Company Podzemlje Pece, d.o.o. is part of the TAB d. d. group

Name: Podzemlje Pece, Podjetje za razvoj turistične in muzejske dejavnosti, d.o.o.
Title: Glančnik 8, 2392 MEŽICA
Phone: 00 386 (2) 870 01 80
Website: www.podzemljepece.com
Founder: Gradbeni materiali d.o.o., owned by TAB d. d.
Share capital: 400.395 EUR

Main company activity code:

91.020 Activities of museums
91.030 Protection of cultural heritage

Responsible person: director, dr. Darja Komar, uni. dipl. inž. geol.

Mežica lead and zinc mine was one of the last lead-zinc mines in Europe that was still operating at the end of the twentieth century. In its more than three hundred years of operation, it fed many families over the centuries, and it had a strong influence on life outside the mine in the Mežica valley area. After the closure of the mine, a rich technical, cultural and natural heritage remained. Due to the strong local initiative and the desire of the employees to preserve this heritage, the company RSC Mežica v zapiranju d.o.o. also included the mining project “Protecting parts of the Mežica mines for the purpose of preserving the natural, technical and cultural heritage” among the closing projects.

The project defined an area in the mine that will remain open even after the final closure of the mine and will be used for tourist, educational, research and study purposes.

The mission of the company is to preserve the technical, natural and cultural heritage of mining, and to upgrade during in the development of other activities: tourism, crafts and entrepreneurship.

The vision of the company is to be a successful tourist museum company that preserves the wealth of the exceptional past (historical knowledge, equipment, premises) which are the basis for development of innovative tourist products.

The tourist mine and museum has been open to visitors since 1997, when part of the well-organized complex in the mine and part of the museum in Glančnik were opened to the public. But new content has been added ever since. Approximately 380,000 tourists have visited it by the end of 2021, 48,000 of which by bicycle and 14,000 by kayak.

With an annual visit of up to 20,000 visitors, we rank among the most visited tourist destinations in Carinthia.

In the twenty-five years of operation, we have established many connections with tourist mines and museums in Slovenia, Austria and Italy, as well with professional institutions, tourism providers, educational institutions and others. We participated in many domestic and international projects. We initiated the creation of the cross-border Karavanke/Karawanken Geopark, which has been a member of EGN and GGN since 2013. We have also been a member of the UNESCO Global Geopark since 2015.

We have also received numerous awards during our operation, namely:

• Silver Sejalec award for innovative product in 2004, awarded by the Slovenian Tourism Organization.
• We were nominated for the European Museum of the year in 2007.
• Finalist for the title of European Destination of Excellence – EDEN 2011.
• The golden coat of arms of the municipality of Mežica in 2012.
• Finalists for the Sejalec award 2013, for the product with a kayak in the Peca underground.
• Special recognition of the Economic Exhibition for innovative products in 2013.
• Finalist award for THE BEST WALKING ROUTE, awarded by the Tourist Association of Slovenia, in 2016.
• Title of Slovenian unique experiences – 5* experience for Kayak Tour, awarded by the Slovenian Tourist Organization in 2018.
• Recognition of the Centre for School and Extracurricular Activities, on the 20th anniversary of its operation, for good cooperation.
• In 2017, the Working community Geopark Karavanke received the Jakob Award 2017 for the project “Innovative tourist programs for active vacations in a natural environment”, which also includes the Peca Underground offer.
• Title of Slovenian unique experiences – 5* experience for Adrenaline-pumping mountain bike descent on the Black Hole Trail, awarded by the Slovenian Tourist Organization in 2023.
• Finalists for the Sejalec award 2023, for the product: Adrenaline-pumping mountain bike descent on the Black Hole Trail.