| POLISH INFOMATION AND FOREIGN INVESTMENT AGENCY | ||||||||||
NEWSLETTER December 3rd, 2009, Number 151 | ||||||||||
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TABLE OF CONTENTS NEWS
INVESTMENTS IN POLAND
FROM THE REGIONS
ANALYSES AND REPORTS
DID YOU KNOW...?
NEWS Designed in Poland in Minsk The exhibition of the Polish industrial design “Designed in Poland” opened in Minsk on December 1st.
The Belarusian edition of the exhibition was organised in the Trade Union House of Culture at the 25 Prospekt Niezawisimosti Str. The exhibition was organised by the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency in co-operation with the Trade and Investment Promotion Section of the Polish Embassy in Minsk.
The exhibition will be opened between December 2nd - 11th every day from 11 to 19. Official opening of the event took place on December 1st. The idea of the exhibition dates back to 2005. The exhibition visited 11 cities all around the world. The first of the series of exhibitions took place in Berlin and was later on presented also in Hamburg, Helsinki, New Delhi, Mumbai, Munich, Geneva, Copenhagen, Madrid, Karlovy Vary and Astana. (PAIiIZ)
All roads lead to Russia The conference “All roads lead to Russia” took place on November 26th, 2009 at the Warsaw Sheraton hotel. The event was organised by the Polish-Russian Chamber of Commerce, the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) and the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIiIZ).
The main purpose of the meeting was to inform entrepreneurs about how to introduce food and other commodities on the Russian market, discuss legal regulations important to entrepreneurs operating on the market and to exchange experiences and information on co-operation opportunities between the Polish and Russian sector of small and medium-sized enterprises. Professor Barbara Durka from the Polish-Russian Industry Chamber encouraged entrepreneurs to form bigger producer groups. Co-operation rather than competition should enable small businesses to effectively operate on the Russian market. According to professor Durka, it is the innovation projects, which attract more and more attention in Russia, that may help develop the Polish-Russian economic co-operation. The value of Polish investment in Russia exceeds the capital volume of Russian investments in Poland. During the conference Marek Łyżwa, member of the PAIiIZ Management Board presented the current state of the investment co-operation between the two countries. Polish investments in Russia in 2008 were worth around USD 530 million. The majority of them was located in the Kaliningrad, Novgorod and the Central Oblasts. Among the sectors which attract the greatest number of Polish entrepreneurs there are the processing, real estate and finance sectors. The biggest Polish investors are Forte S. A., furniture producer, Pfleiderer Grajewo S.A. and TZMO “Bella-Jegoriewsk”. According to Marek Łyżwa the biggest barriers to Polish-Russian economic co-operation result from state protectionism, high duty and import restrictions from Russia. Despite all the difficulties, the geographical proximity and the size of the market do make our Eastern neighbour a very attractive business partner for Polish investors. Experts from the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) and the Export Credit Insurance Corporation Joint Stock Company presented ways of supporting the introduction of Polish export into the Russian market. “Passport to Export”, a measure forming part of the EU Operational Programme - Innovative Economy is thought as a device which should help Polish entrepreneurs increase the level of exports in total sales, stimulate the relations with foreign partners and increase Polish trade mark visibility on foreign markets. (PAIiIZ) Conference: “Legal barriers to the inflow of foreign direct investments to Poland” The Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency invites to the conference “Legal barriers to the inflow of foreign direct investments to Poland”. The conference will take place on December 4th, 2009 at 12:00 at the PAIiIZ Information Centre in Warsaw, 12 Bagatela Str.
The conference is organised to present conclusions concerning barriers which hamper foreign entrepreneurs’ activity in Poland. Experts invited to the conference will analyse legal barriers and recommended changes in the fields of: foreigner residence permit in Poland, tax law, initiatives in the formula of public-private partnerships and investment in renewable energy sources. Participation in the conference is free of charge. The conference will be held in Polish. Translation into English will be provided. To register contact Katarzyna Antosik at katarzyna.antosik@paiz.gov.pl. Go to top...
Employers’ plans for the first half of the year 2010 - PAIiIZ and Randstad conference The Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency and Randstad Polska invite you to a press conference "Employers’ plans for the first half of the eyar 2010” which will be held on December 7th at the PAIiIZ Information Centre, 12 Bagatela Str., at 10.30.
The conference will serve as an opportunity to present results of the 5th edition of employers' plans survey concerning employment and salaries in companies in the upcoming 6 months. The survey was carried out by TNS OBOP and the Randstad Research Institute. Participation is free of charge. The conference will be held in Polish. To confirm your participation please contact Katarzyna Antosik, e-mail: katarzyna.antosik@paiz.gov.pl. In order to provide all the conference participants with the most comfortable work conditions, only accredited journalists with a valid press pass will be admitted. (PAIiIZ) INVESTMENTS IN POLAND Another world company chooses Szczecin Coloplast, a world leading supplier of intimate healthcare products and services is opening a shared services centre in Szczecin. The SSC will provide accounting services for the group in relation to its subsidiaries in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, Holland, Belgium and Poland.
The SSC opens officially in April 2010 under the name of Coloplast Shared Services Sp. z o.o. Coloplast is the world’s leading supplier of intimate healthcare products and services. The company has over 50 years of experience and specializes in ostomy care, urology and continence care and wound and skin care. Production is carried out in Denmark, Hungary, the USA, China and France and sale its products all around the world. The company supplies products to hospitals and other heath care institutions as well as to wholesalers and retailers. In the financial year 2008/2009 total sales closed at the level of EUR 1.2 billion. Coloplast employs more than 7000 people world wide. This is the second, after UniCredit, SSC in Szczecin, a facility which perfectly complements the city’s development strategy, which aims at attracting investors who can create valuable and qualified workplaces. (Szczecin City Council) In December LCD panels start to be produced in Opole This month Hana Elecom, the Korean electronics components’ manufacturer starts to produce metal inserts to LCD screens in Opole. In Poland the company will operate under the name Hana Poland.
Initially, activities will be limited to production process carried out in a rented shop floor. The investing company will employ approximately 20 - 30 people. In the long run, the Korean investor plans to build a new plant. The shop floor rental agreement was signed for 3 years. Hana Poland supplies, among others, the Wroclaw-based LG factory and a Samsung plant in Slovakia. Negotiations with the investor were coordinated by the Opole Investor Service Center (COI). Hana Poland has already started the construction of its new facilities and initiated organization of the personnel structure. Invicta opens a diagnostic laboratory in Gdańsk Invicta, the most modern diagnostic laboratory in northern Poland, officially started its business activity on November 24th, 2009, in the Gdańsk Science and Technology Park of the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone.
The official opening was made, among others, by Dorota Białobrzeska-Łukaszuk - the President of Invicta, Teresa Kamińska - the President of Pomeranian SEZ Ltd. and Zbigniew Rau - the Director of GSTP. Invited guests officially launched the modern laboratory by breaking laboratory measuring cylinders. As an innovative company, INVICTA has been given the privilege to locate its modern laboratory rooms in a building of the Gdańsk Science and Technology Park, which supports modern solutions in biotechnology. The place gathers a number of different laboratories: analytical, genetic, laboratory of molecular biology and research and development laboratory. INVICTA Medical Laboratory is equipped with modern devices of renowned suppliers, intended for diagnostic tests in the fields of: biochemistry, immunology, haematology, coagulology, general analytics, microbiology, serology, histopathology, prenatal diagnostics, genetics and molecular biology. (Pomeranian SEZ) MACROECONOMIC POLAND
Source: www.nbp.pl FROM THE REGIONS Special Economic Zones to be enlarged Almost PLN 7 million in investment outlays and over 20,000 workplaces can be created in the consequence of the enlargement of the Katowice and Warmia-Mazury Special Economic Zones. Regulations concerning the enlargement were adopted on December 1st, 2009.
The regulations, which were prepared by the Ministry of Economy change the current limits and area of the zones. Due to the changes the area of the Katowice SEZ will be bigger by near 373.5 ha and the Warmia-Mazury SEZ by around 43 ha. Part of the area incorporated in the Katowice SEZ has already been assigned concrete investment projects which are to be located in the lots. There are plans to build a bumper car producing facility in the Rudziniec community and a glassworks in Częstochowa. The change in the zones’ limits should in the long run contribute to generate around 19,000 workplaces. It is estimated that the area which is to be incorporated in the Warmia-Mazury SEZ will accommodate investment worth around PLN 300 million and offer employment to 500 people. In this casa there also are concrete plans for the development of the new lots i.e. in the commune of Piecki investors plan to construct a furniture factory and in Ciechanów a meat processing and poultry product plant. (Ministry of Economy) ARE Innovation Award for the SEKAP project in ¦l±sk The ¦l±sk voivodship was awarded as the most innovative European region. The award was granted for the SEKAP project i.e. an Electronic System of Communication in the Public Administration and was handed in Belfort (France) during a meeting of the Assembly of European Regions (AER).
SEKAP started on April 25th, 2008. The project was implemented in 54 local government units. The system allows residents, entrepreneurs and organizations to settle administrative affairs via the Internet. SEKAP was commissioned by the ¦l±sk Marshal’s Office. Offices covered by the system provide services to over 3 million residents. Upcoming years should see SEKAP cover the rest of the region’s offices and institutions. The overall costs of the project accountrd for PLN 22.2 million, 75% of the costs (i.e. PLN 15.7 million) came from the European Regional Development Fund (The Integrated Regional Operational Programme). Sl±sk was awarded the price ex aequo with the Western Götaland in Switzerland (partner region of the ¦l±sk voivodships). The Swiss awarded project concerned support provided to small and medium-sized enterprises. The ARE Innovation Award was granted for the 4th time. - It was the first time the ¦l±sk voivodship took part in the contest. The award confirms the fact that our projects and ideas are really good and that we do have things which can be shown to the whole of Europe - said the region's Marshal Bogusław ¦migielski. The voivodship has been a member of the Assembly of European Regions since 2000. The assembly gathers members from over 270 regions located in 33 countries in Europe. Among the organisation’s priorities there are activities promoting diversity in European culture, promotion of local democracy, experience exchange in the field of public administration and regional development through training programmes for local government representatives. (The ¦l±sk Marshal Office) ANALYSES AND REPORTS Global FDI inflows according to the UNCTAD According to the UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) the 2nd Q of 2009 saw an increase in global foreign direct investment (FDI) in comparison with the 1st Q of the year.
However, compared with the corresponding period of 2008, FDI flows are much lower. The 2nd Q increase in FDI flows has much to do with the higher number of mergers and acquisitions. Still, greenfield investment continued to decline for the fifth consecutive quarter. UNCTAD experts estimate the general environment for international investment is slowly improving but the situation may be temporary and result largely from special economic packages implemented by major economies worldwide. (UNCTAD) DID YOU KNOW...?
Scopus - Perspektywy Young Researcher Award Elsevier BV and Educational Foundation Perspektywy rewarded young Polish scientists in the contest Scopus - Perspektywy Young Researcher Award. Three winners were selected from among 300 candidates who took part in the contest.
Scopus - Young Researcher Award in a contest in which young scientists are awarded for academic success of international importance. From nearly 300 candidates the Award Committee distinguished 10 nominated candidates . From the nominated scientists the jury selected three laureates: Łukasz Małek, Martyna Kucharska and Maciej Misiorny who received PLN10 thousand which is to cover the costs of participation in an international scientific conference which the laureates choose. The winners represent different fields of science: - It's a great opportunity to speak good about the future before such an audience, for it is you that create the future of Polish science - said professor. Boguslaw Smólski, director of the National Research and Development Center and a member of the Award Committee. - I think that in the times of crisis, young scientists who constitute the pride of this country were able to achieve so much thanks to their co-operation with their Polish science mentors who have presented them to the competition. (perspektywy.pl) 
Editorial office: Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency, 00-585 Warsaw, Bagatela Street 12 Economic Promotion Department, tel: (+48 22) 334 98 15, fax: (+48 22) 334 99 99, e-mail: redakcja@paiz.gov.pl | ||||||||||
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