Bizpoland feb2014 finalll pdf by BiznesPolska/CEE Business Media

February 2014 vol. 7 no. 2(40) Price: 20 zł

CEE Outsourcing & Shared Services Awards Gala distinguishes 22 companies

Hays team celebrates “Best Recruitment Firm” award!

Advisory:

Energy:

Industry:

The Czech tunnel – what goes in never comes out

Polish wind power Polish business at firms rush to beat European lingerie subsidy cut deadline and boating fairs

PolandFood&BeveragesExpo — 11 June 2014, Royal Castle, Arkady Kubickiego, Warsaw — Concept: The Poland Food and Beverages Expo (PFEX) aims to connect buyers with sellers – both Polish food exporters with western European food buyers, but also European food producers with buyers and retailers in Poland. Poland’s food export sector is growing solidly, as Polish foods are increasingly attractive to western European consumers. At the same time, the Polish market for western European food producers is more and more interesting as an export destination. Organized by media group BiznesPolska, which also publishes the annual directory Food

Exports Poland, the Expo will be accompanied by an evening networking business mixer on 11 June – to further build contacts between buyers and producers.

• Private Label • Beverages and the drinks sector will be also represented by wine and beer producers, specialty drinks, and fortified drinks.

Exhibitors:

Attendees:

We expect more than 100 exhibitors from: • Food producers and major exporters from Poland, and • Foreign food and beverages producers seeking to expand in Poland Exhibitors from Poland include: • Producesrs of: meat, fish, dairy, sweets, fruits and vegetables (fresh and processed)

• International buyers and retailers from western Europe • Polish food buyers and retail networks • International Food and beverages producers seeking to expand in Poland • Polish Food and beverages producers seeking to export to western Europe

www.PFEX.pl

Table of Contents February 2014 vol. 7 no. 2(40)

Published by: BiznesPolska sp.z o.o. ul. Długa 44/50, bud. D, lok 704, 00-241 Warszawa tel.: 022 831 7062 General Manager and Editor: Thom Barnhardt (tb@bizpoland.pl) Publisher: Craig Smith (cs@bizpoland.pl) Editorial staff and writers: Leon Paczyński, Monika Tutak Research team coordinator: Magda Adamczyk Advertising Sales: Wiktor Gliński (wglinski@biznespolska.pl) tel.: 022 831 7062 Graphic Design: Sławek Parfianowicz sparfianowicz.wordpress.com

Cover Story 4 6

CEE Outsourcing and Shared Services Awards Gala distinguishes 22 companies CEE Outsourcing and Shared Services Awards – Winners – Highlights from their Nominations

Subscribe to BizPoland Magazine Annual subscribers to BizPoland Magazine receive our monthly magazine, as well as five business directories for free: Outsourcing in Poland, CityInvestPoland, Top Offices, Top Shopping Centres, and Wind Power in Poland. 500pln for one year.

Advisory 12

The Czech tunnel—what goes in never comes out

FDI News 13 14 14 15 15 14–17

Polish wind power firms rush to beat subsidy cut deadline PGE seeks partners for Poland’s first nuclear power plant construction Syzygy acquires majority shareholding in Warsaw-based Ars Thanea Polish Year in Turkey has started Polish business at European lingerie and boating fairs FDI News in brief

Chambers of Commerce News Details at subs@bizpoland.pl or call +48-22-831-7062

(18) Belgium ; Canada (20) France; Switzerland (21) The Baltics; Ireland; United States (22) Portugal; United Kingdom

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BPO/Shared Services

CEE Outsourcing and Shared Services Awards Gala distinguishes 22 companies At the Awards Gala on 6 February in Warsaw at the Hotel Intercontinental, 22 companies, cities and individuals were distinguished for their exceptional performance. More than 260 guests – including 3 Mayors and Vice-Mayors – attended the Awards Gala and Forum, which singled out as Winners from 140 nominations.

The Awards Gala recognized the full eco-System of this sector: Office Development, Recruitment, Professional Advisory, CSR/Benefits for society at large - and Cities, which are successfully expanding their tax Base and intelligent employment opportunities in their region. CEE is attracting many of the largest global corporations, who see the growing appeal of setting up Shared Services or BPO operations in this region. They are drawn by huge cost savings and by stream-lining their global operations. In turn, their investments represent huge opportunities for the region’s workforce to develop world-class skills. The sector is strong and growing fast – in Poland alone, the sector is growing at about 20% per annum and expected to employ more than 250,000 people by

2017. (Up from just 20,000 back in 2007). And the growth is spreading out to many of Poland’s medium-sized cities - as well as other cities throughout the CEE region, each of whom has a slightly different strategy to attract investment. CEE - ranging from the Baltic Sea down to the Black Sea – now rivals India in this sector globally. Across CEE, employment in the SSC/BPO sector will be ½ million in just a few years. A recent report released by research and advisory firm Tholons showed that Poland continues to move up the rankings, with three Polish cities ranked among the best places for outsourcing services. Moreover, the Polish leader Kraków - has climbed to 9th place, overtaking Dublin. In Tholon’s top ten there are six Indian cities, two from the Philippines and two

February 2014

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BPO/Shared Services

from Europe - Kraków and Dublin. The capital of Małopolska thus opens the list of the top European destinations for outsourcing services. The ranking also included Warsaw and Wrocław. In comparison to the last year, the Polish capital moved up for four positions taking 32th place and overtaking St. Petersburg, Toronto, Rio de Janeiro and Bucharest. Wrocław saw the biggest jump in the ranking - up 10 positions to 65th place. PAIZ notes that a rising number of outsourcing projects are coming to Poland. Last year 29 projects - representing more than half of all foreign direct investments completed with PAIZ’s support - were BPO or Shared Services centres. These projects are likely to result in the creation of over 7,400 new jobs in 2014. In the CEE Outsourcing and Shared Services Awards - a tough competition among world-class firms - the following firms took first place. We have added highlights from their Nominations, which were key factors the Jury considn ered before the final vote.

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BPO/Shared Services

CEE Outsourcing and Shared Services Awards – Winners – Highlights from their Nominations CSR: Poland Business Run

A joint initiative of UBS, MAN Accounting, CapGemini, and Jasiek Mela Beyond Horizons Foundation. The Poland Business Run idea is to integrate business and the community for a charitable cause while promoting a healthy life style. The business charity run in the form of a relay was organized for the first time in September 2012 - on Krakow’s market square. It was initiated, co-organized and co-sponsored by UBS Krakow. The goa l was to collect funds for prosthesis for the beneficiaries of Jasiek Melas Beyond Horizons Foundation. Others supporting the concept include City of Krakow, Radisson Blu hotel, and Luxoft.

Best University: Post-grad studies – Radom

An initiative led by Łukasz Fijałkowski/ PwC Academy, Rafał Grzeszczyk/The City of Radom, Magdalena JelonkiewiczBałdys/AIG Lincoln, and Jadwiga Naduk/ Hays. The post-graduate studies program in Modern Business Services is a joint venture of the public sector: University of Technology and Humanities; The City of Radom; and the private sector: AIG Lincoln; PwC; Hays, and ASPIRE. The project’s goal is twofold: 1) To establish a pipeline of fully trained professionals to fulfill leadership positions within Radom’s growing BPO industry. 2) To attract potential investors to Radom. 80 students currently enrolled in the program.

Public Sector: SSC design

In the first quarter of 2013 the Ministry of Administration and Digitization and PwC started a project to validate the concept of establishing Shared Service Centres on a regional level, which would provide support to government authorities. The main goal was to create and analyse the SSC concept for central administration on the regional level, present its benefits, analyse risks and build a high-level transition roadmap. The scope of the SSC would include: F&A; HR; Procurement; Real Estate and asset management; Registry and archive related services; IT services; Health, safety and fire regulations; Legal services. Implementation of the project would impact 1,380 jobs countrywide and is expected to reduce operating costs by

February 2014

www.bizpoland.pl 32 million PLN. The result of this work was evaluating the most important opportunities and risks of establishing 16 SSCentres serving Poland’s public administration.

Office Develop: Green Day (Wroclaw)

BPO/Shared Services Suisse regarding uninterrupted business activity. Two independent power feeds and two power generators ensure business continuity in case of power outrage. Green Day is LEED Gold pre-certified.

Best Employer - BPO: HP Global

the company • Wellness Program • Tickets to cinema and theatre. Also, portfolio Wellness – a series of initiatives for employees focused on financial matters, stress management and physical fitness. Typical events include: office massage, cooking days, health awareness days, sport events and tournaments, healthy snacks at preferred prices and many others.

Best Employer- Shared ServicesPoland: State Street

Skanska’s new office development is of approximately 16 000 sqm, and the office space is fully leased to Credit Suisse (Center of Excellence). Thanks to an extensive floor plate (2300 sqm), it can be easily arranged according to the tenants’ preferences and current needs. According to Skanska research, one of the crucial factors for business service centers are flexible office space and an attractive location, close to public transport stops. Green Day fulfills both of the requirements. The building has also solutions increasing the comfort of bike riders, like lock rooms and showers, which is especially appreciated by young employees. The building was adapted to the specific needs of Credit

Benefits include: • Medical package for Employees and their closest family • Multisport card • Life insurance package • Happy Parenting program including childcare support • Employee Assistance program – help in a difficult life situation • Employee Purchase Program – possibility to buy HP product at preferred prices • Free coffee, tea, sandwiches and fruit • Modern offices in the city center • Trainings, opportunity for personal development and advancement within

Employees projected at December 2014: 2100. State Street Poland is now the 2nd largest office in Europe employing almost 2000 employees and providing the full range of investment servicing products including Investment Fund Accounting, Derivatives, Performance & Analytics and Hedge Fund Administration. The Krakow office administers more than USD 1.2 trillion in assets for 7500 investment funds and 200 clients. In addition to all the usual benefits offered in the local market, State

2014 February

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BPO/Shared Services Street has an extensive program of additional benefits including anniversary awards to recognise loyalty, additional vacation days with seniority, time off to participate in volunteering activities (CSR – related) and monthly team building lunches. The organisation promotes healthy living including fresh fruit supplies and an offer of Flex work arrangements including part time, work from home and sabbatical leave. Additionally: • Sponsored language courses •Financial support for further education •Full technical skills training curriculum •A wide range of soft skills trainings •Manager Development Programmes •Mentoring & coaching programmes •Job rotation programme.

Best Employer- Shared ServicesRest of CEE: Western Union

Employees at December 2013: 996, including 34 different nationalities supporting

28 foreign languages. Western Union established a European Regional Operations Center (EUROC) in Vilnius in July 2010. It is one of four global operations centers located around the world. The facility, which also serves as a Centre of Excellence, hosts Anti Money Laundering Compliance, Accounting, IT, HR, Marketing and various other functions. Loyalty and engagement: EUROC is extremely proud of having significantly high recommendation and loyalty rates of employees (compared with global benchmark). 89% would recommend Western Union as a great place to work. 73% of EUROC employees would stay at Western Union if they there were offered a comparable position with similar pay and benefits elsewhere.

Business Centre Manager BPO: CPL, John Paul McGonigle, Site Manager.

Provides service desk and end user support to HP’s multinational customers. John Paul demonstrates a track record of business improvement in areas such as SLA delivery, recruitment efficiency and cost saving. John Paul’s major achievements include the following: the SLA compliance figures increased by 10% from 2011 to 2013: • SLA compliancy 97% based on the last quarter’s result • 260 SLA targets to deliver upon across the business • 2011 SLA compliancy result was 86.94%, the current performance means a 10% increase. CPL IS took over the service from HP in Hungary. During the transition the Centre manager faced the following challenges: • The legal succession of 145 HP Employees • The transition of approx. 420 agency contractors from 3 separate agencies into CPL Integrated Services permanent employees with the loss of just one contractor during the mobilisation phase • Seamless transition into the new model • Ensure supply of necessary resources can be maintained by a single partner and reduce the time to hire • Bring stability to an operations which had multiple Client Escalations ongoing and unstable SLA delivery • Ensure no spike in attrition during transition and a positive trend going forward.

February 2014

www.bizpoland.pl Business Centre Manager Shared Services: CBRE Barbara Huss-Kaniewska

Barbara Huss-Kaniewska has worked with GCS for many years leading and building Warsaw’s Shared Service Centre into what it is today: a highly efficient platform that has supported growth of the Portfolio Services and Facilities Management businesses. Barbara was the first employee in Warsaw Shared Service Center and her strong leadership ultimately helped grow the team to 254 highly-motivated professionals with a reputation for high-quality work and client satisfaction. This year Barbara Huss-Kaniewska has been appointed Senior Managing Director, Global Leader of GCS Real Estate Accounting Services. CBRE Corporate Outsourcing is a Shared Service Centre based in Warsaw and part of the CBRE Global Corporation. The Company provides outsourced financial and data management services to corporations, for which property is not their core business. CBRE Corporate Outsourcing services include: 1. Portfolio Services Data Management Department - lease documents data management and lease abstraction i.e. extracting key lease terms for proactive management of lease events through reporting and general communications. 2. Portfolio Services Client Accounting Department – consists of four teams: Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Service Charge Analysts and Client Accountants.

Best Recruitment: Hays Poland and Hays Hungary

2014 February

BPO/Shared Services Professional Advisory: PWC

Team is led by Romek Lubaczewski, SSC/BPO leader for Central and Eastern Europe. Companies that PWC has worked with: Multinationals, including: Amway (Russia), Kemira (various European countries), Metsa Group (various European countries), UPM (various European countries), Metinvest (Ukraine), Becton Dickinson (Poland), Akzo Nobel (BPO), Voxpro (Ireland) and BBH (Poland). PWC have also led the projects to design and build solution for PwC’s CEE internal Shared Service Centers. During 2012 – 2013 PWC extended client base with over 15 SSC/BPO-related projects with new clients. Testimonial: “I feel that without PwC team playing the key role the project would not have been a success it is. If we elect to build another SSC (even outside Eastern Europe) I would not hesitate to engage PwC again, and I can recommend the team of Aleksandra StelmachGryszka, Anna Wojt and Szymon Kogut to any other organization that is looking to build a Shared Services organization” - Ireneusz Truszkowski, SSC Director, Metsa Group.

Real Estate: JonesLangLasalle.

With a nearly 40% market share for the BPO/SSC sector nationwide, JLL’s key assignments in 2013 included Deutsche Bank, IBM, and Credit Suisse. From June 2012 Jones Lang LaSalle has advised BPO/SSC companies in real estate projects totalling ca. 178,000 sq m across CEE. Currently it is assisting companies from modern business services sector totaling further 180,000 sq m (including projects at preliminary stage with selected CEE countries on the shortlist). In period June 2012 – December 2013 Jones Lang LaSalle in CEE provided strategic advisory to key global companies from the BPO/SSC sector, including: Bayer, BNY Mellon, Cisco, Credit Suisse, Euroclear, IBM, ING, Samsung, UBS, WNS, and Itella Information in Toruń.

Unique: MULTIPOSTING.

With offices in San Francisco and Paris, the Poland office is run by Jerome Lafuite. Clients include PWC, Accenture, and Michael Page. Multiposting in Poland gives the possibility to crosspost jobs and internships on 30 job boards and 100 universities. With one click, the companies using Multiposting can cross-post their jobs to more than 500 websites, 1,800 school job boards and the major social networks. It enables them to save precious time and widen their candidate sourcing perimeter (in Poland and abroad). Multiposting also brought innovation in the sourcing by giving its clients the possibility to source candidates with specific skills (IT skills for instance) on forums or Facebook communities (French speaking, for instance).

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BPO/Shared Services Unique - Rest of CEE: MANN+HUMMEL

on inward investment, with direct connections to London and Frankfurt.

Best IT firm – Poland: Atos

Best City of Year: Krakow.

Richard Auer is Country Director for MANN+HUMMEL Service located in Nová Ves, Czech Republic, which provides shared services for MANN+HUMMEL Group´s entities worldwide for more than six years. M+H provides not just typical shared services in administration but also very special ones such as: Research&Development (R&D) - having own Research Center and Testing Laboratory, as well as Project Management in OEM development projects for the car and truck industry. We just opened our new test laboratory for fuel and air filtration and intake manifold testing. Over 180 qualified people in Accounting, Finance, IT, R&D, HR, Material Data Management, Project Management, Corporate Purchasing, Quality serving our internal customers in 27 entities in 20 countries in 11 different languages.

Top Newcomer City: Lublin.

New companies in Lublin during 2013: •Sii – expected 105 new jobs •Proama– 50 new jobs in 2013 •Alior Bank – 170 new jobs •Sollers Consulting – 35 new jobs •Soft System- 50 new jobs. New airport opened in early 2013 already having a major impact

About 5,000 new jobs created in the sector in 2013. New investors: RWE, Zycko, XTRF, Samsung, Accenture, Deutsche Telekom, Anachron Technology, Amada Group, Lundbeck. Major expansions: ACC Lufthansa, Capita, Heineken, State Street, HSBC, and Motorola. Krakow is actively cooperating with universities, being a kind of intermediary between investors and the academic and scientific units. Krakow Advisory Board, the Agreement with Universities, Science-Business-ResidentsLocal Government Krakow Forum are examples of the opening of Krakow to initiatives related to the knowledge and technology transfer. It is also worth highlighting the Krakow Scientific Center, which seeks to identify skills demanded by companies operating in the BPO and IT industry and its secondary priority for such branches as energy, passive and energy-efficient buildings, life sciences, the pharmaceutical industry, and creative industries.

Clients include the International Olympic Committee and Renault. Atos is an international IT services company with 76000 employees in 47 countries. In Poland Atos employs nearly 2000 people in four cities Bydgoszcz, Warszawa, Wrocław, Gdańsk. It provides services for managing networks, servers, applications, projects and ITIL processes. Projected employee numbers at December 2014: 2150 - recruiting about 100 new candidates every month. Due to excellent performance and quality of services, the Atos Bydgoszcz branch was awarded as the most effective division within the world-wide Atos Group.

Best IT- Rest of CEE: NFQ

Best City - CEE: Vilnius.

New Investors in 2013: Swedbank and Cowi. Major expansions by: Western Union and NFQ Solutions. All procedures are simplified for new investors; Tax system privileges; High qualification specialists, especially in the IT sector. Vilnius claims to have the most multilingual people in the EU.

Based in Kauna, Lithuania, NFQ Solutions provides E-business and software development with major focus on large scale ecommerce platforms, the travel market and meta search solutions. While NFQ receives around 75% of its revenue from services to foreign customers, the company is considered to be the godfather of Lithuanian e-commerce with more than 300 different projects launched in and around the country in the past 10 years. NFQ Academy, our free three month long series of lectures and workshops for students interested in software development, held its fourth semester last year. It was record breaking more than 400 students applied for some 50 places at the Academy. A Java class was launched in addition to two PHP groups in Vilnius and Kaunas.

February 2014

www.bizpoland.pl Best BPO of year-Poland: HP

HP BPO Poland provides wide services from F&A, CRM and HRO areas. Employee rotation program; Talent program; Training program focused on accounting and soft skills; ACCA approved employer status; HP University CIMA courses (open to all HP); Training platform for management; Finance Ambassador program.

Best BPO - Rest of CEE: Conectys

BPO/Shared Services Conectys has a strong Romanian presence. From its Bucharest contact centre, it delivers multicultural business process outsourcing and customer service support in more than 35 languages to more than 45 different global organisations. Conectys expects to employ 450 people by December 2014. The company offers specialist resources and services 24/7, servicing customers in every continent around the world. Conectys has delivery centers in Romania, Belgium and the Philippines. Conectys organises an annual collection amongst its employees, friends and relatives for a local orphanage. Arnold Cobbaert is the founder and CEO.

Best Shared Services: Citi.

In Poland, Citi Services is focused on: monitoring anti-money laundering, handling banking, securities and investment funds, settlement of claims and payments, processing control function and service infrastructure. CSC works with other Citi players from around the world, providing services to over 60 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, both Americas and Australia. Employees use more than 24 languages every day. CSC Poland operates in three locations: Warsaw, Łódź and Olsztyn. In Poland over 400 technology professionals provide critical technology infrastructure support, development and deployment of strategic software applications to Citi entities across the world. Employees projected at December 2014: 3250. Various productivity initiatives during the year which brought over 100 headcount saves. Another worth mentioning initiative is CitiWomen Network Poland which is one of our strongest diversity initiatives. During this year they organized over 20 different events, trainings, workshops and meeting with senior managers to create a pipeline of female talent.  n

CEE Shared Services and Outsourcing Awards Gala 2015

5 February 2015 Hotel Intercontinental, Warsaw 11

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Advisory

The Czech tunnel – what goes in never comes out Preston Smith

Picture the scene: The femme fatale enters the room, slyly eyes the corporate detective and then lays it on him. “I believe my business partner is up to no good.” Now imagine this is a daily occurrence— only (unfortunately) without the alluring femme fatale. In fact, most of the time we are looking at a wide-eyed private equity consultant or a nerve-wracked entrepreneur bordering heart attack mode. No, it’s not a pretty picture, but yes, it indeed is a daily occurrence in the world of risk consulting. Sadly, by definition both of the above have arrived too late—i.e. after their money is gone—but let’s assume that such criticism is a moot point. The money is gone, nobody conducted any checks, so no need to rub it in. So I won’t. Instead, beginning in this series I will outline a few common scams and the trouble you will run into should you become a victim. And in order not to induce instant heart attacks, I will proceed from more historical somewhat (emphasis on that word) antiquated scams that will serve as a basis of more complicated “endeavors” that are commonly seen in the CEE region today.

The Czech tunnel…

Perhaps it is indeed best to begin in the beginning, which for many expatriates would mean “tunneling” in Prague. The basic premise was and is quite simple: insert an employee (preferably with fictitious identity) into a company for the sole purpose of draining accounts. The monies would then be bounced from account to account around the world in order to not only confuse authorities but to simply make it impossible for them to conduct a true investigation. This was first popularized, as you might guess, in the early 1990s, so let’s jump to a real incident from 1991. A new secretary was hired at a small company. Three months into the job, she suddenly did not

report for work—a strange incident as she was always the first person in the door. Unfortunately, it turned out that both her outstanding work ethic and punctuality were quite nefarious in nature—as was her sudden absence. The company soon learned that CZK 1.2 mln had been transferred abroad the evening prior to her disappearance. Private enquiries

proved that the money bounced from one jurisdiction to another at least eight times. And that, my friends, was the end of it—I mean the end of the company itself. A privately-funded start up, the firm simply could not take the hit. Neither could it pay employees or fulfill orders. Paradoxically, the owner only narrowly avoided spending time in jail. Apparently, what he did not avoid was returning to the U.S. to work as a bartender, but that is another story.

So what happened? What happened is what commonly happens even today, only on a much broader level. The police were skilled, but the police budget was all but non-existent. This

meant that liaising between just one offshore jurisdiction (think translation and travel costs) was patently out of the question. Moreover, the Czech was likely at least half-Russian and never properly identified. Whether she was seriously investigated remains a question to this day. True, in 2014 such a scenario would be much more difficult to pull off. Records are now computerized so the employee “insertion” phase of a scam is no simple thing. But to this I say: details, details. The ever-present moral is that police have budgets and limited staff. As late as 2004 a UK Serious Fraud Office investigator lamented that he had only six staff for the whole country qualified to investigate money laundering. Now imagine investigator staffing in Central Europe. Then imagine that first you must find the qualified cop, then you have to come up with a budget. In the big picture, CZK 1.2 mln might be big money for you, but it’s nothing compared to what went out the door at a crooked state company. Then the final reality: a private consultancy was hired. This costs money. But what costs real money were the lawyers needed to deal with various offshore cops and financial fraud commissions. In short, ugly, ugly stuff. What I am unsure about is how far the victim went in contacting U.S. authorities, but I suspect not very far (for reasons that I will address next issue). At any rate, I personally thought tracking the cash through seven jurisdictions was quite a feat. I’m sure the once-and-future bartender whole-heartedn ly disagrees. (Next issue: The morphing of insertion—i.e tunneling will never die) Preston Smith is the managing director of CEE Consulting Group, a regional risk consultancy and licensed detective agency specializing in pre- and post-transaction due diligence, multi-jurisdictional asset trace investigations, FCPA checks and on-the-ground investigation and surveillance.

February 2014

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FDI News

Polish wind power firms rush to beat subsidy cut deadline Wind power capacity has almost doubled in Poland over the last two years as developers look to get their investments off the ground before the Polish government cuts subsidies – probably next year. EKO Energia Polska Sp. z o.o. clinched a deal with the grid operator to link Poland’s largest wind farm (225 MW) to the trans-

Union mandate to clean up emissions from electricity generation. Lukasz Dziekonski, management-board member at energy investor the Marguerite Fund told Bloomberg: “We see much anxiety toward the new regulations. We expect developers will be trying to sell, or at least to connect projects to the grid until mid2015. The wind-farm market is becoming a buyers’ market.” By connecting projects before the cut-off date, developers can choose to receive the existing subsidies or wait for the new system. Some currently opt for tradable green certificates, which utili-

now totals 3462 MW, according to grid operator PSE SA. Capacity is set to rise to 4040 MW this year, amounting to more than a tenth of total generation. The Economy Ministry expects to cut subsidies by more than 2.4 billion zloty in 2015, reducing power prices for consumers by 26 per cent to 20 zloty a megawatt-hour. The plans are laid out in draft regulations due for a cabinet vote in the coming weeks. Germany, France, Spain, Britain and Italy have all trimmed clean-energy subsidies after a boom in installations drove up power costs for consumers. Investments

mission network last month and is one of the lucky projects to survive before the government starts auctions for fixed-price contracts to drive down prices for renewable energy. Prime Minister Donald Tusk has pledged to stem increases in consumer power bills while meeting a European

ties buy to meet clean-energy targets. Certificates for new projects with no grid deal will be superseded by auctions next year, forcing developers to compete on price. Helped by subsidies, the country’s installed wind capacity grew 34 per cent last year after jumping 41 per cent in 2012 and

in renewables in Europe fell 41 per cent to $57.8bn last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Investors in Polish renewables that fail to get projects off the ground before the new rules come into force may also face delays to the start of auctioning, according to n the Marguerite Fund.

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FDI News FDI News Irish ABP Food’s second investment One of Europe’s leading red meat processors - ABP Food - has just bought a production hall in the Wielkopolska region. It is the company’s second investment in Poland. The company is already present in Pniewice in Wielkopolska, where it owns a plant and employs 100 staff. Owing to the acquisition of new facility, acquired from Italian food group Ferrarini, ABP will increase its production capacity in Poland to over 100,000 animals per year. The new plant is located 30 kilometres from the Pniewy site.

PSE signs deal with Chinese Polskie Sieci Energetyczne SA has signed an agreement with Chinese Pinggao Group for the construction of a 220kV interconnection line in Szczecin area. Pinggao has agreed to build overhead 220kV lines between 2014-2017. The latest investment will improve the safety and transmission capacity of electricity supply for the Szczecin agglomeration.

Furniture investments in 2014 in SEZ Schilsner Industry Group, a company with Polish origin, is the first this year to receive a permit to conduct business in the Wałbrzych SEZ. The company plans to spend PLN 20m and create over 70 new jobs. The company will produce ABS edging for furniture panels made of environmentally-friendly materials which can be fully recycled. Together, all companies doing businesses there employ over 3,500 people. The total sum of invested in the Zone is around PLN 1 billion.

PGE seeks partners for Poland’s first nuclear power plant construction Poland’s state-owned power company PGE is seeking technology and financial partners for a long-term project involving construction of the first nuclear power plant. PGE chief executive and Poland’s former energy market regulator Marek Woszczyk was quoted as saying during a news conference that, “we now have the period of searching for a partner to provide the technology and a partner to participate financially.” Constructed with an investment of PLN 60 billion, the 3GW nuclear power plant’s first block is expected to to be finished by the end of 2024, while the whole project will be finalized by 2030.

The project’s coordinator, PGE has to select a site and find a technological partner by the end of 2016. Meanwhile, the company has expressed its interest to control the special investment company established to manage the nuclear plant’s construction, Reuters reports. Woszczyk said, “PGE wants to have a controlling stake in the company, at least 70 percent. We do not rule our the scenario of adding partners - financial or strategic.” Potential partners include Polish statecontrolled utility Tauron, Enea, and KGHM, even though the deal is yet to be signed. n

Syzygy acquires majority shareholding in Warsaw-based Ars Thanea Digital communications agency Syzygy has acquired a 70 per cent shareholding in Warsaw-based agency Ars Thanea, as the agency looks to provide interactive design to its global clients. Ars Thanea, which focuses on digital illustration, animation and interactive design, has clients such as Chanel, Discovery Channel, General Electric, Nike, Nutricia, Nvidia, Ubisoft and Visa. Bartlomiej Rozbicki, CEO of Ars Thanea commented: “We have been co-operating closely with Syzygy for over four years now during which time we have learned of the common values we share, not only as companies but as people. Being part of the Group will stabilise our position in foreign markets, particularly in Europe and the US, but what’s even more significant is the opportunity that

our joining of forces presents. In a competitive market, we were looking for an independent and flexible partner, Syzygy Group fits the bill perfectly at this stage in our development. Without doubt everyone will benefit from the strengthening of this relationship.” Syzygy Group expects its revenues to increase by 20 per cent to £35m in 2014, following the acquisition. Andy Stevens, Chief Operating Officer at Syzygy Group said: “The results of our collaboration (Ars Thanea and other SYZYGY Group entities) have been amazing with high profile clients such as Chanel and Paramount already benefitting from their combined skills. We are delighted that Ars Thanea is now a full member of the family and look forward to delivering more outstanding work n for our clients globally.”

Bahlsen Poland will invest in Skawina

The German confectionery manufacturer plans to expand its plant in Skawina, in the Krakow Special Economic Zone. This is the second permit issued by the Katowice Special Economic Zone to Bahlsen. The PLN 32m production line investment will result in the creation of 30 new jobs.

February 2014

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FDI News

Polish Year in Turkey has started In 2014, Poland and Turkey celebrate the Polish Year in Turkey. Two famous Turkish chefs - Savas Ertunç and Tarik Bayazit visited Warsaw and Kraków as part of the celebrations. They were looking for inspiration to create a menu that will be presented from 6 March to 12 June 2014 in Istanbul’s Sakip Sabanci Museum. The theme of the exhibition is “PolandTurkey 1414-2014 - 600 Years of Political

and Cultural Relations”. The Turkish chefs began their adventure with Polish cuisine with a workshop entitled “Polish pantry”. They were amazed by “Żubrówka” (bison grass), pine-shoot syrup and “suska sechlońska” - a smoked and dried plum of Małopolska. This year, both countries celebrate the 600th anniversary of the establishment of Polish-Turkish diplomatic n relations.

Invest in Pomerania - trade mission to Germany The Pomeranian Development Agency announces a competition for small and medium-sized companies from the region. The winners will take part in a trade mission to Germany on 8 11 April 2014.

New 30 million pln investment in Radom Aplisens has opened a production plant in Radom. The PLN 30m investment means another 100 jobs will be created. Aplisens specialises in the production and supply of measurement and control equipment. At the Radom site, part of the Tarnobrzeg SEZ, the investor has built a production hall with a social facilities and an office building. The new investment will double Aplisens’ production capacity. The company already has production facilities in Warsaw, Kraków, Ostrów Wielkopolski and also in Belarus.

Targban takes over Del Monte Poland’s banana ripening facility Targban has agreed to acquire the banana ripening facility from Del Monte Poland - a subsidiary of Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc., a global manufacturer and distributor of fresh fruits and vegetables. The facility will let Targban increase the operational capabilities of one of its flagship products - bananas. The acquisition will also help the company to strengthen the position of a leading supplier of fresh fruits and vegetables from around the world (South America, Africa, US, New Zeland) in Central Europe.

Polish business at European lingerie and boating fairs Nearly 40 entrepreneurs from Eastern Poland participated in key European trade fair events in January - Boot Dusseldorf, Interiors UK and the Salon International de la Lingerie in Paris. PAIiIZ trade missions have been organised under the Eastern Poland Economic Promotion Programme. With the support of the Agency, between 18 and 26 January, 16 Polish leaders in the yachting and water sports sector presented their products at the industry’s biggest event, Boot Dusseldorf in Germany. The event tattracts nearly 1,600 exhibitors from around the world. This is the third time that representatives of businesses from Eastern Poland have the opportunity to take part in the fair under the Eastern Poland Economic Promotion Programme. At the same time in Birmingham, furniture Polish manufacturers are looking at the latest global trends in design and furniture during the Interiors UK exhibition. The fair attracts nearly 30,000 visitors every year and is considered as a strategic event for Polish companies, due to constantly growing demand for Polish

2014 February

Ronal opens €100 million factory furniture in the UK. In 2011, exports of furniture and upholstery products from Poland to the UK reached over £180m. Since then has been constantly growing. During Interiors Design 2014, 19 leading companies form Eastern Poland selected by PAIiIZ have the chance to present their offer and start new business relations. Between 24 and 28 January, 12 representatives of the Polish lingerie sector from Eastern Poland took part in the 50th annual Salon International de la Lingerie trade fair in Paris. Every year, the event is visited by nearly 20,000 visitors from all over the n world.

Switzerland company Ronal opened a plant in the Wałbrzych Special Economic Zone on 10 January. The project was supported by PAIiIZ. Ronal, a global player in the alloy wheel business, is present in Italy, Germany, Spain and Portugal. The company’s plant in Wałbrzych Special Economic Zone has been designed to produce two million wheels per year for such brands as Fiat, Mercedes, BMW and Opel. The investment is worth over €100m. Ronal is to hire 350 employees.

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FDI News BWK Logistic invests in call centre BWK Logistic is going to invest PLN 4m and employ up to 65 new employees in the Lubusz Industrial and Technological Park. The project consist of a construction of a warehouse with a production hall and a call centre. BWK will provide there a complex logistics services including innovative solutions for managing the process of commissioning. The company plans to open the logistic centre at the beginning of 2015.

Suwałki SEZ with new jobs PLN 53 m will be invested in Suwałki SEZ by Padma 3.0, a company with Polish capital. Padma Art and Padma 3.0, companies related by capital links, have already invested PLN 60m and have employed 700 people in the SSEZ. The newest project will be divided into two stages. In the first, Padma 3.0 will build a production and warehouse hall, with a production line for manufacturing articles made by wood, wood panels and plastic. Next, Padma is going to build a logistics centre with a production line designed to produce mirrors, shelves, furniture fronts, chairs and armchairs for IKEA. The company plans to start the newest investment in the spring and complete it by the end of next year. The investor will hire 300 new employees at the outset and eventually expand the number of employees to 1,000 people.

New jobs in Kutno and Radomsko

Weidenhammer and VPK - two packaging companies received a permit to operate in the Łódź Special Economic Zone. Together they will create 61 new jobs. Weidenhammer Kutno Poland will build a food packaging plant in Łódź SEZ. Until the end of 2015 company plans to invest at least PLN 25 m and hire 31 new employees. The second packaging company will operate in Radomsk Sub Zone. VPK Packaging will provide production of cardboard packaging there. The expenditures for this investment will reach PLN 58.8 m. The company plans to employ at least 30 new emn ployees.

Tarnobrzeska SEZ getting bigger According to the governmental decision, Tarnobrzeg SEZ will be increased nearly by 45 hectares. The new area of the TSEZ will include public land in Radom, Ożarów Mazowiecki and Wośniki, Stalowa Wola, Opatów Gorzyce and Nisko municipalities. Additionally, some private land in Radom was added to the zone for two investments implemented by Global Cosmed and Precision Machine Parts Poland. Global Cosmed will invest there nearly PLN 20m and hire at least 30 new employees. The investor plans to implement innovative technology for mixing liquid products. The second new investor, Precision Machine Parts Poland, will implement innovative solutions of machining and sheet metal forming. The company will also invest PLN 20m and create 30 new jobs. According to the Ministry of Economy, through the increase of the zone and delivery of new investments to this area, 1,680 new jobs will be created in the whole zone and an extra 340 in the plants located in the new plots.

New investments in Euro-Park Mielec SEZ Polimarky and Meta-Zel will invest in Głogów Małopolski. The total declared value of investments has been estimated at over PLN 24m. At least 22 new jobs will be created under those projects. Polimarky will spend PLN 8.4m for launching the production of modified plastic granules. Implementation of the new project will be combined with the employment of at least 12 new members of staff. META-ZEL Sp. z o.o. will launch project worth PLN 16m. The company plans to implement patented technology of aluminium microstructure and geometric surface forming for automotive sector. META-ZEL Sp. z o.o will create at least 10 new job.

Four new investments in Legnica SEZ Four companies: Viessmann Technika Grzewcza, Uzin, C+P Meble and S&L, received permits to conduct business in Legnica SEZ. Between them, the companies will invest nearly PLN 13m. Viessmann Technika Grzewcza is planning to launch production of cables for condensing wall-mounted boilers. The company will increase its workforce by 10 new employees. German company Uzin will invest PLN 1m to develop the product range and increase the volume of sales. The new investment of C+P Meble has been estimated at PLN 8m. The company plans to expand the production hall and

increase employment to 123 workers. The Legnica plant produces sheet steel furniture to be delivered to the Tropical Island aqua park in Germany as well as to foreign factories. S&L will spend PLN 4m and employ five new people to offer supply services, including road freight transport, selected land support services, storage, as well as financial audit and accounting services.

New investors in Łódź SEZ Twelve companies have received a permit to do business in the Łódź SEZ. Together, they plan to invest over PLN 184m and create 241 new jobs. Permits has been received by Elfa Pharm, BSH Sprzęt Gospodarstwa Domowego, Wirthwein Polska, QuickMix, Poprawa Producent Opakowań Tekturowych, Thermica, Sponcel, Weidenhammer Polska, VPK Packaging, Star Fitness, Huta Szkła Anewal, Hapam Poland. For some companies this is the next permit in Łódź SEZ. In a newly purchased plant in Chociw, Elfa Pharm will produce cosmetics and sanitary- hygienic. Cost of the investment is PLN 8 m. The company will employ at least 30 new employees. Thermica will spend of PLN 2.1m to build a plant to produce styrofoam boards and chemistry for real estate market. The company will hire at least 15 new employees. Sponcel will run a plant producing cellulose sponge for household products making. In Kutno subzone, Weidenhammer Polska will build a plant producing pasteboard packaging. The company will spend at least PLN 25m and employ more than 31 new employees. Cardboard packaging is also the specialty of VPK Packaging. The company will invest PLN 58.8m and employ 30 new members of staff. Star Fitness, specialising in fitness facilities’ production, will invest at least PLN 8m in this are of production and hire over 20 employees. Huta Szkła Anewal will produce jars, candles and decorative glassware. Hapam Poland, a manufacturer of high voltage disconnections, intends to expand its factory as well as purchase new technological lines and equipment. For that purpose, the investor will pay at least PLN 5m and employ 6 new people.

New investments in the Kraków SEZ Four companies, including three with the Polish capital received permit to conduct business in Kraków Special Economic Zone. Those are: BTH Import Stal, Becker Industrial Paints, Separator and VoiceFinder. The total value of newest investments is

February 2014

www.bizpoland.pl estimated at PLN 77m. Together companies will create 43 new jobs. BTH Import Stal declared the will to spend the biggest amount of capital reaching PLN 47m. Moreover, the steel producer plans to hire 20 new employees. The second biggest investment in KSE, with a value of PLN 22m, will be delivered by Becker Industrial Paints - a part of The Beckers Group. Beckers is going to create 10 new jobs. Separator’s, that produces and distributes spare parts for oil separators, heat exchangers and auxiliary devices, will invest PLN 7m and hire 10 new employees. In addition, PLN 1m will be invested by the IT company VoiceFinder that provides services related to the use of modern technologies in the process of biometric searching and indexing of audiovisual resources.

FDI News programme which promotes employment of people aged over 50. Nifico will build a new production hall and will to implement new production lines for car plastic components mainly for Porsche and Volkswagen. The investment will be completed by 2016.

Porsche and VW components made in Świdnica The Japanese company Nifico will double the number of staff and develop its plant in the Wałbrzych Special Economic Zone in Świdnica. This is the fourth permit issued by WSEZ to this Japanese company. The company will invest PLN 60m and create 180 new jobs. Nifico has implemented the “50+” HR programme which promotes employment of people aged over 50. Nifico will build a new production hall and will to implement new production lines for car plastic components mainly for Porsche and Volkswagen. The investment will be completed by 2016.

The mission is part of the “Invest in Pomerania II - Promotion of investment attractiveness of the region of Pomerania in the Nordic countries and Germany” project. The mission’s programme includes participation in the Hannover Messe 2014, B2B meetings with local companies from the Renewable Energy Sources sector, study visits to local companies, specialised science and technology parks as well as R&D centres. The application closes on 26 February.

Fire-resistant glass production in Słupsk Special Economic Zone Q4Glass ABJ Investors received a second permit to operate a business in the Słupsk Special Economic Zone. The investor plans to expand its services through the introduction of a new product, a fireresistant glass. The production hall for advances machinery will be build as a new investment. At the beginning, the company will employ 10 new members of staff. The final number of new jobs is expected to rise to 30 in the nearest future. The total value of Q4Glass ABJ investment is PLN 9 m. The company specialises in the production of glass mainly for n construction sectors.

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2014 February

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Chambers of Commerce News

Belgium New members In 2013/14 the Belgian Business Chamber welcomed new and affiliated companies as its members, such as E&C Central Europe which provides a high servicelevel energy procurement consultancy, Batipont Immobilier S.A. branch in Poland - real estate developer, VALIANS INTERNATIONAL which specializes in supporting firms and companies in their development in Central and Eastern Europe as well as AIR FRANCE. On 28th January 2014 BBC organized its first in the New Year Belgian Business Mixer which was held in Hotel Bristol in Warsaw. The participants had an opportunity to broaden their business and professional networks as well as share their ideas and experience. During the event we welcomed our new members and presented plans for 2014. BBC welcomed a new employee Olga Baran ska, Project Specialist who joined our team at the beginning of January 2014. Olga worked already in the BBC as a trainee and was responsible for managing

Belgian Business Mixer 5 March 2014; Hotel Bristol Warsaw The Belgian Business Mixer will be held on 5 March at Warsaw’s Hotel Bristol. During the event, which is organized a few times a year and has already become a tradition, members as well as non-members of Belgian Business Chamber will have a great opportunity to broaden their professional network and share their ideas. It will also be a chance to meet new members of the Chamber, professionals and investors who have been expanding their activity on Polish market. Speed Business Meeting 26 February 2014/ 27 March 2014 Poznan (26.02), Krakow (27.03) The Speed Business Meeting is a monthly event organized by bilateral Chambers in different cities in Poland, during which thanks to the specific and attractive

formula of short, direct meeting sessions participants have the opportunity to present briefly their companies, talk about services they offer and look for, gain new contacts, find customers, partners or investors. The first meeting in 2014 will be held in Poznan on 26 February and the second will take place a month later in Krakow. Both are organized by Belgian, French, Swiss and Scandinavian Chambers. BUDMA International Trade Fair for Construction 11 - 14 March 2014, Poznan The Construction Fair BUDMA is the biggest Construction Fair of Central Europe. Under this year’ s motto Inspiration, Construction, Repair, the organizers would like to emphasize the most important phases of creating surrounding us architecture. The ways of implementation of new technologies as well as processes which aim to rise standards constitute one of the main points of the program. For years, Belgian entrepreneurs and professionals have been very active and in 2013 Belgium had one of the biggest national stands. This year FIT (Flanders Investment & Trade) will exhibit on the BUDMA on the collective stand.

the key provisions include: - elimination of tariffs on goods and agricultural products; from the day CETA is active, 98% of tariffs will be removed. - fair treatment of foreign direct investment and access to strategic sectors including telecoms, energy,

aerospace. - increased labour mobility to support business development. - access to government procurement contracts. - intellectual property rights will continue to be recognized and enforced. - mutual recognition of professional qualifications.

small projects. Interested in project management, she created, developed and since then has been coordinating the university project: SGH TV - the first student television station at the Warsaw School of Economics.

Upcoming Events:

Canada  Historical Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) to expand markets

Mr. Steve Verheul, Canada’s Chief Negotiator to CETA, spoke on Monday 27th January at IGCC’s Business Breakfast on the highlights of the agreement. The negotiations represent Canada’s most ambitious trade agreement to date. An agreementin-principle was announced last October by both Prime Minister Stephen Harper and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso. Final round discussions are now taking place and are anticipated to complete in the upcoming weeks which will end nearly five years of negotiations. Also in attendance was HE Alexandra Bugailiskis, Ambassador of Canada to Poland.  From the Canadian perspective, CETA aims to open new markets and create opportunities for all Canadians. The EU is currently Canada’s second largest integrated trade partner and the world’s largest economy. The goals of the negotiations is to bring transparency and clear access across the EU economies. Some of

February 2014

www.bizpoland.pl Winter Reception The PCCC together with the Embassy of Canada hosted their annual Winter Reception on 4th February at the Embassy. The evening was opened by Ambassador Alexandra Bugailiskis followed by guest of honour Associate Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Canada’s G8 Sherpa Mr. Peter Boehm. Mr. Boehm’s greeting pointed out the strong historical ties between Poland and Canada including the Canada EU Free Trade Agreement CETA, where negotiations are in its final stage. The formal part of the reception was concluded by Tomasz Lisiecki, PCCC President with a welcome to new members who joined in 2013 - Citibank, Dentons, E&Y, Mielżyński Wines, Spirits & Specialities, Redknee, Sandoz and SNC Lavalin. In anticipation of the Sochi Olympics, the theme of the reception was Winter Olympics with highlights of the Calgary 1988 and Vancouver 2010 Olympics shown throughout the evening. The event was rounded out with a prize draw that gave away Canadian ice wine and sparkling ice cider, official Olympic scarf and hockey jersey, and a dinner for two at Mielżyński.

Chambers of Commerce News SNC-Lavalin Polska in deal with GE and PKN Orlen On December 4, 2012 SNC-Lavalin Polska in consortium with General Electric International Inc. signed a turnkey contract with PKN Orlen, one of Central Europe’s largest crude oil refiners and fuel retailers, for construction of a combined cycle power/ cogeneration plant in Wloclawek. Works on the construction Site in Wloclawek proceed in accordance with the approved project execution schedule, and in some of the project areas they are completed even ahead of schedule. SNC-Lavalin Polska received the construction permit earlier than expected. Since the past two years, SNC-Lavalin has decided to make Europe the pilot region of its strategic plan. Europe represents the diversity of the Group’s businesses in thirty countries and includes more than 3,000 employees. Also, in January 2013 SNC-Lavalin Polska signed EPCM contract with Cleveren, a joint venture of Dalkia Polska. For the purpose of construction of a power plant for Dalkia, SNC-Lavalin are now preparing documentation required for obtaining a set of administrative permits, and working on the general arrangement. SNC-Lavalin is one of the leading engineering and construction groups in the

world and a major player in the ownership of infrastructure and in the provision of operations and maintenance services. The group focuses on three sectors: Resources, Energy and Infrastructures. SNC-Lavalin develops its expertise in four different and complementary areas: engineering, construction, maintenance and concession. Apart from the power generation business, SNC-Lavalin also aspires to be an active player in other sectors of the industry. Currently, SNC-Lavalin Polska is preparing for participation in a tender for modernization of a fertilizer production line for leading Polish chemical works. A very strong area of SNC-Lavalin operation constitutes oil and gas projects as well as the mining and processing of all mineral deposits. Some of Canadian companies which would like to invest in exploration of new deposits have been active in Poland recently. It refers for example to zinc and lead mines. SNC-Lavalin Polska employs about 140 employees currently and the company’s portfolio amounts to more than 500 million zlotys. (contact: Monika Kom-Njilo, tel. 22 208 2524, monika.kom-njilo@snclan valin.com)

March 19-20 2014 Warsaw, Poland

The most important summit of Polish retail & FMCG industry! The Poland & CEE Retail Summit is the right place to be, indeed!

www.retail-conferences.com/en 19

2014 February

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Chambers of Commerce News

France French Chamber of Commerce celebrates its 20th anniversary Throughout the year, a series of events will be held for the promotion of the French business in Poland and the activity of the French Chamber, which tends to strengthen the French and Polish economic cooperation. The French business appeared in Poland at the beginning of the 90’s. The French companies were often the first ones to conduct activities in different branches and the first foreign investors to introduce in Poland capital, technological innovations and modern solutions in respect of management and business. Through cooperation with French companies, numerous of Polish partners learnt how to function in the changed economic reality and established lasting partnerships.

Switzerland New Year’s Meeting of the PolishSwiss Chamber of Commerce On 23 January 2014 the traditional New Year’s Meeting of the Polish-Swiss Chamber of Commerce took place. This year it was held at a unique place – the National Stadium. The meeting started with welcome speeches of Swiss Ambassador to Poland, Mr Lukas Beglinger and President of the Chamber, Mr Marek Kondrat. Next, Board

During its 20th anniversary, the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Poland will present the history of the development of the French investments in Poland and promote French solutions in various areas. France is the third largest foreign investor in Poland, which has created more than 200,000 direct jobs and the number of companies with a French capital continues to increase and amounts to approximately 1,200 entities. In the first half of the year, the CCIFP together with KPMG will publish the results of the survey carried out among French investors in Poland. This will be the first study of this kind, which will first collect information on the existing development of companies and their plans for the future. As a result, we will be able to learn which areas work the best and which ones require changes. For the purpose of the celebration of the 20th anniversary, periodical events will be

held by the CCIFP. On July 13, on the occasion of the French national holiday, a French village will be established in the Saska Kępa district – it will promote the French companies, culture and history. On July 12, a French Ball, integrating Polish and French business community, will be organized by the CCIFP. In the autumn, the CCIFP will organize the second edition of the Warsaw Debates – an International Conference at the Royal Palace in Warsaw, which will reunite intellectuals, businessmen, politicians and people of Polish and French culture. The successful result of the previous edition relies on the unique atmosphere enabling openness and a free exchange of points of views during the debates and backstage discussions. Throughout the year 2014, a series of smaller events, promoting the French business in Poland, will take place and the whole agenda for the 2014 year will be n available at: www.ccifp.pl.

Members of the company SwissLife, main partner of the event, presented activity of the company in Poland, which has been present in the country for 9 months. Special emphasis was put on the contribution of Swiss companies in the building of the Stadium– Forbo (20000 m2 of carpet material in Conference Centre), Sika (30000 m2 parking resin flooring on levels -1 and -2 , 35000 m draught proofing of stands, promenade, etc.) and Zehnder (1300 convector heaters Zehnder Radiavektor). After the official part of the event the guests were invited to take part in guided tours of the Stadium, during which they

had a chance to visit the stadium plate, see changing rooms of players, walk along the stadium promenade.

President of Switzerland visits Poland On the occasion of the official visit of the Swiss president Didier Burkhalter to Poland, a Polish-Swiss Economic Forum has been arranged at the National Stadium. While opening the Forum, PAIiIZ president Sławomir Majman mentioned the fact that the first factory opened in Poland in 2014 was the Swiss alloy-wheel manufacturer, Ronal, which has set up in the Wałbrzych Special Economic Zone. “The project, supported by PAIiIZ, is a great example of Polish-Swiss cooperation”, said Mr Majman. Polish president, Bronisław Komorowski, said that Switzerland - a country of wealthy citizens - can be an inspiration for such ambitious states as Poland. “The unemployment rate among the youth in Switzerland is estimated at only 3%. The country should be an exemplar for Poland”, said Mr Komorowski. Mr Burkhalter said that the economy is a key element of our bilateral relations. He added that the Swiss praise Poland for outstanding economic performance in recent years, and for its well-educated employees. After the official speeches, panel discussions provided an opportunity to allow knowledge and experience sharing on vocational training, technology transfer from science to enterprises and Polishn Swiss research collaboration.

February 2014

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Baltics Latvia joins Euro As of January 1st, 2014 Latvia joined Eurozone. To facilitate an honest and transparent implementation of the euro by businesses, as of 9 July 2014 Latvia has implemented a Fair Euro Introducer nitiative and information campaign. The initiative is being implemented in close partnership with leading Latvian business organizations, the state Consumer Rights Protection Centre, media, and active segments of the civil society. The Fair Euro Introducer initiative aims to protect the population against unjustified price hikes as a result of the introduction of the euro. All businesses in Latvia are invited to join this initiative voluntarily in order to assure their clients and partners that they engage in fair and responsible business practices. Latvia’s GDP growth rates in the last two years were remarkably stable despite financial problems in other countries. Latvia is the fastest growing economy in the European Union with more than 5% growth two years in a row, earning praise from leading international economists and top government officials. Christine Lagarde, IMF Managing Director, commented on Latvian success:

Chambers of Commerce News Latvia’s economic achievement is a tour de force. Achievements were highly praised also by American political scene - “Latvia’s success is an inspiration”, said Hillary Clinton, former U.S. Secretary of State. This economic achievement has come ab out thanks to a rapid rise in industrial output and diversification of export markets, as well as products, which now make up 61% of GDP, and solid inflows of foreign direct investment, which amounted to 11,3 billion euros in Q3 of 2013. One of key sectors where Latvia has unique selling propositions for foreign direct investors based on competitive advantages is IT, including Global Business Services, and transportation and logistics - 1st in Europe for the largest share of value added in GDP and a critical player servicing cargo flow ben tween the EU and CIS countries.

Ireland Trinity Corporate Services opens new office in Bratislava, Slovakia The office will be headed by Tomas Vinkler who also holds the post of Managing Director, Czech Republic. The establishment of the Slovakian office supports the vision of Trinity

being the leading provider of outsourced management and administrative services in CEE and enhances Trinity’s network of advisors by con necting local professionals across the region. The opening of our Slovakian office in Bratislava reflects the growing demand for our services in the CEE region from international investors. Bratislava is strategically located, with close proximity to Vienna and Budapest, which increases its attraction to inn vestors, said Tom Ravensdale, CEO.

USA AmCham is now chairing the International Group of Chambers of Commerce in Poland The American Chamber of Commerce in Poland has assumed Presidency of the IGCC (International Group of Chambers of Commerce in Poland) for the next six months. AmCham is representing 16 countries and 2000 companies, which employ hundreds of thousands of people, making up close to 90% of foreign investments in Poland. One of AmCham’s main objectives in its role is to promote the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP ) within businesses in n Poland.

2014 February

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Chambers of Commerce News

Portugal Official Launching of the PPCC Regional representation in Lodz The Polish-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce (PPCC) organized a special event to launch the PPCC Regional representation in Lodz - Mrs. Izabella Paszak (President of Browary Lodzkie and

United Kingdom New British-Polish Business Centre ‘showcasing the best of British in the heart of Poland’s capital’

As the result of a unique n ew partnership between the British-Polish Chamber of Commerce, UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) and HSBC, the British-Polish Business Centre was opened in late 2013. A unique space of 500 square metres of a Grade A office space fitted out to a very high standard whilst remaining competitively priced, the centre is meant to suit all business needs. Konceptia’s Interpretation of GREAT Emerging Europe Campaign Takes Silver Konceptia’s creative visual interpretation of the GREAT campaign in Emerging Europe has won a major award at a packed international ceremony to celebrate innovative

Board Member of PPCC). The event took place on the 30th of January in Andel’s Hotel in Lodz and counted the presence of Mrs. Graźyna Henclewska, ViceMinister of Economy; Mr. Mieczyslaw Luczak, Sejm Deputy; Mr. Paweł Bejda, Vice-Voivode of Lodzkie voivodeship; Mr. Artur Bagieński, Vice-Marshal of Lodzkie voivodeship; Mrs. Ewa Goczek, Honorary Consul of the Federal Republic of Germany; Mr. Szczepan

Milosz, Honorary Consul of Austria; His Magnificence Rector of Lodz’s University of Technology, Professor Stanisław Bielecki Ph.D., D. Sc.; His Magnificence Rector of Academy of Music in Lodz, Professor Cezary Sanecki ; Prof. dr hab. Krzysztof Stefański, University of Ĺodz; Prof. dr hab Tomasz Domański, University of Łodz; Prof. Sławomir Kaczorowski, Academy of Music in Lodz, n and PPCC Members.

visual communications in business. The company took the Silver Award in the highly competitive International Campaign category with its innovative DigiFilm Rapid features of the world’s leading country promotion campaign GREAT. Featuring the Emerging Europe GREAT Mini Tour and a journey round Hungary, Poland and Austria in a GREAT New Bus for London Konceptia’s huge talent and visual mastery managed to capture commercial opportunity and promote this exciting region to a global audience. The short, yet incisive films featured UK and regional leaders for the first time ever to promote one of the highest potential growth regions outside the traditional Emerging markets. ‘I am thrilled that Konceptia has won this major award. We teamed up for the summer to promote the very best of the UK in Poland and the best of Poland in the UK. Over 50 high quality film clips highlighting the outstanding opportunity which exists for both our countries in this region. I remember every stop on the GREAT Bus tour which

was one of the best ever bilateral promotion campaigns in this region. A huge thank you to all our partners along the route,’ enthused Martin Oxley at the awards ceremony. Konceptia developed its DigiFilm Rapid especially for the campaign which has been immensely successful in bringing people together with GREAT opportunity in the region. ‘It is a huge honour and privilege for Konceptia to win this great award. GREAT is the biggest campaign our agency has worked on so far and our visual interpretation of this GREAT growth journey in Emerging Europe confirms the ambition and commitment of those involved with it. It is the biggest promotion campaign of the region ever undertaken and our agency is proud to be associated with it. I would like to thank all our contacts and friends especially our 3,000 Facebook followers for all their support. Now we are continuing with the campaign which is a superb icon of bilateral opportunity in this exciting region’, said Andrzej Wrobel, n Konceptia’s Managing Director.

February 2014

Publishing Calendar 2014 Directory providing key listings data for international buyers of Polish food, targeted at international food fairs and expos.

Distribution at: Special Edition for: Wielka Gala Liderów Polskiego Biznesu

January

Wielka Gala Liderów Polskiego Biznesu Jan 2014 Warsaw

February

GulFood Feb 2014, Dubai EuroSeafood Expo May 2014,Brussels FancyFood, Jun–Jul 2014,New York

This directory is for companies seeking office space, with complete listings of modern office buildings in Polnad’s largest 25 cities.

March

MIPIM Cannes Mar 2014 EXPOReal Munich Oct 2014 other real estate and general business conferences in 2014 in Poland and abroad

April

PSEW Polish Wind Energy Association’s annual Conference and Expo, May 2014

An excellent directory of wind developers and investors, as well as strategies of wind farm developers, maps of all wind farms in Poland, and relevant articles.

Green Power Expo Poznań, May 2014

May

Annual ASPIRE Conference May 2014 Annual ABSL Conference 2014 ILA Berlin Air Show May 2014

June

The most-complete directory of all BPO/ Outsourcing and Shared Services companies in Poland. Information includes services provided, target sectors, top management, list of client companies, and strategic plans.

Farnborough Int’l Airshow Jul 2014 Międzynarodowy Salon Przemysłu Obronnego Kielce, Sep 2014

Special Edition for: Wrocław Global Forum

July

Wrocław Global Forum Jun 2014 IPO Summitt Warsaw, June 2014

Guide focusing on Poland’s aerospace and aviation industries, including lists of key manufacturers and suppliers.

August

Special Edition for: Krynica Economic Forum

Guide to Warsaw Stock Exchange-listed companies. Targets foreign institutional investors, as well as large private investors.

September

SIAL Paris, Oct 2014

October For foreign direct investors, particularly in the BPO/ outsourcing, greenfield manufacturing, and real estsectors. Provid es essential data and key contacts in ate Poland’s major cities/regions, and special economic zones.

Krynica Economic Forum Sep 2014

ExpoReal Munich, Oct 2014 MIPIM Cannes, Mar 2015

November

Business Conferences in Warsaw (Q4 2014–2015) MAPIC Nov 2014, Cannes CEE Retail Awards Feb 2015, Warsaw

December

Shopping Centre forums during 2015

Contact: This directory provides retailers and developers with listings of the top 200 modern shopping centres in Poland’s largest 25 cities.

Thom Barnhardt tel. kom.: (0-508) 143 963 barnhardt@biznespolska.pl Wiktor Gliński tel. kom.: 694 492 067 wglinski@biznespolska.pl

CEE ENERGY AWARDS

CEE ENERGY AWARDS 2014

May 29th 2014, Warsaw, Poland, Hotel InterContinental www.ceeEnergyAwards.com