Bojan Kumer, Minister of Environment, Climate, and Energy of the Republic of Slovenia, led a delegation on an official visit to Hainan from October 20 to 22, 2025.

On the afternoon of October 21, Bateer, Member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Hainan Provincial Committee and Executive Vice Governor of Hainan Province, met with the delegation in Haikou. Bateer extended a warm welcome on behalf of the CPC Hainan Provincial Committee and People’s Government of Hainan Province and briefed the delegation on the progress of the island-wide special customs operations of the Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP). He noted that since the establishment of diplomatic ties over 30 years ago, China and Slovenia have achieved fruitful results in bilateral exchanges and cooperation. Hainan values its partnership with Slovenia and hopes to share the opportunities brought by the FTP’s upcoming special customs operations, leveraging its policy and industrial strengths. He emphasized enhancing cooperation in clean energy, smart grids, green and low-carbon development, and conventions and exhibitions, and invited Slovenia to participate in events such as the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference and the China International Consumer Products Expo. Bateer also welcomed Slovenian free trade zone to join the Global Free Trade Zones (Ports) Partnership Initiative, further deepening pragmatic cooperation between the two sides.

Minister Kumer expressed his appreciation for Hainan’s warm reception, noting that the province’s progress in clean energy is impressive. He said that Slovenia and Hainan share common goals in green and low-carbon development and expressed his country’s hope of strengthening exchanges and cooperation with Hainan in the future. He welcomed Hainan’s participation in Slovenia’s energy sector projects and said he would introduce the latest developments of the Hainan FTP to more Slovenians, promoting broader engagement and collaboration.

The Slovenian delegation’s visit to Hainan followed their attendance at the 2025 International Forum on Energy Transition in China at the invitation of the National Energy Administration. During their stay, the delegation visited the ACP100 (Linglong One) project in Changjiang, the world’s first land-based commercial multi-purpose small modular reactor, where they held in-depth discussions with project representatives to explore potential future cooperation. The visit focused on energy collaboration, marking a positive step toward facilitating the global outreach of Hainan’s small modular reactor technologies and advancing international cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative.