January 2013 vol. 5 no. 1(32)
Beat up and bruised… …Yet Poland’s bull market stumbles forward Energy:
City News:
Events:
Warsaw to host United Nations Climate Change Treaty in 2013
Gdynia-Warsaw train to reach 160 km per hour?
CEE Green Building Awards
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Table of Contents January 2013
vol. 5 no. 1(32)
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4 Equities 4 Beat up and bruised – yet Poland’s bull market stumbles forward 7 Energy (7) Warsaw to host United Nations Climate Change Treaty in 2013; CEC launches Energy & Environment Practice; (8) Poland’s Shale Gas Dream sputters; (10) Polish Renewable Energy market finishes tough year, braces for 2013 12 Food Exports (12) Ritual slaughter splits Polish religious, rights groups; (13) Fish entrepreneur gets $167 million; Food producers from Eastern Poland attend SIAL Middle East; Polish food sales in UK increase 22% for Tesco 14 FDI News (14) European Investment Bank supports Warsaw Metro with EUR 139 million; EBRD increases its investment in Poland’s Meritum Bank; (15) Bupa buys Lux Med for 1.625 billion pln; (16) Cooperation agreement between PAIiIZ and city of Elbląg; PAIiIZ awards investors; (17) Poland – Latvia Cooperation Agreement; (18) “Korczowa Logistic Park” – start of investment; (14–18) FDI in brief 22 City News (22) Poznań; Łódź; (23) Gdańsk; (25) Kraków; (26) Wrocław, Lower Silesia; (27) Katowice; Silesia; (28) Szczecin; Lublin 29 Chambers of Commerce News (29) British; (30) Portugal; Canada; (31) Belgian; (32) Dutch; USA; (33) Scandinavia 34 Business Calendar 36 Events (36) CEE Green Building Awards; (37) Łódź office opening; (38) SIAL Paris attracts Polish food exporters; (39) Fleet Cars Expo
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Equities
Beat up and bruised – yet Poland’s bull market stumbles forward Winners and losers. Though rarely admitted, most of us are attracted to the dramatic stories of fortunes found or fallen angels. The year 2012 – brutal to some and beautiful to others – provided plenty of examples of both corporate stumbles and big successes.
2012 the Polish courts announced 877 bankruptcies, an increase of 21.3 percent over 2011 (which was up 10% from 2010). (Bankruptcies in just the construction sector surged 53 percent.) On the Warsaw Stock Exchange, 20 firms – a new record – announced bankruptcy (either a liquidation or restructuring, known as uklad). While the troubles fell disproportionately on the construction sector (which suffered primarily due to cost overruns on fixed-contract road and stadium construction projects), retailers like Bomi and Euromark (Alpinus and Planet Outdoor brands) stumbled into bankruptcy at the end of the year, nearly entirely wiping out continued on page 6
In this, our annual look-back at the Warsaw Stock Exchange, we see themes – too much debt, too little focus on profitability, unbridled ambition - that reflect our human hubris, occasionally misplaced optimism, and yearning to triumph. And the continuously changing market punished the complacent, rewarded the prudent, and disrupted entrenched players. Behind the micro stories of entrepreneurs leading their companies to fortunes or nursing their wounds, the macro-economic context looms large: a world-wide bull market driven by a flood of liquidity from the world’s central banks, while Greece and Spain sink deeper into recession,
Assets swell to 116 billion Euro Poland’s assets under management exceed Euro 116 billion in 1H 2012, Inteliace Research Reports “The asset management sector in Poland is growing quickly at 14% p.a. despite the crisis. Total assets under management in Poland exceeded Euro 116 billion as of 1H2012. As confidence in the sustainability of the public pension system is eroding, the demand for voluntary pension saving is growing,” says Marcin Mazurek, director of Inteliace Research, at a presentation of Inteliace’s report, “Asset Management and Investment Funds in Poland.”
Bankrupt companies – WSE dest a bilizing the Euro and damaging the broader European economy. In Poland, mixed messages also abound, with the broad WIG index gaining 26.2 % in 2012, yet volumes and IPOs down. The small-cap New Connect index lost 8%, signaling trouble brewing in this low-liquidity market. While Poland is heralded as one of Europe’s best economies, Coface recently reported that bankruptcies are on the rise and are the highest in the last 8 years. In
Total assets under management in Poland exceeded Euro 116 billion as of 1H2012. With a 51% share, pension assets constituted the largest part of the AM sector in Poland. Two remaining segments - investment funds and insurance - contributed approximately 25% each. As for key players, Aviva, ING, and PZU group were the top asset managers in terms of AuM; in total, they held almost half the entire AM market. In recent years, significant changes could be observed in the investment funds business. The number of managers and the number of managed funds has increased significantly due to new entrants increasingly challenging incumbents. New investment vehicles,
6
6
3 2 1
1
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012*
including individual closed-end funds, specialty products, and new investment strategies, became available to investors. The demand for alternative products benefited smaller, more flexible fund managers who were able to grow their portfolios. In contrast, market leaders, including Pioneer, continued to lose market share. After many years of making significant profits, since 2010, most fund managers have experienced falling profitability in 2011 and 2012. The outlook for the asset management industry is highly positive. Key volumes are expected to sustain solid growth, while the margins, despite an expected drop, are likely to remain on a stillhigh level. n
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January 2013
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Equities
Rafał Brzóska, Integer
Poland’s Top 25 and Bottom 25 WSE-listed firms – 2012 (Company names and percentage change in 2012)
Top 25
Bottom 25
Herkules SA 245.95% Narodowy Fundusz Inwestycyjny Krezus SA 200.65% Graal SA 162.74% Energoinstal SA 132.37% Kino Polska TV SA 126.97% EMC Instytut Medyczny SA 126.24% LPP SA 125.30% Pfleiderer Grajewo SA 122.13% Intersport Polska SA 118.52% Ergis-Eurofilms SA 115.48% ZPUE SA 114.63% Zakłady Przemysłu Jedwabniczego WISTIL SA 111.11% Avia Solutions Group AB 110.53% Mennica Polska SA 108.66% Industrial Milk Company SA 101.85% Narodowy Fundusz Inwestycyjny Empik Media & Fashion SA 100.84% Zakłady Azotowe w Tarnowie-Mościcach SA 98.16% Aplisens SA 86.49% ASBISc Enterprises PLC 85.81% Eko Export SA 81.76% Wielton SA 81.62% Apator SA 80.78% Zakłady Przemysłu Cukierniczego Otmuchów SA 79.23% Relpol SA 75.60% BEST SA 74.80% ATM SA 73.17%
Redan SA PCC Intermodal SA Atlanta Poland SA Triton Development SA PBO Anioła SA ATLANTIS SA Miraculum SA Sadovaya Group SA Reinhold Polska AB Westa ISIC SA Celtic Property Developments SA JHM DEVELOPMENT SA Przetwórstwo Tworzyw Sztucznych Plast-Box SA Narodowy Fundusz Inwestycyjny Octava SA Dom Maklerski IDM SA Dolnośląskie Surowce Skalne SA Intakus SA ENERGOMONTAŻ-POŁUDNIE SA ABM Solid SA Bomi SA Euromark Polska SA PBG SA One-2-One SA Alterco SA Hydrobudowa Polska SA Elstar Oils SA
-67.56% -67.92% -69.21% -70.34% -71.35% -71.74% -74.42% -75.06% -75.65% -75.97% -76.56% -77.62% -77.85% -78.81% -83.85% -84.19% -84.29% -85.95% -90.00% -91.59% -92.24% -92.77% -93.78% -95.05% -97.33% -100.00%
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2013 January
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Equities continued from page 4
investors. Bomi operates a network of highend food shops but was squeezed by keener operators like Alma and Piotr i Pawel, as well as an unserviceable debt load. Fully 10% of companies on the WSE lost more than 75% of their share value in 2012.
Choking on debt Other underperformers as a group were the real estate developers, with shares up just 9% in 2012, as their fortunes faded after a strong 2011. The capital-intensive sector – heavily dependent on bank debt financing – continues to face headwinds as banks keep to their conservative lending practices. As a result, consolidation has begun. Czech Property Investments AS announced major stakes in Orco Development and Ablon, the Budapestbased developer, and plans to look for ways to consolidate some operations, reduce costs, and find development synergies. (We hope this also means that the albatross-like Zlota 44 residential tower will finally be completed.) And developers Gant and Futureal (another Hungarian developer) have announced plans to cooperate on development projects. Waiting in the wings is Celtic Development, with a rich portfolio of real estate and development potential, but with its shares down 76% in 2012. Celtic is rumored
to have disputes among its major shareholders and long-lasting frustrations with its large-scale Ursus urban renewal project. We expect some positive news, in terms of alliances, to come from Celtic in 2013.
And the mighty shall fall Shares in Telekomunikacja Polska were down nearly 30% in 2012, as the firm slashed its dividend to preserve cash. Its once-core business of fixed line telephony continues to atrophy and its mobile brand Orange faces competition at every turn. Proud TP is less proud these days, and its CEO even commented that the firm may one day be up for sale.
But enough bad news. The top 10% performers generated returns for investors ranging from 75% to 245%, through a combination of strong operating performance or simply bouncing back from oversold positions. The best performers were often led by tenacious entrepreneurs who have found strong business models – like LPP, the Gdynia-based retailer with iconic brands Reserved and CroppTown. The firm designs all of its clothing in Poland, then produces everything in China. LPP Founder Marek Piechocki best embodies the advice to “buy commodities, sell brands”. LPP shares increased 125% in 2012.
And Integer (InPost) – up 62% in 2012 – founded a profitable business by competing with that most-slothful of beasts, the Polish post office. Founder Rafal Brzoska is expanding the firm into western Europe and the Czech Republic. And Graal, the seafood firm, is Poland’s largest producer of canned fish. The firm has consistently built its brands and avoided the commodity-like brutal pricing of the fish farming and wholesaling business. Graal shares were up 162% in 2012 – in stark contrast to the 10% loss that Wilbo investors suffered.
Adjust. Improvise. Change. Entrepreneur James van Bergh, who earlier had worked in several different businesses, showed the value of looking for new opportunities and focusing on a “ big win”. His Benefit Systems has made him a rich man, and shares of Benefit were up 66% in 2012, as the firm continues to deliver strong operating results. The year’s top performer was Herkules, itself a result of a merger several years ago between two competitors. Shares were up nearly 250% in 2012, as investors reassessed the crane operators prospects and the firm delivered strong turn-around operating results. n
Bankruptcies by sector Sector
Bankruptcies Bankruptcies Bankruptcies Change 2010 2011 2012 2011/2012
Industrial sectors.: Metal production Food production Clothing and textiles Machine production Furniture production Construction materiale/commodities Printing Wood production Plastics production Other production Retail: Wholesale Trade Retail Trade Transport Constuction/Building sector Real Estate-related Professional Services, science and technical Other sectors
250 218 227 +4% 50 47 39 -17% 35 34 37 +9% 28 15 23 +53% 18 17 22 +30% 15 12 17 +42% 20 6 14 +133% 15 10 14 +40% 23 22 11 -50% 15 21 11 -48% 45 34 39 +15% 147 180 208 +15,5% 107 115 124 +8% 25 46 67 +46% 40 40 31 -22% 98 143 218 +53% 12 28 37 +32% 25 20 34 +70% 83 94 122 +30%
Total
655
723
877 +21,3%
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January 2013
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Energy
Warsaw to host United Nations Climate Change Treaty in 2013 Coal-rich Poland will host the next round of UN climate talks in 2013. The decision to hold the 19th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) in Warsaw, in 2013 was adopted by negotiators from over 190 countries at the recent 18th session of COP, held in Doha, Qatar in late November. Organization of the next climate conference means also that Poland will hold the presidency in climate convention from November 2013 to November 2014, and the Polish Minister of the Environment will chair the COP 19 deliberations. Poland was chosen on the basis of geographical rotation as next year marks the
CEC launches Energy & Environment Practice
turn of east European countries to host the annual UN event. Poland, which relies on carbon-intensive coal for about 90% of its power needs, has already voiced concern that greater action on climate will harm its economy. At the latest UN climate conference in Doha, negotiators extended the Kyoto Protocol, the only internationally binding treaty on cutting emissions of greenhouse gases, to the end of 2020. The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The major feature of the Kyoto Protocol is that it sets binding targets for 37 industrialised countries and the European community for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Poland earlier hosted the COP conference, in Poznan in 2008. n
CEC Government Relations is pleased to announce the creation of its Energy & Environment Practice. It will build on more than 10 years experience of energy and environment regulatory and legislative advisory work, and focus on research and analysis as well as regular legislative monitoring. Michal Koczalski, hitherto account manager for clients dealing with renewable energy sources, waste management and energy-intensive industries will coordinate the work of the E&E team. Apart from core public affairs activities, team members will work on analyses of specialised aspects of policy in the fields of renewables, nuclear power, shale gas and environment protection. CEC’s E&E unit will also focus on cooperation with partners from the public, private and non-governmental sectors, sharing and exchanging knowledge on relevant issues. In the coming weeks, CEC’s website (www.cecgr. com) will launch a dedicated E&E section, and the team will draft newsletters to be sent to interested parties. n
Bankruptcies in Poland: 1997-2012 2000
1863 1800
1798
1674
1600
1400
1289
1200
1116 1017
1000
800
794
877
864
793 691 576
600
447
655
723
411
400
200
0
1997 1998
1999 2000 2001
2002 2003 2004
2005 2006 2007
2008 2009 2010
2011 2012 Source: Coface
2013 January
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Energy
Poland’s Shale Gas Dream sputters About a year ago, Poland lit what it calls the "Flame of Hope," the first flare to burn over a shale gas well in the country. Its photo ran as a full-page ad in Gazeta Wyborcza and Rzeczpospolita. "Don't put out the flame of hope," the caption read, urging readers to express their support for shale gas development.
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Ever since the U.S. Department of Energy's April 2011 announcement that Poland may hold enormous quantities of shale gas -- 5.3 trillion cubic meters, enough for 300 years of consumption -hydrocarbon fever has swept the country. Even when the Polish Geological Institute and the U.S. Geological Survey reduced those figures by 90 percent in early 2012, the faith in shale remained unshaken. Nowhere else in Europe has shale gas generated so much enthusiasm among both politicians and the public. The government has already granted 111 exploration concessions on an area of 35,000 square miles, or about a third of the territory of Poland, while polls from last year suggest that 73 percent of the country's nearly 40 million people back developing shale. Shale gas, the official narrative goes, would bring in billions of dollars in foreign investments, generate hundreds of thousands of jobs, give a boost to the chemical sector, and even make Poland an exporter of natural gas, "a second Norway" in the words of the foreign minister, Radoslaw Sikorski. But the real reason shale gas has made such a stir in Poland is buried deep in the emotional sediments of history, where Russia embodies the perpetual nemesis, the perpetrator of the greatest crimes against the Polish nation. The hope is that shale gas would reduce Poland's reliance on Russian fossil fuels, while bringing the country closer to its ally the United States, a pioneer of shale gas extraction. "After years of dependence on our large neighbor, today we can say that my generation will see the day when we will be
independent in the area of natural gas and we will be setting terms," Prime Minister Donald Tusk told his compatriots when the “Flame of Hope” was first lit. Yet Poland is relatively energy independent and already working towards more tangible solutions to diversification. Gas constitutes just 13 percent of its primary energy supply, a third coming from Polish conventional wells. The government is also trying to diversify gas routes by investing in a new liquefied natural gas terminal on the Baltic Sea, expanding gas storage facilities; reverse-flow pipelines with the Czech Republic and Germany have already been completed. In addition, there are plans to build a 3 gigawatt nuclear power plant by 2023 and double that capacity by 2030. While the push for
Despite the project’s importance, shale gas in Poland seems to be headed the way of the missile shield
renewables has been sluggish, as prices of solar and wind generation continue to plummet, growth in that area is starting to speed up. Most importantly, as the world's ninth largest coal producer (and the second largest in the European Union) Poland generates about 90 percent of its electricity from domestic coal, of which it has a supply that could potentially last hundreds of years. Poland's energy import dependency is accordingly one of the lowest in the EU, according to Eurostat. The country would have to start moving away from coal to reduce its carbon emissions, but a 2012 study by Cornell University suggest that shale gas, though often advertised as cleaner, might not have significantly lower carbon footprint than coal when looking at the complete cycle of production. None of this has deterred the Polish government, which has aggressively pushed for development, dismissing all objections, as shale gas has become
a powerful ideological tool, central to Polish foreign policy. “For many years the Polish government underestimated energy policy,” says Agata Hinc, an energy analyst with demosEuropa, a Polish think tank. “This has changed mostly because of shale gas. Our foreign policy was mostly about conventional security, but now it's more about creating and connecting new markets.” New markets, in this case, means markets beyond Russia: a country whose investments in Poland are increasingly unwelcome. Early this year, the Polish parliament passed a politically motivated resolution against a Russian bid for the heavily indebted Lotus Group, the country's second largest oil refiner. Then, in May, last-minute maneuvering thwarted a bid by the Russian company Acron to acquire Tarnow, a large fertilizer plant and a major consumer of gas, and the company had to settle for a minority stake. As Reuters reported in October, of 1,621 major foreign companies active in Poland, 389 are from Germany, while only five come from Russia. Economically, energy is the last significant link between the two countries. Russia currently supplies nearly all of Poland's oil and two-thirds of its gas, or about 11 billion cubic meters per year. Poland's largest oil-and-gas company PGNiG has an expensive long-term contract with Russia's Gazprom, the world's
Cezary Filipowicz, business development manager of United Oilfield Services
largest supplier of natural gas. The disputes between Russia and Ukraine in 2006 and 2009, and Russia and Belarus in 2010 over gas pricing, which led to shortages in Europe, have further convinced Polish politicians that the country's energy security lies in diversification away from Russia. Shale gas, the reasoning
January 2013
www.bizpoland.pl goes, would offer if not complete independence, then at least a potential bargaining chip for lowering the price of Russian gas imports. "Russians probably understand that the era of selling gas for whatever price they wish is over," says Piotr Woźniak, the Chief National Geologist of Poland at the Ministry of the Environment. But the shift in Polish foreign policy – and the focus on shale gas – has come not only as a response to Russia, but also to prompting by the United States. In April 2010, the U.S. State Department launched the Global Shale Gas Initiative (since re-
Piotr Woźniak, the Chief National Geologist of Poland
named Unconventional Gas Technical Engagement Program) to “achieve greater energy security, meet environmental objectives and further U.S. economic and commercial interests.” The program, which aims to provide technical and regulatory assistance to selected countries, has become an administrative tool of U.S. foreign policy in the global battle over energy resources and the recalibration of political alliances. Despite the lack of a scientific consensus on the benefits and drawbacks of shale gas in the United States, the State Department has nonetheless initiated engagement programs all over the world, from Jordan to India to China; cooperation with Poland has been especially close. Hoping to emulate the U.S. “energy revolution,” Poland has come to rely on the United States to show the way. President Barack Obama, on his visit to Poland in May last year, made a special point of endorsing shale gas. After the failure of the Bush-era missile defense, a proposed antiballistic missile shield to be based in Eastern Europe, shale gas has become perhaps the most significant project in U.S.-Polish relations. And though much smaller in scale than the missile shield, both symbolize the same idea: a U.S. deterrent of Russian
2013 January
Energy foreign-policy interests in Central and Eastern Europe. Despite the project's importance, shale gas in Poland seems to be headed the way of the missile shield, which the Obama administration scrapped because of Russian objections in 2009. Difficult geology, an uncompetitive service sector, poor infrastructure, and lack of rigs have hampered development. Poland has a venerable oil and gas sector, but most of the transmission pipelines are based in the southwest, while major shale gas areas are in the northeast. Strict EU environmental laws, as well as unclear regulatory and tax frameworks have further eroded prospects. And while exploration has been going on for a few years now, only 33 wells have been drilled, with just eight of them fracked (at least 200 would have to be drilled in the exploratory stage, just to assess the actual size of reserves). Preliminary results have not been encouraging, either: This summer, resource giant ExxonMobil withdrew from Poland after the failure of commercial gas flows, while its competitor ConocoPhillips decided not to exercise its 70 percent option in three concessions in northern Poland. Overall, costs per well have increased to $15 million, according to interviews with industry officials, roughly three times the cost in the United States. Some, like Cezary Filipowicz, the busi-
Yet Poland is relatively energy independent already, as Europe’s second largest coal producer ness development manager of United Oilfield Services, a Polish shale-gas service company, have suggested that Poland should lower its expectations. For many reasons – resources, ecology, the areas where production is possible – the revolution in gas supplies that happened in America will never happen in Poland. “Whoever expects that we'll be an exporter of gas for the European market is dreaming,” he says. Unlike conventional gas, however, shale gas requires significantly larger number of wells and economies of scale for production to be economically viable.
Without that, both industry representatives and energy analysts agree, it's hard to imagine costs coming down any time soon. Profitable, small-scale shale gas extraction is an oxymoron. Even the higher retail price of gas on the European market might not be enough to make up for production costs. Gazprom added
Overall, costs per well have increased to $15 million, roughly three times the cost in the United States. another obstacle in October, when it significantly lowered the price of its exports to Poland, further limiting the country’s financial incentives for developing shale gas. “If Polish shale gas is more expensive than the gas from Russia, then it's not viable to produce. That's the normal way of the market,” says Marcin Zięba, general director of the Polish Exploration and Production Industry Organization, an umbrella association of shale gas companies. Government officials optimistically prophesy production in a year or two, but a 2011 report from the International Energy Agency expects real development starting “no sooner than the early 2020s,” in the best-case scenario. In a dynamic world, where political and economic changes occur so rapidly, that might be too long to wait. And even if production starts, there is the danger that increasing the share of gas in Poland's energy supply could lock the country in an even greater dependency on Russia, if Polish shale reserves prove short-lived. Despite the economic and environmental realities, both politicians and the public in Poland continue to believe in the potential of the country's unconfirmed, unconventional resources. Whether the Polish government and private companies will manage to start production, or whether shale gas is just a foreign policy tool to needle Russia, boost U.S. presence in the region, and increase Polish visibility within the EU, remains unclear. The Flame of Hope, in the meantime, has begun to sputter out. (This article is excerpted from Foreign Policy magazine.)
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Energy
Polish Renewable Energy market finishes tough year, braces for 2013 After a tumultuous year in the renewable energy sector in Poland, this month’s Renewable Energy Newsletter concludes with an outlook for the Polish Renewable Energy market.
dr Christian Schnell
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In 2012 all investors awaited the RES Act, but the legislative process has been stuck in the Council of Ministers since October this year, which lead to uncertainty. Additionally, the Parliament with the support from the government, started to work on an amendment to the Energy Law to avoid further consequences of delayed implementation of the 28/2009 EU-Directive without changing the royalty system at all. The first reading of the amended law was finished at the end of last week, so at the beginning of 2013, the Parliamentary subcommittee for energy will deal with this amendment. Due to oversupply, the certificate price on the spot market has been decreasing since spring this year, which was forecast as early as in autumn 2011 by the think-tank Institute of Renewable Energy IEO. At the very moment the price on the spot market amounts to PLN 210, i.e., 75 percent of the compensation fee. Finally, the electricity prices seem to have stabilized for the time being after an increase of 4 percent in 2011, and some experts predict that the electricity prices will be stable in the forthcoming years due to merit orders. To start with a general statement: the Polish government seems to have no strategic planning for its energy mix for the next two decades. Shale gas exploration now seems to be less attractive due to economic and ecological reasons. Poland moved forward resolutely with this topic, but most other EU countries have been less affirmative, for some good reasons: the negotiation power of Gazprom is weakening as US gas is getting cheaper, in addition the import of liquid gas from third countries is threatening Gazprom’s negotiating position, and Polish shale gas deposits are much more difficult to reach than it was originally predicted on the basis of
the original imprecise geological information resulting in an increase of costs. Furthermore environmental constraints are serious in areas with a relatively dense population. What about the Polish nuclear power plants? Polish nuclear power plants seem not to be a serious undertaking thus far, as the government has postponed its final investment decision until 2015, i.e., after the next Parliamentarian elections. The Polish state-owned utilities have already claimed that they do not have financial resources to develop shale gas extraction and nuclear power plants at the same time. Furthermore, Russia is moving ahead with the construction of its Baltic nuclear power plant involving approx. 2.3 GW to be located in the Kaliningrad district with an anticipated grid connection in 2017/2018. As 49 percent of the shares will be offered to foreign investors, a power export outside of the Kaliningrad district is very likely, which may question the economics of the planned nuclear power plant in Northern Poland. Consequently, Polish TSO PSE Operator has already started to negotiate the connection terms with Russia to transmit power to the Polish transmission grid. For the time being coal and lignite firing are still ruling with a 90 percent share of the Polish energy mix. While nuclear power is questioned in general and gas prices outside of the US are still high, coal is experiencing a worldwide renaissance, as the International Energy Agency recently stated. The share of coal in the worldwide energy mix is increasing again - with unpredictable consequences for climate change. The traditional Polish energy sector is delighted about this development, as it seems to favor Polish coal mines. But this is not the whole truth. Approximately 25 percent of energy coal is already imported to Poland, mostly from Eastern Europe. Polish coal mines, although subsidized, are and will be hardly able to compete with the major coal exporters such as Russia, Ukraine or South Africa. With shrinking coal imports to the US due to the US shale gas revolution, these countries will export cheap energy coal to other markets. Therefore, the future of Polish coal mines remains as far from bright, as it is for German or UK coal mines. So actually the Polish strategy seems to favor the import of Russian gas, Russian
coal (including Russian biomass) and Russian nuclear power? Rather not, although the recent development has substantial consequences for Polish trade balance, not to talk about the political impact of energy independence. So generally renewable energy is a way to provide more energy independence and should be welcomed. And it could create new jobs. In Germany the renewable energy sector offers more than 300,000 jobs. For the sake of comparison, in Poland it offers less than 30,000 – with half of the population of Germany. There is a good reason for this unfavorable relation. The Polish state-owned energy sector still favors its special way of going green: co-firing of biomass in depreciated coal firing power plants. The technical solution is neither innovative, nor does it create new jobs and biomass shipping of actually more than 2 million tons per year from more than 50 countries worldwide does not provide an acceptable carbon footprint. But as long as the European Union is not able to decide on a reasonable solution as to how to improve sustainability and to restrict the worldwide biomass transportation, the lobbying power of the Polish state-owned utilities seems to be strong enough. Due to the lack of compromise between the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Treasury about carving out of co-firing, the current RES Act draft is stuck in the Council of Ministers. But for how long? In our view, it should not take long. The Minister of Economy has already agreed that the used coal firing boilers installations can be repowered as dedicated biomass single-firing installations. In 2016/2017 approx. 5 GW of coal-firing power plants will need to be shut down due to the EU environmental obligations. Utilities, at least partly, plan to repower these power plants as single-fired biomass installations. Due to the actual wording of the RES Act draft, starting from 2015 a RES installation has to be produced no later than 36 months before commissioning, which would not enable repowering of the used coal firing boilers as single-fired biomass installations. But the Ministry of Economy has already agreed to change the wording of Par. 84 Sec. 9 so that the used coal firing boilers after repowering may count as “new” RES installation as well, thus providing the right to receive green
January 2013
www.bizpoland.pl certificates through a 15-year term. This “new” biomass-firing installations would be able to at least partly replace the actual 5 GW of co-firing, so the Ministry of Treasury has already reasonably proposed a compromise to shut down the existing co-firing installations in 2017 when the repowered coal-firing boilers will be ready for commissioning as single-firing biomass installations. The Ministry of Economy has December 17 agreed on this compromise, and finally December 20 the Committee for European Affairs at the Ministers’ Council decided to forward the so-called three-pack (including the RES Act draft) to the Steady Committee of the Ministers’ Council consisting of the relevant ViceMinisters. According to the most recent official RES draft dated October 9, the recent correction-coefficient amounting to 1.0 was to be granted to co-firing units for 5 years – nevertheless, not from the moment the new RES act will be in force, but from the moment the given unit is licensed under the existing royalty scheme, e.g. 2008 and 2009 for most of the co-firing units. After the Ministry of Economy and the Minister of Treasury reach a compromise as to the legislative process the only larger obstacle that remains will be the feed-in-tariffs for installations of up to 75200kW (depending on technology), which are generally questioned by the Ministry of Finance. The question is how this will influence the market price of green certificates? By the end of 2012, a few utilities will have constructed large single-fired biomass installations, e.g. the 190 MW Polaniec power plant with GDF Suez as investor, due to a change in law which was previously to enter into force at the beginning of 2013 (actually postponed until the beginning of 2016) creating a less favorable mix of agricultural biomass and other biomasses. This will increase the number of green certificates again most probably leading to a relatively low price level, although the quotation obligation will increase to 12 percent in 2013 in comparison to 10.4 percent in 2012. An oversupply of green certificates in 2013 is therefore likely. Additionally, a few TWh of green certificates are not sold, as traders are still waiting for the development of prices of green certificates at the beginning of 2013 taking into account the increased quotation obligation. This may lead to a further destabilization of the certificate price. Quite to the contrary, the fact that large industrial consumers will be obliged to purchase green energy according to the new law constitutes a stabilizing factor. Furthermore, another stabilizing
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Energy factor for the certificate price constitutes the investigation of biomass imports by the Energy Regulatory Authority, URE, which since October this year requires original invoices and legalized documentation from biomass importers, as everybody is aware that the import of agricultural biomass on such a large scale from outside of the EU does not always seem to be a fair play. Finally, round timber (PL: drewno pełnowartościowe) class S-2c cannot be used for energy production in biomass heat and power plants to achieve royalties according to the RES Act anymore. This will lead to a further significant decrease of Polish biomass available for energy production, as actually approx. 6 mln tons of biomass is produced in the country itself, but without class S-2c round timber it will be less than 5 mln. However, the need for biomass following the connection of Polaniec and other large biomass singlefired installations to the grid may increase to a level of 10 mln tons per year, thus requiring an import of 5 mln tons biomass. From todays’ perspective, the necessity to double the biomass imports in 2013 will show a tough competition between a newly built single-fired units and depreciated cofiring units, with substantial price increases for biomass. This may help to change the view of the decision makers as to the necessity of co-firing. For the renewable energy sector the question is how long the unfavorable price development of green certificates will last? It seems reasonable that after 2013 the pricing of green certificates will most probably improve significantly, as the biomass imports will reach a natural limit, but most importantly the quotation obligation will increase again from 12 percent in 2013 to 14 percent in 2014. This tendency might be visible already in the second half of 2013, as the already issued green certificates will be held back to be sold in 2014. But how to improve the system to avoid further uncontrolled price decrease of green certificates in the foreseeable future? In our opinion a slight redraft of the headroom solution in case of oversupply of certificates should be the easiest solution. Just to remember the existing wording: if for a period of two consecutive quarters the average price of certificates at the energy stock exchange amounts to less than 75 percent of the compensation fee, the Ministry of Economy may - but does not have to - increase the quotation, e.g. the percentage obligation to purchase green energy to an appropriate value. During the legislative process this clause originally using the word “must” has unfortunately
been changed to “may” and is therefore not bankable anymore. However, a further unfavorable development of the certificate price in the first half of 2013 probably amounting below 75 percent of the compensation fee should force the legislator to improve this solution to provide a bankable headroom solution at a level of 75 percent. According to the opinion of Institute of Renewable Energy, due to the overall cost of the implementation of the 28/2009 EU-Directive, the headroom solution has nevertheless limited potential, as more RES Electric Energy provides to less cheaper RES Heat Energy in the green energy balance what will be reflected immediately in the total cost of implementing the 2010 National RES Action Plan. Finally, one should not forget the ongoing initiatives regarding the sustainable use of biofuels and biomass at a European level. Although not discussed yet at a European level a restriction allowing for firing of biomass generated within a radius of up to 300 kilometers from the installation could be a proper solution to avoid large scale worldwide biomass transportation with a generally questionable carbon footprint. (Source: DeBenedetti Majewski Szcześniak Newsletter; dr Christian Schnell, cschnell@dms.net.pl )
PV Power Plants international conference March 14-15, 2013 in Warsaw In 2013, PV Power Plants - EU, the renowned European meeting place for professional exchange and networking organized by Solarpraxis, will be hosted in Warsaw, Poland. This year, regional thematic priority will be given to increasing international markets such as Eastern Europe (with a focus on Poland and its new PV legislation). The technical focus of the presentations will lie on standardization and quality assurance, financing and insurance, as well as the grid connection of large PV projects. DeBenedetti Majewski Szczesniak is a partner of this conference, and Christian Schnell is a member of the program committee. n
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Food Exports
Ritual slaughter splits Polish religious, rights groups Banning the ritual slaughter of livestock for food, a bedrock of the Jewish and Muslim faiths, has split Poland into opposing camps of religious groups, animal rights campaigners and flourishing meat exporters.
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Animal rights activists backed by left-wing politicians in November won a key victory when Poland’s Constitutional Court voided regulations that since 2004 have enabled the production of Jewish kosher and Muslim halal meat. The court upheld complaints that slaughter without prior stunning breached a 1997 law on the humane treatment of animals. But both Jewish and Muslim clerics see the pending ban as going against the tenets of their faiths. They also argue that their traditional method of butchering an animal with a single, rapid cut to the throat minimises pain and suffering. Poland’s agriculture sector, thriving on meat exports, warns it would deal a major blow to the economy. The impact of the ruling, however, remains moot as it enters into force on January 1st, the same day as a European Union directive setting common rules for the production of kosher and halal meat across the 27-nation bloc, which Poland joined in 2004. But individual EU member states are allowed some level of discretion and, fresh from their landmark courtroom win, animal rights campaigners insist the fight is not over. “Ritual slaughter is inhumane, as the animals suffer,” said Robert Biedron, a member of parliament from the left-wing opposition Palikot Movement. “We live in the 21st Century, and we should ban this kind of method, even if it’s authorised by religious tradition,” he told AFP. Various official and community-group estimates put Poland’s Jewish and Muslim population at between 20,000 and 30,000 each. For Jewish community leader Piotr Kadlcik, kosher slaughter is essential. “It’s a serious matter, even if only around a few hundred families actually follow kosher rules,” he told AFP. “Polish law guarantees
us the right to ritual slaughter,” he insisted, before condemning anti-Semitic slurs circulating on the Internet since the issue has been in the spotlight. International Jewish organisations have also taken Polish authorities to task. “Kosher butchering is essential for sustenance of Jewish life and its ban hurts Jews not only in Poland but in other places across Europe,” Rabbi Menachem Margolin, head of the Brussels-based European Jewish Association, wrote in a letter to Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski. Margolin also warned that a ban would be “devastating to Jewish welfare and freedom of religion”. The issue lacks the same politicallytinged feel as in Western European countries with large Muslim communities, where some opponents of ritual slaughter are accused of exploiting animal welfare campaigns for racist reasons. Still, Poland’s Muslims are concerned. “The ban hasn’t yet come into force, and we hope it won’t come into force. If they do, it will be a serious blow to religious freedom,” said Bronislaw Talkowski, head of the country’s six-century-old Tatar Muslim community. In Talkowski’s view the animal rights campaigners’ arguments were part of a “game”. Jewish and Muslim groups have the firm backing of those in the farm sector for whom the production of kosher and
halal meat for export is a major source of income. Poland is home to around two dozen abattoirs specialised in kosher and halal butchery, with the value of last year’s exports estimated at 250-350 million euros. According to agriculture ministry estimates, the country exports around 100,000 ritually-slaughtered livestock annually to some 20 nations including Turkey, Israel, Germany and France. Wieslaw Roznanski, head of the national meat-industry federation UPEMI, called on Poland to continue to allow ritual butchery -- and save jobs. “If not, we’re going to lose the markets that we’ve won. And it’ll be much harder to return to them later,” he told AFP. “If we lose those markets, a string of abattoirs will go bust and thousands of people will be out of work,” he added. Overall, Poland exports more than twothirds of its beef, and losing key ritual slaughter markets would be a disaster for the entire sector, producers warn. Aware of the interlocking faith and economic fears, the country’s government has promised an in-depth review of the issue before the first of the year. “A legal draft allowing ritual slaughter is already ready to be submitted to parliament,” Agriculture Minister Stanislaw Kalemba said in midDecember. “Ritual slaughter is authorised in around 20 European countries, and Poland should allow it too,” he said. n
January 2013
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Food Exports
Fish entrepreneur gets $167 million Polish entrepreneur Jerzy Malek, whose Ustka-based Morpol is Europe’s largest salmon processor, has agreed to sell out to Norwegian group Marine Harvest. Marine Harvest, the world’s biggest salmon producer, is in a drive to become a “feed-to-table” fish giant. It agreed to buy 48.5% of Morpol from Malek, and unveiled plans to buy up the rest of the shares. The Norwegian group will pay $167 million to Malek, who founded Morpol 16 years ago, and grew it into a salmon products group present in 39 countries, and employing 3,500 people. This deal, which Marine Harvest will pay in a mixture of cash and shares, is a premium of 39% to the closing price in mid-December.
Food producers from Eastern Poland attend SIAL Middle East 10 entrepreneurs from Eastern Poland promoted their products at the trade fair in Abu Dhabi during a food sector trade mission organized as a part of the Eastern Poland Economic Promotion Programme.
And Marine Harvest will submit an offer for the rest of Morpol stockholders to sell out at the same price, which values Morpol’s total equity at $344 million.
‘Giant leap’ The acquisition is “in line with Marine Harvest’s strategy of forming a world-leading integrated protein group”, Ole-Eirik Leroy, the Marine Harvest chairman, said. While Morpol has some salmon farming activities, to add to the Marine Harvest
by European Union economic promotion funds. The delegation included dairy, honey, sweets, forest fruits and spice producers. The products were presented at the Eastern Poland regional stand by their producers. The visit was an opportunity to strengthen the contact with local business and trade fair industry representatives from Dubai. Based on the SIAL trade fair, five Polish companies signed contracts with food importers for USD 633,000. The trade fair lasted three days, in mid-November. n
Polish food sales in UK increase 22% for Tesco SIAL, whose flagship event is the annual food expo for Europe, is branching out to Asia, and its foray into the Gulf States offers an alternative to the annual GulFood expo in Dubai, which operates at full capacity and can not accommodate additional exhibitors. The Eastern Poland food producers attendance at the SIAL Middle East trade fair, organized for the third time, reflects the growing significance of the Persian Gulf countries for European food exporters. The delegation’s costs were funded
2013 January
Giant food retailer Tesco is putting its heft and distribution network behind a push to increase the sale of Polish foods in its UK supermarkets. Products like Winary mayonnaise, Prince Polo wafers and Lajkonik breadsticks can be found in as many as 600 Tesco stores all over the Great Britain. Tesco’s promotion, "Taste of Poland", lasted til the end of December 2012. Polish products have been offered at reduced prices and also in special promotional offers such as ‘3 products for a pound’. Additionally, 40,000 Tesco Clubcard loyalty program participants were sent special discount coupons for Polish products.
production empire, these represent a relatively small part of the group. The bulk of Morpol’s operations are in markets such as smoked salmon and gravadlax, meaning that Marine Harvest’s “presence within value-added processing activities will take a giant leap through this transaction”, Mr Leroy said. Marine Harvest is seeking to diversify throughout the salmon production chain in an effort to avoid the volatility of commodity salmon markets, with low fish prices behind an 84% slump in third-quarter earnings. Mr Malek “has been a pioneer within the value-added processing segment in Europe”, doing an “impressive job with developing the smoked salmon segment”, Marine Harvest said. Morpol, based in Ustka on the Baltic coast, said it had been informed in September of his desire to sell, “and made information available for potential buyers in order to secure the interests of all shareholders”. n
Not only is the ‘Taste of Poland’ campaign aimed at encouraging an even larger group of British customers to become familiar with Polish tastes, but also a unique opportunity to promote Polish producers. Jutrzenka sweets, Dawtona cucumbers and Tymbark juices are among the products on offer in British Tesco stores, which distribute nearly 250 Polish packaged-food products in its 600-store network. Brands such as Wedel and Polsnack have made their UK debut on the back of the iconic British retailer. As part of this ‘Taste of Poland’ promotional campaign, 75 new products were introduced to Great Britain. “It’s great news for the whole Polish community in Great Britain. Tesco allows Polish customers buy their favourite brands and products. I’m glad that we could introduce these goods also to British customers as well encourage them to try new tastes. We are proud that we can make use of our economies of scale helping Polish producers export their goods not only to Great Britain but also to Tesco stores in 12 countries of Asia and Europe”, said Tesco’s director of corporate and legal affairs Lucy Neville-Rolf. The value of Polish goods exported to Tesco supermarket chain globally reached GBP 330 million in 2012. Polish suppliers export mainly packaged food, meat and manufactured goods. n
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FDI News Polish Hotel to invest €400 million to build 17 new lodgings The privately-held Polish Hotel Company, which has a development agreement with operator InterContinental, is to build 17 new hotels across Poland in the next seven to eight years in an investment estimated at more than €400 million. The firm will start work on its second hotel next April in Katowice. The development plan for Poland consists of 17 branded hotels distributed among 12 Polish cities, namely: Warsaw, Krakow, Wrocław, Gdansk, Poznan, Łodz, Katowice, Opole, Zielona Gora, Lublin, Bydgoszcz, and Szczecin It recently opened a Holiday Inn Express Warsaw Airport hotel, and plans more openings in Warsaw in the coming years. It intends to open eight new hotels in the next two to three years. Most hotels will be developed within office developments as Polish Hotel will target business travelers, but some of them may be stand-alone. The Holiday Inn Express close to Warsaw airport is located in the Poleczki Business Park office complex. Miguel Martins said developers of major office complexes like hotel partners because it means less investment risk and helps leasing. He expects domestic executives to drive the market, given that Polish clients have accounted for 70% of overnight stays since the opening of the Warsaw Airport unit three months ago. There is growing demand in Poland for good quality hotels at reasonable prices as more and more executives are opting for three-star hotels. “We see our activities in Poland as part of the overall process of improving the country’s infrastructure,” Martins said. The Polish Hotel Company is owned by Portuguese bank, Banco Espirito Santo de Investimento, and investors Helder Santos and Miguel Felix Da Costa. In June, the group signed an agreement with InterContinental to develop its hotels in Poland, including its Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza brands. n
Spanish builder in Park & Ride deal
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Aldesa Construcciones will build a multi-level parking facility in Tychy, with 350 parking spacer, marking the first such investment in Silesia. The deal has a value of more than 53 million pln. n
European Investment Bank supports Warsaw Metro with EUR 139 million The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending PLN 555 million to finance the purchase of new rolling stock for Warsaw’s metro. The EIB loan will support the purchase of 35 metro trains and foster investment in the public transport sector in the city of Warsaw. 20 of the new trains will be used on the new line II of the Warsaw Metro, currently under construction, and the other 15 will be used to increase frequencies on the existing line I. Increasing the metro’s rolling stock will considerably upgrade the level of
service and improve the quality of public transport. As the EIB targets environmentally friendly subway transport services, the new metro trains will use advanced technology, increasing the energy efficiency of Warsaw’s metro fleet. A more frequently operating metro will reduce reliance on private cars and thereby mitigate the negative impact of transport on the environment. The support of the EIB will also trigger growth in jobs. Most trains will be assembled in Poland. n
EBRD increases its investment in Poland’s Meritum Bank Continuing its support for the financial sector in Poland, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is increasing its investment in Meritum Bank by €2.4 million, to €16.3 million, by purchasing newly issued shares of the bank.
As the EBRD announced, the investment is done in conjunction with the other key shareholders of Meritum Bank and is aimed at assisting further growth of the Gdańsk based lender. EBRD’s investment is matched by approximately EUR 2.4m from WCP Cooperatief U.A., an affiliate of the private equity fund Wolfensohn Capital Partners, L.P. Innova/4 L.P, indirectly controlling the biggest shareholder of Meritum Bank, is
providing an additional €5 million equity investment. Meritum Bank is a fast growing consumer finance bank in the Polish market. With a network of 116 own and partnership branches, it focuses on small business and general-purpose retail lending. “This will be our follow on investment in Meritum Bank, - said Lucyna Stanczak, EBRD Director for Poland. “It will further support the dynamic growth of Meritum Bank, enabling it further expansion of its portfolio of loans to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises”. “Partnership with EBRD and WCP on this project has been very successful to date”, said Krzysztof Kulig, Managing Partner at Innova Capital responsible for the Meritum transaction. “Thanks to the funding provided
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FDI News Skanska lands road construction deal worth 71 million pln
jointly by the shareholders, Meritum Bank was able to quadruple its asset base within the last 3 years and to reach net profitability. Also, during the last 3 years Meritum has created nearly 600 new jobs and became a significant employer in the region. Key operational focus going forward will be to diversify the client base and distribution further via, inter alia, developing cooperation with
Tesco and aiming to access the under-banked population, which is still significant outside the biggest cities.” After completion of the recapitalization, Meritum Bank’s equity will be increased by a total amount of approximately PLN 41 million. To date, EBRD has invested about €5.7 billion in the Polish economy in over 300 projects. n
Bupa buys Lux Med for 1.625 billion pln
Skanska has a new contract for the reconstruction of roads in the province of Podkarpackie for 71 million pln. Skanska has signed with Podkarpacki Regional Road Administration an investment agreement. “We will redevelop the provincial road No 855 Stalowa Wola Olbięcin, for the section that borders the province,” said the Marshal’s Office. The contract value is 85% financed by the EU. “The development of this road is the first step of bringing the provincial road in the direction of Tarnobrzeg Zaklikow, with the idea of building a new bridge over the San river” - said Deputy of Podkarpackie Cholewiński Zygmunt. The total length of the reconstructed road will be 19 km, and includes six bridges. n
Food producer UMA in Lodz SEZ In the Lodz Special Economic Zone the largest investment of the year will be built. UMA Investments is expanding, and will build its factory in sub-zone Kutno. The implementation of the new investment will involve the construction of a new production building, where food products will be manufactured. Completion of the entire project is scheduled for middle of 2015. So far, investors have declared in the Łódź Special Economic Zone investment of PLN 500 million, what can create over 850 jobs. n
ŁSEZ in the top five economic zones in the world Bupa, the global health care firm, is taking a deep plunge into the Polish market with its December-announced acquisition of Lux-Med.
The deal marks a great success for private equity firm Mid Europa Partners. Bupa currently serves 10.8 million clients across the world, and in 2011 generated
2013 January
40.7 billion pln in revenues. Key markets include the UK, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, and the US. “The acquisition requires the approval of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection in Poland and the Financial Supervisory Authority in Sweden, the realization of which may take another two or three months” - Bupa said in a statement. n
According to fDi magazine, a member of the Financial Times group, Łódź Special Economic Zone took first place in Europe and 4th in the world. The jury of fDi magazine evaluated how particular cities, countries, regions and economic zones use marketing strategies and Internet innovations in order to encourage and attract foreign investors. The judges checked internet and social media activities, as well as innovations and strategies in the field of internet marketing. In terms of economic zones, Łódzkie took 4th place in the world and first in Europe. In better positions were only Al Khaimah Free Trade Zone (United Arab Emirates), Daegu Gyeongbuk Free Economic Zone (South Korea),and Ohio Aerospace Hub (USA). Fifth position took a zone from Lithuania - Klaipeda Free Economic Zone. (ŁSSE) n
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FDI News Polish foreign investments Polish investors have invested over USD 50 billion abroad. This is a significant increase compared to 2005, when Polish investments amounted to USD 6.3 billion. 92% of investments have been located in Europe, merely 4.4% in America and 2.5% in Asia. The results were released at a recent conference “Polish Foreign Investments Current State and Challenges”, co-organised by PAIiIZ, the Ministry of Economy and Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń (UMK) and attracted nearly 200 participants. While opening the conference Ilona Antoniszyn-Klik, Deputy Minister of Economy, stressed that Polish foreign investments bring measurable mutual profits to the economy. Among others they enable more active export expansion and also Polish business, entrepreneurship and know-how promotion. Additionally, Polish companies earn experience and get new business partners abroad which make them more recognizable. The increase in Polish foreign direct investments reflects the increasing potential of Polish companies abroad. Selected results of Polish business investment activity abroad were presented by a Nicolaus Copernicus Unversity in Toruń research group under the leadership of prof. Włodzimierz Kraszewski. Polish companies declared that they expect Polish government institutions and agencies to lobby for Polish business during state visits as well as other foreign meetings. The institutional investor support should be adapted to companies’ needs and markets. The quality of cooperation with Polish diplomatic posts was discussed as well. Establishing a code of good practice for Polish diplomatic missions to ensure proper relations between diplomacy and business as well as better preparation of Polish diplomatic mission employees to support investors seeking to invest abroad were postulated. n
New Manufacturing investment in Special Economic Zone
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In December 2012, Elica Group Polska was authorized to operate in the subzone Jelcz-Łaskowice (WSEZ “Invest-Park”). The Company will produce new models of electric motors, and increase the volume of engines and cooker hoods under production. The new investment will be at least PLN 10 million, and the firm plans to hire at least 50 employees. n
Cooperation agreement between PAIiIZ and city of Elbląg
On December 10, 2012 the cooperation agreement between the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency and the city of Elbląg was signed. The main purpose of the agreement is to promote the city, and thus increase the chances of attracting new foreign investment. Within the agreement will be taken joint actions aimed at raising the professional preparation and service to foreign investors by improving skills in the preparation of
investment offers, collecting and distributing business information as well as creating and managing databases on the city’s economy. So far, agreements have already been signed with: Kielce, Lublin, Rzeszów, Białystok, Olsztyn, Bydgoszcz, Koszalin, Krosno, Częstochowa, Iława, Łapy, Łomża, Opole, Piła, Piotrków Trybunalski, Radom, Radomsko, Szczecinek, Tarnobrzeg, Zambrów, Zamość, Pisz , Inowrocław, as well as Wrocław Agglomeration Development Agency. n
PAIiIZ awards investors The most significant foreign investments of 2012 were awarded by PAIiIZ during its formal Christmas gala. Awards are traditionally granted in three categories: Biggest Investment, Employment and New Technologies. The award in the “Biggest Investment” category went to BASF, which is to build a new catalyst factory in Środa Śląska worth EUR 150 million. The new factory will employ 400 people. The winner in the “Employment” category was the American Cisco Systems Poland company which will employ 550 employees with university degrees in the yet to be established iSupport Centre in Krakow. Krakow’s Cisco branch will serve as a European shared services center in financial and accounting, HR, and advanced IT services. The “New Technologies” award went to the American firm Dolby. Their Wrocław Engineering Center will be used as a research
and development for the overall Dolby group. The Center will be focused on developing basic sound technologies and delivering new solutions in that field. In addition a special award was handed out this year. Samsung was honoured for its long-term presence on the Polish market. Moreover the most interesting showpiece of the Designed in Poland exhibition in Lisbon was rewarded. n
January 2013
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FDI News
Poland – Latvia Cooperation Agreement PAIiIZ and Investment and Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA) signed an agreement on cooperation during the state visit of the Polish President Bronisław Komorowski in Latvia.
As part of the state visit of the Polish President, a Polish-Latvian business forum was held. The forum was organized by the Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA) in cooperation with the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Riga.
The forum themes included perspectives of Polish-Latvian cooperation in the sector of energy as well as regional cooperation between the two states. The President of PAIiIZ, Sławomir Majman and the Director of LIAA, Andris Ozols signed a memorandum of understanding which is intended to exchange experience and support mutual foreign investments. The final part of the business forum featured bilateral meetings of Polish and Latvian business and region representatives. n
Russian Luxoft expands again in Poland The company Luxoft, which offers development and support services for software, will open a second branch in Poland in 2013, in Wroclaw. Luxoft will be one of the biggest investors in the IT sector in Poland. By March, the company will employ 300 people, and in two years the number of jobs will increase to 750. “This is the first major project from Russia in Poland. Far from the political turmoil and disputes about Russian investments in the fuel sector, Luxoft developed quickly in Krakow, operating in the IT sector”, said Sławomir Majman, president of Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency. Luxoft was founded in 2000. The company was spun off from the company listed in Frankfurt - IBS Group. Luxoft has annual growth revenue of 30%, which in 2011 amounted to USD 274 million. Luxoft specializes in IT services for companies in six industries: finance, energy, telecommunication, automotive, aviation and technology. The company employs around 6,000 specialists all over the world, and has around 100 customers, of which 30% are large Fortune 500 firms. n
PAIZ boasts of its investment success Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIZ) is currently supporting 149 projects worth EUR 4,394 million, which together may create 27,138 jobs. In terms of country of origin of the investors, first place is still the USA (41 projects, worth EUR 730.8 million, which can create 6,419 jobs). In second place are German investors (18 projects, worth EUR 579.9 million, 3,819 jobs). The third place occupies Great Britain (13 projects, EUR 52.1 million, 1,601 jobs). Next up are China with 12 projects and France with 6 projects. The most popular sector is still the BPO industry (27 projects, worth EUR 27.5 million), the automotive sector (23 projects, EUR 1,650 million), and R&D industry (16 projects, EUR 12.2 million). The ICT (10 projects) and electronic sectors (10 projects) are also of strong interest to foreign investors. Since January 2012, PAIZ has completed 50 investment projects with a total value EUR 1 billion, which is meant to lead to 9,386 new jobs. n
2013 January
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FDI News PAIiIZ’s President on trade mission to China In early December, Sławomir Majman, the President of PAIiIZ along with the Agency Department of Foreign Investment and PolandChina Cooperation Center went on a trade mission to People’s Republic of China. The Polish delegation began its visit with the COIFAIR 2012 (3rd China Overseas Investment Fair) attendance that took place in Beijing. Majman made a speech on the investment climate in Poland as well as ChinaPoland economic relations during the opening session. The Polish delegation introduced positive aspects of investing in East-Central Europe as well as encouraged investment in Poland during meetings with Chinese enterpreneurs. The PAIiIZ delegation also met in Shanghai with automotive industry and aircraft sector representatives which are planning to invest in Poland. As part of a signed agreement on cooperation with the Hubei province, an economic forum featuring PAIiIZ delegation, Commerce Department of the province as well as various sector enterpreneurs (automotive, machine, renewable energy and telecoms) was held. The visit was closed with a meeting featuring Chinese company operating in the machine industry field which has considered participation in privatization of a Polish company of this sector. PAIiIZ is currently leading 12 Chinese projects worth total of EUR 674 million which may result in 3,225 new jobs. n
Synthos invests in R&D Center
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In December Synthos company signed an agreement with the Ministry of Economy, which includes special financing for a new R&D Center, to be built in Oświęcim. The project envisions creation of a new center equipped with modern technology, whose goal is development and production of innovative products, including mainly pioneering types of synthetic rubber. The project is the second phase of the company’s R&D Center development. The first phase was completed and launched in September 2009. Inauguration of the new Center is planned for September 2013, while the completion of the project will take place in June 2014. n
“Korczowa Logistic Park” – start of investment
On the initiative of the Supervisory Board and the Management Board as well as the Mayor of the Jarosławski county, in the Dwór Kresowy in Radymno (Podkarpackie region), a seminar devoted to the start of the investment of KLP company was held.
The official inauguration brought together representatives of the central government, local government, institutions, business and media. Presentations of Podkarpackie Voivodeship and the opportunities for its development was provided by Governor of Podkarpackie, Mrs Małgorzata ChomyczŚmigielska. Economic, tourist and cultural qualities of area where a new investment will be located were presented by the governors of Jarosławski, Przemyski and Lubaczowski counties: Jerzy Batycki, Jan Pączek and Józef Michalik. Mieczysław Kasprzak, Secretary of State in the Ministry of Economy and Sławomir Majman, President of the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency stressed the importance of new investment for the development of the region and assured its readiness to support the investor and local authorities in the implementation of the project. The presentation of the Korczowa Logistic Park
project was conducted by representatives of the company: Wim Van Damme and Krzysztof Nowak. The value of project is estimated at about EUR 120 million, generating between 1,500 to 2,000 new jobs, which in relation to high unemployment in the region of Przemysl (17.9% - September 2012) may be an important stimulus for its development. The park occupying 70 hectares, according to the assumptions of the investor is to become a strategic location for the region, combines the features of parking for 300 trucks of SETPOS and TAPA international safety standard, gas station and service station. “Korczowa” offers its customers onsite activities of customs services, hotel and commercial center for retail as well as hypermarket with an area of 3,750 sqm. A large part of the park will be allocated to the activities of logistics warehouses and consignment stocks (175,000 sqm) and manufacturing activities (15,000 sqm). The park, with its strategic location Korczowa is the most important crossing on the Polish-Ukrainian border - gives it a special value to strengthen the prospects for the development of cross-border cooperation. A business park is planned to start at the end of 2014. n
January 2013
The inau Poland Outsourcing a Awards Gala
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Kartik Kilachand World BPO Forum
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John Duckworth Jones Lang Lasalle
Andrew Hallam ASPIRE
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augural g and Shared Services la and Forum
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recognizing managerial and Poland’s fast-growing Shared rocess Outsourcing sectors
Forum agenda: 9:00 Registration 9:15–10:30 Operating Shared Services centres in Poland 10:30-11:00 Coffee Break 11:00–12:15 Newest Investors in Poland’s BPO/SSC sectors 12:15 – 14:00 Buffet Lunch and Networking
The Jury
Awards Gala: Armand Angeli EOA
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18:30 Opening VIP cocktails 20:00 Awards Ceremony & Three-course Dinner 22:00 Coffee, desserts, closing cocktails and entertainment
Lucyna Chwastowska Tieto
Pawel Panczyj, ABSL
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Eoin McCoy Lumesse and ASPIRE
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Poznań: German giant to centralize its European accounting departments in Poznan Carl Zeiss, the German manufacturer of optical equipment group, will create a finance and accounting center in Poznań. Accounting operations will provide work for approximately 100 professionals. The new head office will be opened in the Malta Office Park complex. On 27th of November in Poznań City Hall a press conference was held, where the investor announced the centralization of European accounting departments in Poznań. Carl Zeiss has been in Poland since 1992, located in Poznań. Its employees have been focused primarily on sales support and product services in the field of microscopy, medical technology, industrial
Łódź: Stadler to supply 20 trains to Lodz region
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Stadler Poland has been awarded a contract worth a total of 510 million pln to supply and maintain a fleet of 20 two-car Flirt emus for Lodz Rail Agglomeration (LKA). The trains will be assembled at Stadler Poland’s Siedlce plant and the first six trains will be delivered to LKA by the end of April 2014. The next 10 sets will arrive in Lodz in October 2014 and the remaining four will be handed over in February 2015. The deal, which has been co-financed by the European Union, includes a 15-year
metrology and optical products, as well as the financial support of the controlling processes, administration and logistics. The new center will provide advanced outsourcing solutions while optimizing operational costs. Carl Zeiss Group is an international leader in the field of optics and optoelectronics. In the financial year 2010/11 the firm had revenues of EUR 4.237 billion. Around the world, the company employs about 24,000 workers.
Ikea Business Service Center wins In a survey conducted by Antal International, Ikea Business Service Center in Poznan won the title „Most Desirable Employer of 2012”. The study, in its third year, surveyed 1557 respondents in Poland, with the aim to obtain information about the preferences of professionals and managers in the SSC/BPO sector.
maintenance agreement worth 128 million pln. The 45.7m-long trains will weigh around 90 tonnes and will accommodate up to 254 passengers, 120 of them seated. The vehicles will feature aluminium alloy bodyshells and will be equipped with ETCS Level 2. Stadler says this is the first rolling stock tender in Poland to weigh long-term operating costs against the initial purchase price of the trains. The trains will be used on Zgierz – Ozorkow services, and further sets will be required for future phases of the LKA project, which involves modernising regional services on four routes radiating from Lodz.
Ikea took first place, followed up by Philip Morris Service Center Europe and Capgemini. In the first eight places, another Poznan-based centre placed Bridgestone EBS.
Asseco swoops in to buy ZETO Poznan In late December Asseco Poland signed a letter of intent to acquire shares in ZETO Poznan. In line with Asseco’s strategy, the acquired company will become part of the Group’s nationwide group. The letter of intent, which was signed between Asseco Poland and shareholders of ZETO Poznan determines conditions for the acquisition of shares representing 99.93% of the share capital of ZETO Poznan. These shares will be acquired by Asseco Pola nd or its wholly-owned subsidiary Asseco Systems S.A. seated in Rzeszów. The acquisition of ZETO Poznan is consistent with Asseco Poland’s strategy to build a firm acting as a supplier, integrator and distributor of information technology solutions, focusing on local markets across Poland. While implementing this strategy, in April Asseco purchased shares in ZETO Lódz, whereas in September it signed a letter of intent for the acquisition of shares in ZETO Bialystok. Przedsiebiorstwo Uslugowo-Handlowe Zastosowa Elektronicznej Techniki Obliczeniowej ZETO S.A. seated in Poznan is a provider of comprehensive information technology services, focusing especially on IT outsourcing, implementation and consulting services. The company employs 87 persons. It is also engaged in the provision of system integration and security services, as well as in the supply of IT hardware. In 2011, ZETO Poznan generated PLN 22.2 million in sales revenues, while earning a net profit of PLN 3.4 million. n
Lodz gets taken down a notch by Fitch Fitch Ratings has downgraded the City of Lodz’s Long-term foreign and local currency ratings to ‘BBB’ from ‘BBB+’ and the National Long-term rating to ‘A+(pol) from ‘AA-(pol)’. The Outlook is Negative. Fitch has simultaneously withdrawn all the city’s ratings. The downgrade reflects Fitch’s expectation that in the medium term Lodz’s impaired operating balance will not rebound at a level sufficient to soundly cover the projected debt service and to secure adequate structural liquidity for the city. The ratings also factor in the expected growth of direct debt driven by investments and the weak debt coverage ratios. Lodz’s cash balance has fallen to 95
January 2013
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Gdańsk: Insurance claims firm takes new office space
Hanna Zdanowska, mayor, City of Łódź
million pln at end-2011 (133 million pln at end-2010) and Fitch expects that it may remain weak until 2015. The increasing reliance on external credit lines is rating-negative. The city’s credit line limit has been increased to 200 million pln from the start of 2012 from 50 million pln at the end of 2011. Fitch projects Lodz’s capex will total 1.7 billion pln in 2012-2015. About 40% of this investment on average needs to be debt financed and Fitch expects direct debt to grow by 400 million pln to about 2.2 billion pln at end-2015. This will put additional pressure on the already weak debt ratios. An improvement of the ratios would require the city to consolidate its operating expenditures. The high debt burden for the city’s budget is mitigated by a smooth amortization until 2018. Fitch has withdrawn the ratings due to the termination of the contract.
Łódź Budget squeezes expenditures to fund investments The City of Łódź has finalized its budget for 2013, after last-minute 8-hour negotiations amongst city council members. Votes on the budget fell on party lines, with PO voting in favor, and both SLD and PiS voting against. The 2013 budget is a record for the city, in terms of expenditures - more than 4 billion pln planned, and estimated revenues exceeding 3.5 billion pln, leaving the city with an estimated 460 million pln deficit. Debt financing will be used to plug the hole. Łódź plans investments of 1.2 billion pln, which represents 30% of all expenditures. “This budget is a huge opportunity for the city. This year and next are key years for co-financing of projects with EU funds, and this is why the investment number is
2013 January
so high”, said Hanna Zdanowska, president of the city of Łódź. The most-expensive investments in the budget are: building of Trasa Górna (280 million pln), construction of the new central rail station (Łódź Fabryczna; 213 million pln), the EC-1 inner city revitalization project (150 million pln), and the “Mia100 kamienic” project (70 million pln). The city also plans renovations of streets Rojna, Inflancką and Kopernika and completion of construction of the cultural centre “Centrum Dialog”. But some caution that the expenditures are dangerously high. According to the Regional Audit Chamber, the debt ratio in 2013 will be nearly 60 percent, and says that the city must be disciplined with spending money and collect the planned revenues. “The budget is tough, but ambitious. Wroclaw was in a similar position in 2008, and we could only dream at that time of having such a budget. If we want to develop like Wroclaw and Krakow, it will only be possible with these types of investments, including in this budget”, said Mateusz Walasek, the leading PO member on the city council. Disagreeing with this position is city council member and SLD member Władysław Skwarka: “This is a very difficult budget. All organs of the city will vegetate, since all institutions are seeing 10% cuts in their expenditures. In my opinion, it won’t work, but I with the president well, and hope that I’ll be wrong”. In his opinion, revenue expectations are too high, and the envisioned cuts in expenditures won’t be met. He also criticized the costs of the train station, saying that spending 2 billion pln does not make sense, if there is no high-speed rail. n
Fineos Polska has leased 355 sm of office space in Omega & Gamma office complex in Gdansk. CBRE advised the tenant during the negotation process. Fineos Polska is a leading provider of insurance claim software for governmental institutions and insurance companies. Omega & Gamma is the next phase of the office project - Garnizon.biz. The building is located on Gdansk’s main communication arteries at the junction of Grunwaldzka and Słowackiego streets. The office complex is owned by Grupa Inwestycyjna Hossa SA. The buildings offer approximately 10,000 sm of modern office and retail space and 800 car places are available in underground and surface parking. “The Omega and Gamma office complex will provide employees and clients of Fineos Polska with many facilities such as canteen, shops, restaurant, flower shop, kiosk, laundry as well as medical care services. Ecologic solutions are being adopted in the Building that will also help with the reduction of service charges.” – said Mariusz Wisniewski, Senior Property Negotiator at CBRE’s Office Agency.
French ICT Cluster ALIPTIC in Gdansk In December in Gdansk, the ICT cluster ALIPTIC from the Limousin area of France met with the Pomeranian ICT Cluster. This first meeting is meant to kick-start cooperation and business relations between members of the Pomeranian cluster INTERIZON and companies gathered in the French ICT cluster. As a result of these discussions a few companies from Gdansk will begin cooperation with French companies. In addition, the currently started cooperation will initiate in the future organization of joint events targeted to the high tech sector.
Gdansk Convention Bureau awarded Best PR Gdansk Convention Bureau received the “Stand Award Best Use of PR” during EIBTM fair hosted in Barcelona. During the three days of EIBTM fair, the Gdansk region stand enticed visitors with unusual tactics, including encouraging people to take part in a charity auction, and by sending out original invitations with photos of their team. Gdansk Convention Bureau was awarded among more than three hundred exhibitors from all over the world who took part in the fair. “I am proud and honoured. It is fantastic that effort of our team
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is appreciated in the international arena and Gdansk Convention Bureau is recognized as an example for others” - said Anna Gorska, GOT/GCB CEO. During EIBTM fairs there were variety of activities: meetings, workshops and seminars connected with business tourism, new technologies etc. It was the fourth time that the Gdansk Convention Bureau was exhibiting at EIBTM show in Barcelona - one of the biggest and the most important fairs in the meeting industry. During the fair Gdansk Convention Bureau promoted Gdansk and the region as an attractive business tourism destination.
Gdynia-Warsaw train to reach 160 km per hour?
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Polish Railways has signed a contract for the system’s traffic management of the eight local control centers on the Gdynia – Warsaw rail line. The contract amounts to a half billion pln and is the last step in the modernization of the line, on which trains will travel more than 160 km per hour in less than 3 years. ”The new system will allow locomotives to reach 160 km/hour, and will adjust speeds at the optimum moment”, explains Maciej Dutkiewicz, the spokesperson for PKP Rail’s Investment Implementation Center, adding that it’s just one of several features worth talking about. “It will increase the safety of trains, increase the capacity of the railway line and will help to reduce the risk of accidents.” Design and installation of ERTMS will continue until June 2015. An international consortium Bombardier Transportation Poland, Poland Thales and Nokia Siemens Networks – are carrying out the work on the modernization of the 350-kilometer line. The works include the construction of hundreds of new flyovers, demolition of existing tracks and replacing them with new ones, which in many cases have been shifted to allow for higher
speeds. ”Travel time, which today is about six hours, will fall by more than half”, said Dutkiewicz, who points out that the line will be ready by the end of 2015. Design and construction of devices for diagnostics of rolling stock, control systems and traction power supply system will be carried in all eight local Rail Traffic Control Centres on the E65 line, which includes Nasielsk, Ciechanów Działdowo, Iława, Malbork, Gdansk and Gdynia Tczew. The rail line will be served partially by the twenty Pendolino trains, which PKP Intercity ordered in 2011 for 665 million euros. Trains will be on the track in 2014, and PKP said that by that time a large part of the modernization of the track will be completed.
Gdansk city projects budget surplus; says 33% of expenditures will be on long-term investments For the first time in six years, Gdansk is projecting a budget increase in 2013. Investments are largely infrastructure,
including a tunnel under part of the Vistula and construction of artery roads. Several city councilors complain that the budget “can not be hit”, and said several increases for residents are unpalatable. Many citizens of Gdańsk have also complained about the poor operations of the new stadium and smaller stadium on the border with Sopot. ”It will be a tough budget. We are aware of the risks associated with its implementation – even before the vote”, said Maciej Krupa, PO councilors club head. The main concerns raised are the planned income tax revenue increases from individuals. “There is concern that the planned level will not be achieved”, said Krupa. Spending on education, which is higher than the subsidy granted by the ministry, will be one of the highest expenditures of the city: more than 700 million pln. Gdansk’s revenues in 2013 are estimated at 2.718 billion pln, and spending 2.708 billion pln, leaving a surplus of 10 million pln – a first since 2007. ”We want to show a year-on-year surplus”, said Pawel Adamowicz, mayor of Gdansk. The President, however, did not share the concerns about overly optimistic assumptions of tax revenue. “We have a fairly large group of taxpayers, especially in the energy sector”, referring to energy giants Lotos and Energa. Next year the city will spend over 10 million pln less on culture and sports. The promotional budget will be less, at 7 million pln, mainly because of less spending for the Euro tournament. The city next year will continue or finalize 15 major investment projects, such as: the road construction of the “Slovak Route”, Shakespeare Theatre, the reconstruction of the bridge in Sobieszewo, the construction of a tunnel under the Vistula, Tristar system, ECS, and revitalization of Gdansk Wrzeszcz and the “lower” section of Gdansk. ”By the end of
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City News The level of participation of Poles in cultural activities is drastically lower. Having two good stadiums, we must educate the younger generation to visit them”, the president retorted. Voting in favor of the budget were the 26 PO Councillors, with the eight opposition councilors voted against.
Word War II Museum in Gdańsk to cost 250 million pln
2013 our debt will reach 46.8 percent of the city’s revenues, so it will be at a safe level. Gdansk’s budgetary situation for the next year is stable, but we have to keep an eye on expenses”, Adamowicz said. However, a completely different opinion on the subject voice the opposition. In their view, the city’s budget next year brings a series of increases primarily for residents: including water pricing, garbage, property taxes and public transport tickets. ”The scheduled revenues were estimated too optimistically”, said
Kraków: Ryanair sets up second Poland air base Ryanair’s Michael Cawley flew in from Eindhoven to meet with Jan Pamuła, CEO of Kraków Airport, which will now become home for two Ryanair 737-800s from next April. New destinations to Sweden, Germany, Greece and the UK will be added to its existing network from its now second Polish base. If the 14% growth recorded in 2012 in terms of passenger traffic wasn’t enough, the announcement that Ryanair will make Kraków Airport its 53rd base - and second in Poland - will certainly help to keep up this double-digit momentum into 2013 when it bases two airplanes at the airport from April. The arrival of this fresh capacity will simultaneously see the launch of four new services to Gothenburg City, Manchester, Dortmund and Kos. Extra rotations will be also be added to existing unconfirmed points already served with the two aircraft.
2013 January
Wieslaw Kaminski, opposition councilor. During the discussion about the budget, not as hot as in previous years, the council protested the new facilities, such as the indoor stadium Ergo Arena, which drains resources. “We are a poor country, and the Ergo Arena stadium will not immediately generate income, as in western Europe. The average German goes to football matches, cultural events, and often leaves the house. The average Gdańsker sits within his four walls.
The four new destinations will effectively raise Ryanair’s route offer from Kraków next summer up to 31. All four of Ryanair’s new routes at Kraków will face no direct competition. Therefore its route competition will remain at just five from the 31 it will serve next summer, however in true Ryanair style only one of these routes is actually head-to-head – namely its services to Liverpool, where it is up against easyJet.
Turkish next? The Turkish national carrier Turkish Air has earmarked Krakow on its to-do list and could well be the next addition to what is turning out to be a healthy looking 2013 for the Krakow airport so far.
Krakow attracted 9 million visitors in 2012 Krakow has marked a record number of visitors in 2012, with almost 9 million people coming to the city. According to research carried out by the Malopolska Tourist Organisation, 77 percent of the 8,950,000 visitors to Krakow in 2012 were
The cost of construction of the World War II Museum in Gdańsk is estimated at 200250 million pln, according to information published by the museum for the European Union. The museum will be built in Gdansk, in the area of streets WałowaStara Stocznia-Na Dylach. “I hope that this will become an icon of Gdanks and a symbol of Poland. Just as the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao and the Jewish Museum in Berlin are recognizable around the world, I think that this museum will be a symbol and brand benefiting Gdansk “, said the director of the Museum prof. Paweł Machcewicz. The total area of the building will be 57400 sm. The construcution will take 21 months, so the museum is scheduled to open in 2015. The price is the only criterion for selection of the best bid. Deadline for receipt of tenders is scheduled for 15 January 2013. The temporary headquarters of the World War II Museum in Gdansk is situated in the heart of the City of Gdansk, on ul. Dluga. n
tourists (Polish and foreign), and once again, British topped the list of foreign visitors. All in all, 340,000 more people visited Krakow in 2012 than in 2011. The combined figure spent by visitors in 2012 was 3.5 billion pln. “What’s exceptionally important is the fact that in spite of the difficult situation of the tourist industry throughout Europe, including its greatest cities, we have managed to maintain a trend of positive growth, with more and more tourists visiting us each year,” said Deputy Mayor Magdalena Sroka, at the 20th Tourism Forum held in the city. Of the 2.35 million foreign visitors, 26 percent were from Great Britain (as opposed to 20 percent in 2011), 13 percent were from Germany (12.6 percent in 2011), 9.4 percent were Italians (9.5 percent in 2011), 9 percent were from France (7.5 percent in 2011) and 5.9 percent were Russians (4.9 percent in 2011). The average foreigner spent 596 pln per person, whereas the average Pole spent 317 pln. n
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Wrocław: Mirbud in 39 million pln deal with Prologis Park Wrocław Mirbud, as a contractor, has signed with ProLogis Poland REIT, the investor, a contract for the construction of a distribution facility with technical infrastructure on the existing land of the Logistics Centre ProLogis Park Wroclaw, the company said The contract value is 38.98 million pln. Mirbud’s Board announced the conclusion of the deal with investor - ProLogis Poland REIT Sp. SKA III as a general contractor for the construction of the hall DC2 for storage and distribution, warehousing, systems of roads, as well as providing the technical infrastructure, within an overall expansion of existing logistics center Prologis Park Wroclaw V. Mirbud’s consolidated revenues in 2011 reached 548.5 million pln.
Ryanair to invest 70 million in Wroclaw Ryanair will invest USD 70 million to set up new operations at the Wroclaw airport. The Irish carrier plans to base two aricraft in Wroclaw, increasing the number of connections to 23. “Ryanair currently serves nearly 800,000 passengers per year in Wroclaw. According to estimates of the airport, our first year of operations brought in more than 20% more passengers to the airport”, said VP of Ryanair Michael Cawley. Cawley said that Poland will receive 3 of the 9 new aircraft in Ryanair’s fleet, and he expects the airline’s Wroclaw passenger numbers to grow by 10% in 2013. Among the new routes planned for spring is the Croatian city of Zadar. In the next few years Ryanair does not exclude the introduction of domestic routes in Poland. The low-cost carrier currently has 53 operating bases, and operates nearly 1500 flights daily from 174 airports in Europe.
Erbud to build shopping center in Wroclaw
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Erbud general contractor has signed a contract for the construction of the Magnolia shopping center in Wroclaw. The total contract value is 145 million pln. The project, signed with SPV Kasama Investments (whose Board members include Paul Kusmierz, George Mula, Michael Pegler, and Jean Francois Bossy), is meant to be completed by April 2014. Erbud has granted to the investor a 10% performance guarantee in the form of an insurance guarantee. Erbud is a Polish construction group
providing services in the segments of residential, commercial, public and traffic engineering. It is listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange since 2007, and had revenues in 2011 of 1.53 billion pln.
Wroclaw attracts office investors Wroclaw is fast catching up with rival Krakow in office supply because investors are attracted to the city’s strategic location between Prague, Warsaw and Berlin - and its highly-educated workforce, says realtor Jones Lang LaSalle. The city of Wroclaw is currently Poland’s third largest office market, with Krakow in second place and the capital Warsaw in the lead. Wroclaw’s total office supply is currently about 428,000 sq.m., with a further 128,000 sq.m. of modern office space under construction in 17 developments at end-September and 56% of this already pre-leased. In addition, 24 office blocks totalling 450,000 sq.m. are in the planning stage. “The high level of the pre-leased office space in the developments under construction in Wrocław clearly confirms strong demand generated by tenants,” said Mateusz Polkowski, senior research analyst at JLL. Current construction activity could mean that Wrocław, the capital of Lower Silesia, will soon catch up with Krakow in terms of total office stock, he said. Five of the 10 largest lease agreements signed outside Warsaw in 3Q12 were for office space in Wrocław. Tenants signed lease agreements for 63,000 sq.m., around 17,000 sq.m. more than in the whole of 2011. Demand for office space is coming from companies already present in the city such as package delivery firm UPS and new players such as the Qatar Airways European customer contact centre. The
high level of construction activity will likely put upward pressure on vacancy rates. More than 24,000 sq.m. of modern office space was unoccupied at end-September, a vacancy rate of 5.7%. Prime headline rents in Wrocław are currently €14.50-€15.50 per sq.m.
Lower Silesia: Wałbrzych raises 57 million pln on Catalyst The city of Wałbrzych raised debt financing in December via the public debt exchange Catalyst. The city’s debt deal was the 61st debt offering on Catalyst in 2012. The City issued bonds with varying maturities, from 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15 years. The total amount of capital raised was 57 million pln, priced at WIBOR-6 months + 2.2% margin. Wałbrzych has a population of 120,000 people. In 2011, the city recorded revenues of 363 million pln with expenditures in the amount of 385 million pln. n
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Katowice: ING adds over 150 BPO jobs in Katowice ING Services Polska, a business process outsourcing (BPO) subsidiary of ING, the global financial services group, announced plans to invest PLN 80m in a significant expansion of its IT service centre in Katowice, in a project that will create 156 new jobs. As part of the investment, ING Services will create an R&D unit at the Katowice facility that will develop new software tools and IT solutions for the group. It will employ 21 people. Meanwhile, the main unit, which provides system hosting, data storage, applications and database management, IT security and other services for ING companies worldwide, will be substantially enlarged with the addition of 135 new jobs. ING obtained a PLN 12m EU grant from the Innovative Economy Operational Programme in support of the project, which is scheduled to be completed by mid-2015.
City News Echo invests €42m in Katowice business park Developer Echo is investing €42 million in the construction of a business park in Katowice. Construction has just started, and the company expects to finish the project’s first phase in early 2014. Called the A4 Business Park, the project is located next to the A4 motorway, which runs across southern Poland and is due to connect the country with Germany and the Ukraine when it is finished in 2015, and Echo said the park is also close to public transport. The first stage of construction involves the first of three office buildings, which will have a gross leasable area of 9,000 sq.m. Echo has applied for BREEAM sustainability certification because it aims to construct an energy-efficient building. The UKbased Building Research Establishment (BRE) has certified over 100,000 buildings worldwide under its BREEAM standard, making it the most widely used environmental assessment method for buildings, Echo said. Warsaw-listed Echo is among the largest investors and developers with Polish capital in Europe and operates in
housing, retail and shopping malls, office and hotels. It has completed over 90 projects totalling some 800,000 sq.m. in Polish cities, and also manages investments in Romania, Hungary and Ukraine.
Silesia: Opole boasts of its development strategy The city of Opole has published an elegant booklet to be distributed to residents, investors, as well as parliamentarians from Opole. This is the first time that the city has reached out to a larger audience in foreign languages, and the city said it will spedn 31,000pln for the project, which lays out the city’s strategy for the years 2012-2020, according to Danuta Wesołowska, the head of European Affairs and Development Planning at the city of Opole. The bilingual version will be directed primarily to the potential investors and other foreign partners of Opole, and EU-based project partners. n
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Szczecin: Stargard Szczeciński to build new Police headquarters Erbud has signed a contract for the construction of the district police command in Stargard Szczecinski. The contract is worth 15 million pln and will be completed by the end of June 2014, the company said. “As part of the agreement Erbud will demolish existing buildings and technical infrastructure and build a new district police headquarters. The contract also includes all finishing works on the main building and surrounding buildings, and technical infrastructure.
our local expertises. We would like to in the future that Szczecin, with the port of Swinoujscie, to become a multi-modal logistics platform. We are also thinking about all sorts of techniques, including sub-marine and off-shore. This is great potential for our region, as we observe major changes underway in the maritime sector”, said Olgierd Geblewicz from the voivod’s office. Work on a feasibility study begins in early 2013. In addition, the project must be placed on the Polish Roadmap for Research Infrastructures, which will give it a chance
to raise funds to finance the project. After signing the letter of intent the President of Szczecin Piotr Krzystek drew attention to the close relationship of the regional economy to the sea, which, through the use of new technology in the future will provide job growth. He also called for joint efforts to deepen the waterway to the depth of 12.5 meters. The Baltic Centre for Maritime Research will focus only on maritimerelated projects, and the most important goals are to set up a business incubator for the maritime industry and support patent applications. n
the company asked Enterprise Europe Network Office of Lublin University of Technology for help in searching for the optimal supplier of this technology. In 2009 the Austrian company WILL AG began cooperation. The rubber granules produced by Orzeł S.A. are characterized by the highest quality and outstanding technological parameters. The main goal of investment was an implementation of innovative technology. Built in Poniatowa, the factory processes 15,000 tires per year, which is 10 % of the scrap tires produced in Poland. Due to this investment, the company has increased its turnover four times.
to preliminary estimates, Lublin Airport will handle about 300,000 passengers in its first year. “This is a historic moment for the people of Lublin. Starting today, the world is at your fingertips. I firmly believe that Lublin Airport will be a window to the world. Due to increased airport accessibility to the region, faster development will surely follow,” said the president of the Lublin Airport Grzegorz Muszynski. Lublin Airport has a direct connection to the city of Lublin via rail, which allows one to reach the airport from the city center in 15 minutes. The airport terminal has an area of 11,000 sm, where it is possible to simultaneously accommodate four aircraft in the class B738/A320. The airport project provides for the possibility of further expansion. The first phase will allow passenger service to 1 million passengers annually. n
Maritime Economy Research Centre to open in Szczecin The Marshal of the northwestern province of Zachoniopomorski, the President of Szczecin, the rector of West Pomeranian University of Technology, and the Maritime University have signed a letter of intent to take joint action towards the realization of the Baltic Centre for Research and Implementation of Maritime Economy, said the West Marshal’s Office in a statement. Work on the feasibility study for the project will begin early next year. The signing of the letter of intent is the first formal step in the creation of the Center. The main objective is to integrate all of our various research and development initiatives into one center, which will continue with the technical exploration of the oceans. “The maritime economy is undoubtedly one of
Lublin: Orzeł S.A. wins award for its innovative technology transfer
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Enterprise Europe Network office of Lublin University of Technology, together with Lublin entrepreneur Jacek Orzeł, has won Network Stars – a prize awarded since 2010 by the European Commission for innovation in transfer of technology. This year the European Commission singled out the project realized in cooperation with Lublin University of Technology for environmentally friendly technology used in Orzeł for recycling of tires. The company operates in the automotive industry as a distributor of tires, looking for an alternative and environmentally friendly tire recycling technology. In September 2008,
Lublin Airport officially open, plans 300,000 passengers in 2013 The Lublin Airport is officially open, and is the newest and most-eastern airport in the European Union. According
January 2013
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Britain In Touch with Emerging Europe Six hundred companies in six days. In November over 600 UK companies engaged with Emerging Europe representatives over 10 days at events across the country, learning about potential opportunities in their sectors across the 10 markets of the Emerging Europe region. The roadshow kicked off at the Confederation of British Industry with the launch of a landmark publication, which showcases key sector opportunities across the 10 markets of Emerging Europe, before heading round the country visiting the North West, Scotland and the South East. Companies from diverse sectors such as retail, infrastructure, engineering, energy, financial services and many more are now working with teams in the region to see where their products and services might have potential.
Chambers of Commerce News What’s next February 2013
TBC Export Insight Visit in Prague February 4th Emerging Europe Nuclear Hosted by Strategic Partner, White & Case. This event will involve Energy contacts from across the region and will focus on a number of key issues including regulation; technology; financing new build and expansions; and legal issues surrounding nuclear energy.
Britain Curry in Slovenia 21st -22th Taste of Britain Curry in Slovenia March 2013
Export Insight visit to Warsaw March 12th-14th Export Insight visit to Warsaw
Emerging Europe seminar March 19th Emerging Europe seminar (Norwich) Emerging Europe Food & Drink (tbc) Emerging Europe Automotive (tbc) Emerging Europe 3 city Roadshow (tbc)
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Chambers of Commerce News
Portugal Portugese Chamber breaks through 200 member threshold On the 6th December, the Polish-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce (PPCC) organized a Christmas Dinner. The event took place at restaurant PAROS in the centre of Warsaw. During the Christmas dinner the management board announced that PPCC accomplished an important milestone of 200 members. Having reached the level of 200 members - from different cities and regions of Poland and Portugal - allows the PPCC to look positively towards plans for 2013. PPCC will put a big focus on its development in all regions and implementation of regional activities. Currently, the Chamber has regional representatives in Krakow, Lodz, Poznan, Lublin and Wroclaw, Lisbon and Porto. The PPCC Regional Representation will certainly boost the awareness of the Chamber of Commerce at local level and is going to contribute to support new investments and businesses locally. “Reaching the level of 200 members is a great achievement and an important milestone in PPCC’s development. Critical mass is very important to continue to develop our activities and to consolidate our institution in the regions. We have good reasons to be satisfied having a dynamic Chamber with member companies that are extremely open, engaged, participative and motivated
Canada Shale Gas event draw Canadian firms
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AECOM was one of the exhibitors at the Shale Gas World Europe 2012 conference which took place on 28-29 November at the Hilton. The conference brought together senior level decision makers and technical professionals from across the shale gas business. Attendees’ included approximately 300 people from various countries who came to hear oil and gas industry executives, leading analysts and commentators discuss the challenges and opportunities for oil and gas companies. The programme covered a series of interviews, workshops, debates and private roundtables across three core themes: Strategy & Commercial; Geophysical, Drilling & Completions; Water, Fluids, Environment & Community Engagement. During the conference AECOM oil & gas experts had the opportunity to meet many key people representing the shale gas industry and to present AECOM’s wide experience and skills supporting development of this sector.
to support business relations between Portugal and Poland”, said Mr. Pedro Pereira da Silva, PPCC President. Portuguese companies have invested €1.4 billion in Poland since 2005. The PPCC is now the sixth largest international chamber of commerce active in Poland. According to Mr. Da Silva, Poland is the most important market in Central and Eastern Europe for Portuguese foreign direct investment (FDI). Since 2005, the total value of these investments reached a total of 1.4 billion euros. Many Portuguese companies managed to consolidate its position in the Polish market in various sectors, including retail and distribution, banking, renewable energy, construction, real estate, industry and services.
The Polish-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce (PPCC) was established in 2008 and is composed of Polish companies with Portugese capital and other Polish and international companies maintaining business relations in the Portuguese market. The largest companies associated with Portuguese investors in Poland are Jeronimo Martins, Millennium Bank, Eurocash, Mota-Engil, Martifer, Colep Poland, Simoldes, PwC, Espirito Santo Investment Bank, EDP Renewables, Martifer Renewables, SIBS International, MSF, Bakoma, Mlekovita , Sokołów, BZ WBK, and Browary Łódzkie. We’d like to publish information on our participation as exhibitor in Europe’s premier shale gas conference and exhibition taking place on 27-29 November 2012. n
Copper firm leads creation of new Association Mozów Copper Ltd. and its sister company – Leszno Copper Ltd. have become Founding Members of the Polish Association of Exploration Sector Employers. The Founding Assembly took place on 19th December 2012 and gathered 11 companies from the mining industry and its environment. Professor Stanisław Speczik was unanimously elected as the President of the Board of the newly created entity. He is also General Director of Mozów and Leszno Copper. The Association intends to join the Polish Confederation of Private Employers “Lewiatan” as soon as all registration procedures will be finalized. Main goals of the Association for the upcoming year will be among others presenting opinions on issues connected with proposed or existing legislation (with special attention put on the Mining Tax Act and Geological and Mining Act) and creating positive image of the mining sector among public and local authorities as well as public opinion. n
January 2013
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Chambers of Commerce News
Belgium “God: a user's guide” exhibition supported by Belgians On 13th December the Belgian Business Chamber organized the Belgian Business Mixer, which took place at the State Ethnographical Museum in Warsaw. It was another chance for members of BBC, Belgians, representatives of Belgian companies and all friends to meet and spend time together. Participants had an opportunity to see the exhibition “God: a user's guide”€(a reduced version of the Brussels exhibition of the same name of 2007), which shows religious diversity in Europe supported by globalization and mass migrations. The exhibition “God: a user's guide” is open to the public til 11th March in the State Ethnographical Museum in Warsaw. One member of Belgian Business Chamber- Tempora is responsible for organizing this exhibition. It has also been presented in Paris, Brussels, Madrid and Ottawa. Moreover, Tempora has designed and built exhibitions at the Museum of the Second World War in Gdansk as well as at the interactive Heritage Center of Cathedral Island in Poznan.
OKRE Development lays cornerstone On November 15th OKRE Development laid the cornerstone for Greenwings offices - a new concept of A-class offices complying with the requirements of sustainable building. Greenwings offices is being built in Warsaw at 17 Stycznia in the close vicinity of the Chopin International Airport.
Belgian Days hands out awards From 6th to 24th November 2012, the Belgian Business Chamber organised the annual Belgian Days under the Patronage of the Ambassador of Belgium, His Excellency Raoul Delcorde. This year’s edition was exceptional - during the undertaking the BBC celebrated its 20th anniversary. The events organised for the Belgian Days 2012 were focused, more than in previous years, on a business dimension. They included: a Sharing Experiences conference, a CEO Forum and a Gala Dinner. During the Belgian Days 2012,
2013 January
two important awards were presented: the Belgian Business Chamber Award (for the fourth time) and the Best Belgian Exporter Award (for the first time). The winners of the Best Belgian Exporter Award were Ghelamco Poland - Best Belgian Exporter of Services and Reyaners Aluminium N.V. - Best Belgian Exporter of Goods. Cultural events were also provided, among them a Belgian Evening - Mussels & Fries and an Urban Game around the streets of Warsaw. Over 700 guests participated in the Belgian Days. n
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Chambers of Commerce News
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Dutch Raben Group CEO wins Entrepreneur of the Year 2012 On November 29, 2012, during the Warsaw Gala, the CEO of Raben Group - Ewald Raben - was announced the winner of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards which has been organized in Poland for the tenth time. An independent Jury selected the best entrepreneur based on the criteria of entrepreneurship, strategy, international operations, innovativeness, as well as relations with employees and with the environment. "I am extremely proud and really happy that I have received the prestigious Entrepreneur of the Year Award. This means that our company, the management and employees are developing in the right direction and they put our values and strategy into practice. The competition promotes attitudes which are so natural in my business environment. Entrepreneurship is the corporate value of Raben Group and we want our employees to be entrepreneurs in their workplaces. Without innovativeness, modern business, including logistics, cannot exist. Running our operations in a responsible manner, and taking care about the environment is of key importance for us. The experience from the 10 countries where we conduct our business is helpful in our everyday work" - said winner Ewald Raben. "For entrepreneurship, vision and passion, and for efficient management. For developing a logistics network servicing almost the whole Europe, where the superior values are passion, customer orientation, professionalism and reliability" – this was the justification of the decision to award Ewald Raben with the title of the Entrepreneur of the Year 2012, according to Chairperson of the Jury, former Prime Minister Jan Krzysztof Bielecki. Ewald Raben will represent Poland in the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year Awards in Monte Carlo in June 2013, competing with the best entrepreneurs from over 50 countries. n
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Megatrends in the world of leadership and innovation were on the agenda of the AmCham CEO Forum on November 20th. The house was full. The venue was the glassy hall of Endorfina Restaurant & Bar in Warsaw. The event was sponsored by Hay Group and IBM. The panelists included: Mik Kuczkiewicz, General Manager of Hay Group and Anna Sieńko, President of IBM. The panel was moderated by Jan Cieński of Financial Times. n
January 2013
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Chambers of Commerce News
Scandinavia Christmas charity benefits amputee soldier SPCC members met on Friday evening, 7th of December for an Evening Christmas Reception, and members had a chance to sing Christmas carols along with Ars Cantaca Choir. And to all astonishment there was Santa Claus coming to SPCC evening. Prizes included a trip to Oslo sponsored by Premium Events, Fiskars & Oriflame products, vouchers for hotels Le Meridien Bristol, Radisson BLU Centrum, and Westin; a bottle of rum from Grand Cru, Handy 2-in-1 hoover from Nilfisk, baskets of goodies from DnB Nord Bank & SPCC and many more! The income goes to support Jasiek Mela Foundation "POZA HORYZONTY" - this time - a single father Norbert Buba raising his 8-year old daughter alone. He was a soldier until 2005, when he was badly injured in a serious car accident and his right leg had to be amputated. Now he needs help in getting a new prosthesis that will enable him to lead more active part in his daughter’s life.
Finnair to open direct route to Hanoi in summer 2013 Finnair will begin flying to Hanoi in Vietnam in summer 2013, continuing the airline’s strategic focus on traffic between Asia and Europe. Subject to regulatory approvals, Finnair becomes the only European airline to offer a direct connection from Europe to the dynamic capital of Vietnam with a population of 6.5 million. Starting on June 14, Finnair will begin service to Hanoi from its hub in Helsinki with three frequencies per week. From Helsinki, Finnair offers connections to more than 60 European destinations. The Hanoi route will be operated during the summer schedule season, which lasts until Oct 27. Finnair is represented in Vietnam by its partner East Sea Travel & Air Service Group. ”We have a two-fold strategy for Poland”, says Wiktor Matuszewski, Client Manager Poland. “First, we want to become the number one choice for Polish passengers to Asia when there is no daily direct service, by offering the best connections via Helsinki. Secondly, we want to offer the best schedules for the business traveller between Warsaw and Finland." ”As Hanoi is both an attractive tourist destination and a growing economic centre, I expect this route to be of interest not only to those travelling for pleasure but also to a growing number of Polish business travellers”, Matuszewski concludes. n
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Business Calendar January 17 January Stammtisch - German-Poland Chamber of Commerce Krakow, German Consulate, 18:00 – 21:00 Stammtisch in Krakow, sponsored by the German Consulate, Polish-German Chamber of Commerce, and Raben Management.
21 January Foundation for Corporate Social Responsibility - 10th Anniversary Dinner Dance Warsaw, Hotel Hilton FCSR’s Annual Dinner Dance, featuring the performance of 50 PromiseLand kids.
23 January BPCC Academy: Tax and corporate finance in 2013. Opportunities and threats.
International Travel Market (ITM); 24-26 January
Sponsored by Raytheon.
Exhibition and events will largely focus on the presentation of intelligent design systems, efficient and low-energy technologies, innovative materials and building systems, as well as integrated control and modern building management. www.budma.pl
24-26 January
29 January – 1 February
International Travel Market (ITM)
Sports Center Construction - Sport, Recreation, Wellness and SPA.
Warsaw, BPCC Boardroom, Al. Szucha 3/14, 09:00 – 1pm. Organised by: British Polish Chamber of Commerce. Bpcc.org.pl
24 January AmCham Business Mixer
Warsaw, Expo XXI The third ITM Warsaw international tourism fair will be held Jan. 24-26, 2013, at the Expo XXI exhibition center in Warsaw. The event will be held simultaneously with the ITM Business Tourism fair, which is aimed at organizers and planners of conferences, conventions, business trips and corporate events.
Poznan, Poznan International Fairgrounds (MTP) SCC trade Fair will run parallel BUDMA International Construction Fair and International Fair of Construction Machines, Vehicles and Equipment BUMASZ. http://cbs. mtp.pl/en/
29 January – 1 February
29 January – 1 February
Budma
GLASS Glass Industry Fair
Poznan, Poznan International Fairgrounds (MTP)
Poznan, Poznan International Fairgrounds (MTP)
Held concurrently with BUDMA. Also Windoor-Tech Fair of Machines and Components for Windows, Doors, Gates and Façades Production.
30 January Polish-German PPP Forum Krakow Discussion about Poland’s young but ambitious PPP projects. The Ministry of Economy has 19 projects underway and 71 planned. In Germany, 168 PPP projects are underway worth 4.8 billion euro. www.ahk.pl
31 January BPCC Gala Dinner in London London, Honorary Artillery Club in London Oranised by Fourth Culture Films, the Dinner is in remembrance of the WWII Battle of Monte Cassino and in support of its local community and veterans. Because of Poland’s great sacrifices at Monte Cassino, and the remaining legacy of the battle in Poland today, we would like to involve as many Polish companies as possible. The event is in collaboration with the British Red Cross. www.bpcc.org.pl
February 2 February Miss Polonia Charity Gala
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Miss Polonia Charity Gala, 2 February
Warsaw, ATM Studio Mingle with celebrity guests on the red carpet, and witness the Miss Polonia contestants on the catwalk. Charity proceeds go to the Foundation for Corporate Social Responsibility. Corporate Tables available. www.misspolonia. com.pl
January 2013
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Business Calendar
6-8 February
16-17 February
RemaDays Promotional Fair
Residential Real Estate Fair - Nowy Adres
Warsaw, Expo XXI Advertising and Printing Fairs RemaDays Warsaw is the biggest event in the advertising sector in Central Europe, with nearly 10,000 professionals meeting together during three days on the area of 11,000 sqm. Four sectors (over 570 exhibitors) of the ad world covered, including: Out&InDoorSystems, GiftsWorld, TechnologyPark, and PrintShow. www. RemaDays.com
7 February Poland Outsourcing and Shared Services Awards Gala. Warsaw, Hotel Intercontinental The inaugural Awards Gala dedicated to recognizing excellence in the sector. Global outsourcing firms, business services projects and sector professionals will be presented with awards of acknowledgment - by an independent jury from the industry - for their contribution to the development of the business services sector in Poland for 2012. Organized by BiznesPolska and “Outsourcing in Poland’, with supporting partners ASPIRE and ABSL. www. PolandOutsourcingAwards.pl
16 February Gala CCIFP 2013 Warsaw, Hotel Sofitel Warsaw Victoria The annual Gala of the French Chamber of Commerce. www.ccifp.pl
Warsaw, Expo XXI Twice-annual residential real estate exhibition. www.nowyadres.pl
Retailers, real estate companies, projects and individuals will be presented with awards of acknowledgment, by the industry, for their contribution to the development of the retail commercial real estate market in the region for 2012. www.EuropaProperty.com
19-20 February
AmCham Business Mixer
Fruit- and Vegetable- growing Fair TSW Warsaw, Expo XXI Polish horticulture is a fast-growing branch of the economy. Many highly specialized Polish farms produce high quality fruit and vegetables. The fair will exhibit innovative products and technologies. www.tsw.targi.pl
19-21 February Poznań Fashion Fair Poznan, Poznan International Fairgrounds (MTP) Four exhibitions are part of the Poznan Fashion Fair, including: “Next Season” Exhibition of Clothing and Accessories; “Fast Fashion” Exhibition of Clothing and Accessories – Spring-Summer 2013; BTS Exhibition of Shoes and Leather Goods; Tex-Style Exhibition of Clothing Industry Components. http://www. targimodypoznan.pl/en/
23-24 February Salon Wiosna - Cosmetics Congress and Fair Warsaw, Expo XXI Largest annual Expo for the Polish cosmetics sector http://www.salon-wiosna.pl/
28 February – 3 March Wind and Water Fair Warsaw, Expo XXI 25th edition of Wind and Water Fair, the largest event for the sailing industry in Poland. http://wiatriwoda.pl/
21 February CEE Retail Awards Gala and Forum Warsaw, Hotel Intercontinental
AmCham Business Mixer, Warsaw, National Stadium, 21 February
2013 January
Warsaw, National Stadium Sponsored by Sodexo
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Events
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CEE Green Building Awards Sustainable real-estate development was the theme at the second annual CEE Green Building Awards, organized by EuropaProperty at the Marriott Hotel. The glittering awards ceremony, with more than 200 real estate professionals from across the CEE region, celebrated finalists in 18 categories. While Skanska Property swept up many awards for their focus on Green Development, other awards went to UBM, Echo Invesment, HB Reavis, Liebrecht & Wood, IVG, Strabag, Neinver, and Immobel Poland, among others. Company of the Year winners were: Professional Service Provider of the Year: BuildGreen Romania Architectural. Firm of the Year: APA Wojciechowski. Law Firm of the Year: Salans Project. Management Firm of the Year: EC Harris. Property Management Firm of the Year: ECE Projektmanagement. Letting Agent of the Year: Jones Lang LaSalle. Investor of the Year: Kulczyk Silverstein Properties. Bank of the Year: pbb Deutsche Pfandbriefbank. Developer of the Year: Skanska. n
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January 2013
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Events
Infosys’ office opening Łódź In mid-December in Łódz, Skanska Property celebrated the opening of its new office building Green Horizon, whose anchor tenant is global BPO firm Infosys. The building’s final design was a collaborative result between Infosys and Skanska. Infosys, headquartered in India, continues to grow rapidly, and announced that the firm will hire an additional 500 people during 2013. Skanska was keen to showcase its new building, tailor-made for the needs of BPO outsourcing companies. Infosys now employs about 1500 people in Łódz, and will grow to 2,000 employees by end of year 2013 – all to be located in the new office space of 16,000 square meters. Infosys has options on additional adjacent expansion buildings to be developed by Skanska. Hanna Zdanowska, Mayor of the City of Łódz, said: “We are pleased that Łódz has become so attractive for companies in the business services sector. We are one of the most popular locations for outsourcing sector projects among Polish cities, and high-quality office space is one of the key factors that attracts potential investors to Łódz.” Witold Stepien, the Marzal of the Łódz region also attended. “Thanks to these investments, the entire region benefits. According to the latest report by the Institute for Market Economics, the region is currently the most attractive place in Poland to locate a BPO services center. And that is one of the industries that is key to the economic future of the Lodz region”, he said. n
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Events
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SIAL Paris attracts Polish f More than 50 Polish food exporters attended Europe’s largest food fair - SIAL in Paris. The 5-day expo featured more than 30,000 industry professionals who came for the 200 conferences and events, including endless food tastings, including wines, cheeses and sweets. Poland’s PAIZ booth was host to a cluster of Polish food companies, who are consistently increasing their export sales to western Europe, particularly in the categories of meats, processed and packaged fruits and vegetables, and sweets. n
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Events
h food exporters
Fleet Cars Expo Fleet Market 2012, the biggest event for the Polish fleet industry, took place in Warsaw in late November at the Warsaw Expocentre XXI, with more than 200 exhibitors and over 3,000 visitors. The Fleet Market Fair presented and promoted the newest vehicle fleets on offer, and featured presentations of new fleet-related products and services. Over one hundred new-car models in one place really made an impression, including newly-available models such as the new Renault Clio and Dacia Sandero Dokker. During this year’s Fleet Market, as in previous years, the magazine “Fleet” presented awards in the “Long-distance Fleet” category, to General Motors Poland (Opel Astra), Mazda Motor Europe (Mazda 6), Peugeot Polska (Peugeot 208), Toyota Motor Poland (Toyota Avensis and Yaris), Suzuki Motor Poland (Suzuki Splash) and the carwash network Robo Wash Center. n
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