizjak said GEN would continue work on the proposed JEK2/Krško 2 nuclear plant and the Mokrice hydropower project. He said the appointments signal continuity in the group’s main generation strategy despite the leadership change.
Krško 2 and Slovenia’s investment programme
The appointments are significant because GEN energija is at the centre of Slovenia’s long-term electricity investment programme. A second reactor at Krško would be among the largest energy infrastructure investments in Southeast Europe, with potential impacts on Slovenia’s generation balance, financing requirements and regional trading position over decades. The project remains in development and decision-making, leaving major questions over technology, capacity, cost, ownership and financing.
Changes in senior management are attracting attention as the company approaches decisions that could lock in billions of euros of capital expenditure. GEN also has to manage the existing Krško nuclear plant while expanding renewable and flexible generation.
Power system context: hydro weakness and import reliance
Slovenia’s electricity system combines nuclear, hydro, thermal generation and increasingly solar power. Recent weak hydrology has demonstrated the value of maintaining diversified firm supply. Slovenian generation fell sharply during parts of 2026 as hydro output weakened.
The decline increased dependence on imports and gas-fired generation, reinforcing the case for additional reliable domestic capacity. JEK2 is intended to address that longer-term requirement, but its scale creates substantial financial risk.
Nuclear risk allocation and comparisons with alternatives
Large European nuclear projects have faced construction delays and cost overruns, increasing scrutiny of contracting structures and how risk is allocated between utilities, governments, suppliers and consumers. Any Slovenian project would also need assessment against alternative combinations of renewables, storage, interconnection and flexible generation.
The leadership changes at GEN energija and GEN-I are therefore more than a personnel issue. GEN-I is one of the region’s major electricity traders and suppliers, while GEN energija controls strategic generation assets, giving the wider group exposure across production, wholesale trading and retail markets.
Governance focus within the GEN group
Vizjak identified the group’s circular ownership relationship as an issue requiring attention, adding a governance dimension to the management transition. For investors and counterparties, continuity on Krško 2 reduces immediate uncertainty about strategic direction . It does not remove larger questions surrounding project economics.
The next phase will require Slovenia to move from broad support for additional nuclear generation towards decisions on technology, capital structure, risk allocation and the price consumers would ultimately pay for electricity .
