WBJ #17-18 2012

Polish banks enjoy another record quarter

PM Tusk visits the UAE and Saudi Arabia 3

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Legia Warszawa wins the Polish Cup

VOLUME 18, NUMBER 17-18 • APR 30 – MAY 13, 2012 . z∏.12.50 (VAT 8% included) . ISSN 1233 7889 INDEX-RUCH-332-127

Since 1994 . Poland’s only business weekly in English

REAL ESTATE Lokale Immobilia

COURTESY OF HOME BROKER

Profit in Poland WBJ presents a special 8-page pull-out investment guide including:

• Historical properties • Apricot Capital plans • InterContinental stake sale 21-25

COURTESY OF THE IMF

Optimistic outlook

• Attractive sectors for investment • Investment trends • How to set up a business • Tender procedures • Business organizations • Chambers of commerce • Government agencies • An investor’s glossary

Government officials expect a budget surplus within a few years and say Poland is resistant to euro-zone woes 6

13-20

Business oriented

In this issue News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-4 Finance & Economics . . . . . . . . . . .6 Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8-9 Opinion & Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Poland Investment Guide . . . .13-20 Lokale Immobilia . . . . . . . . . . .21-25 The List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26-27 Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Lifestyle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 Last Word . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao makes a big splash in Poland 3

SHUTTERSTOCK

A hero, honored The United States awards its Presidential Medal of Freedom to Jan Karski 4

2

NEWS

www.wbj.pl

Mike Tyson comes to Poland

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Numbers in the News

The May 3rd Constitution

$10 billion is the size of the credit line that China is set to open for supporting the development of infrastructure, new technologies and a green economy in the Central and Eastern Europe region.

z∏.1 billion

An April poll conducted

by TNS OBOP for Gazeta Wyborcza shows that the ruling Civic Platform’s (PO) support is continuing to wane, with main opposition party Law and Justice (PiS) now just two percentage points behind it. Some 27% of those polled expressed support for PO while 25% favored PiS. Some 22% claimed to be undecided between the two. Since the percentage of PiS supporters has not changed dramatically, it can be assumed that it is mostly disenchanted PO supporters who are joining the ranks of the undecided.

Blasts injure 27 in Ukraine As WBJ went to press, some 27 people had been injured as a result of four blasts that hit the city of Dnipropetrovsk in eastern Ukraine around mid-day on April 27, according to InterfaxUkraine. Four bombs in trash cans were the source of the blasts.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich called the blasts a “challenge,” promising an “adequate response.” Prosecutors have said terrorists might be behind the attack. ●

is the number of foreign patients who used medical services in Poland in 2011.

“The May 3 Constitution”

by Jan Matejko, 1891

May 3 is Constitution Day in Poland, a national holiday held to celebrate the adoption on May 3, 1791 of what has been described by many scholars as the first constitution in Europe and the second in the world.

The constitution is considered one of the most significant achievements in Poland’s history, despite being in effect for only a year, until the Russian-Polish war of 1792. It was designed to address longstanding political defects in the then Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The document specifically sought to tackle the existing anarchy fostered by some of the country’s mag-

8.8% nates with a more democratic constitutional monarchy.

The May 3rd Constitution introduced political equality between town-dwellers and the nobility and also placed the peasants under the protection of the government, alleviating some of the worst abuses connected with serfdom.

The document also did away with ill-construed parliamentary institutions such as the liberum veto, which had put the parliament at the mercy of any MP who might choose – or be bribed by a special interest or foreign power – to block any legislation adopted at that session of parliament.

The adoption of the May

3rd Constitution provoked the hostile reaction of the Commonwealth’s neighbors, leading to the Second Partition of Poland in 1793.

The memory of the May 3rd Constitution, widely recognized as a progressive document for its time, helped keep alive Polish aspirations for an independent state and a just society. Poles view it as a national symbol and the embodiment of all that was good and enlightened in Polish history and culture.

Under communist rule, May 3 was removed as a national holiday and was only reestablished as such in 1990.

Remi Adekoya

is how much passenger traffic at Polish airports is expected to increase this year.

Quote of the Week

“We are working on the seed which we are sowing now to bring a good harvest.”

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, on his recent discussions with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on greater Sino-Polish cooperation.

Figures in focus Belgian bounty Labor cost per hour in €, selected EU27 countries in 2011 50 40 *Highest in EU27

30

**Lowest in EU27 20

On WBJ.pl

10 0

Strolling around Warsaw This spring and summer log on to WBJ.pl and discover or re-discover the capital through itineraries compiled by Warsaw Business Journal’s sister publication Warsaw Insider, starting with a stroll around Warsaw’s trendy Praga district.

Cz ec U hR K ep ub lic Po la nd La tvi Lit a hu an Bu ia lga ria **

PiS gains ground on ruling PO

300,000

Be lgi um Sw * ed en Fra nc e Ge rm an y EU 27 Sp ain

Former heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson was in Poland at the end of April to launch a new advertising campaign for energy drink Black.

Tyson, who was known as Iron Mike during his boxing career, will be the face of the campaign for the next three years.

FoodCare, the company which produces Black, hopes it will become the best-selling energy drink in Europe.

COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

is the amount of extra funding granted by the EU to Poland to use for innovation and new technologies.

Source: Eurostat

Company index Al Tamimi & Company ..............16 Handpresso ................................31 PGNiG ..........................................8 Al-Ghurair Group ......................13 HB Reavis ..................................21 PKO Bank Polski........................13

DATELINE

Avestus Real Estate ..................24 Home Broker..............................23 Prologis ......................................22

May 1-3

8-11

ROAD CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY FAIR IN KIELCE

Web:

AUTOSTRADA-POLSKA, MASZBUD, TRAFICEXPO and ROTRA are annual exhibitions that showcase products required to build highways.

Targi Kielce targikielce.pl

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PRCH RETAIL HORIZONS

Event:

Polish Council of Retail Centers’ Retail Horizons 2012 Conference gathers executives,

Event:

Location:

Azora Europe..............................21 IBM ............................................13 PwC ............................................16

ANNUAL INVESTMENT MEETING 2012

Event: This emerging markets FDI-focused event offers a perfect blend of trade fair and intellectual features providing institutional, corporate and individual investors with a comprehensive set of guidelines for their future investment decisions in high growth regions.

Location: Dubai Web: aimcongress.com

Apricot Capital Group ................22 Helical Poland............................21 PKO BP ........................................6

Location: Web:

investors, developers, administrators and retail chains from the Polish shopping center market.

Warsaw prch.org.pl

14-16 EUROPEAN ECONOMIC CONGRESS

Bank Millennium ........................9 ING Securities..............................9 PZU ............................................13 BIATEL ARABIA..........................14 Inpro ..........................................24 BMC............................................31 Ipopema Securities......................9 BZ WBK ....................................6, 9 Jastrz´bska Spó∏ka W´glowa....13 Carrier ........................................21 Jeronimo Martins ........................4

POLAND & CEE STRUCTURED PRODUCTS

Concept Development ..............25 Miller Canfield............................17

Event:

Whether you’re looking to enhance your presence in the CEE market, structuring products for OTC or distribution to retailers, involved in risk assessment and pricing or simply looking to learn about the CEE market, this event is for you.

Warsaw eelevents.co.uk

DB Schenker Logistics ..............22 Monday Development ................24

Web:

San Lorenzo ..............................30 Saturn ........................................21

16

Location:

SABIC ..........................................3

CBRE ....................................21, 22 Kaufland ....................................22

Web:

Location:

Russian Standard ........................9

Castorama..................................21 Jula ............................................21

This event is considered one of the best forums for discussions on Europe’s future. It features speeches and participation in panels of high-profile politicians and businesspeople.

Katowice eecpoland.eu

Event:

Qualia Development ..................29

SEGRO ........................................22 CD Projekt....................................4 KGHM ..........................................8 Skanska Property Poland..........25 Central European

Leopard Automobile Mielec ......15 Strabag ......................................25

Distribution Corp ........................9 LOT ..............................................3 Tauron ..........................................8 Chevron Polska

MarcPol ......................................21 Tesco ......................................3, 21

Energy Resources ......................16 MGPA ..........................................25 Colliers International Poland ....25 Millennium Bank Polska ..........21

DHL ............................................22 N-Control ..................................31

Turkish Airlines............................3 UBM............................................21 Unibep ........................................24 Unidevelopment ........................24

DM IDM ........................................8 Nordea Bank ................................9 United Technologies Eko Park ....................................21 NSB ............................................21 Corporation ................................21 Enea..............................................8 Orlen ........................................3, 8 Warimpex ..................................21 Ernst & Young ............................13 OTIS ............................................21 Wood & Company ........................9 FlexLink ......................................22 Peter Nielsen & Partners ..........6 WSE ............................................16 FoodCare ....................................2 PGE ..............................................8 X-Trade Brokers DM ..................28

NEWS

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

www.wbj.pl

Sino-Polish relations

Chinese premier in Poland Wen Jiabao was in Warsaw in late April, where he sought to strengthen ties with Poland and the region

Poland and China are symbols of success in the world, Mr Tusk said Eastern Europe to support the development of infrastructure, new technologies and a green economy in the region, Mr Wen said at the Economic Forum Poland – Central Europe – China in Warsaw on April 26.

Mr Wen also announced the creation of a fund which would initially provide $500 million to assist Chinese investments in the region. In addition, he said he hoped to double the current trade volume between the region and China to $100 billion by 2015.

“We have a long-term plan for increasing our cooperation,” he said.

Among other initiatives, a special committee to coordinate industrial cooperation between the two countries will be launched.

complex are meeting. Partners who break stereotypes and are a symbol of success and development in the world,” Mr Tusk said, adding that Poland had decided to upgrade bilateral relations to a “strategic” level.

The Chinese PM’s visit comes after Polish President Bronis∏aw Komorowski’s trip to China in December of last year, during which time the two countries signed a strategic partnership agreement. A total of eight EU member states have now signed strategic partnership agreements with the

A bright future Mr Tusk said at the Economic Forum that China and Eastern European countries are “the hope for a better world for everyone.”

“Today two partners who have no cause for an inferiority

Asian superpower.

As part of an effort to make China more accessible to Polish businesspeople, Poland’s national flag-carrier LOT Polish Airlines will begin direct flights from Warsaw to Beijing in May this year. The government also recently announced a program called “Go China” to help Polish businesses enter the Chinese market. Among other things, the program seeks to provide entrepreneurs with information about Chinese law and business culture.

Remi Adekoya

Foreign business ties

Tusk touts Poland during Middle East visit Polish-Saudi oilrelated business ties were strengthened during the PM’s trip Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk was in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in late April for an official state

Polish ambassador back in Minsk Belarusian authorities have allowed Poland’s ambassador to the country, Leszek Szerepka, to return to the capital Minsk. Mr Szerepka was asked to leave on February 28 following an announcement that EU sanctions against Belarus had been extended.

Ambassadors from other EU countries who left Belarus at the same time are also now set to return.

Polish bison may be killed

EAST NEWS

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao promised during his visit to Poland in late April that the two countries would double their bilateral trade turnover in the next five years.

Trade between the two countries was worth €14 billion in 2011. However, imports from China were worth 10 times the value of Polish exports to China, an imbalance the Chinese premier said his government is willing to tackle.

“Poland has maintained stability and development and has secured 20th spot in the ranking of global economies,” Mr Wen told reporters at a joint press conference with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

“I had very fruitful discussions with Tusk ... and we reached an agreement on how to strengthen ties and friendship between our countries.”

“We are working on the seed which we are sowing now to bring a good harvest,” he added.

China is also seeking to improve economic ties with the region as a whole. Its government has promised to open a $10 billion credit line for

3

visit in which he sought to drum up interest among Middle Eastern businesspeople in investing in Poland.

During the four-day visit, Mr Tusk, who took part in a series of meetings with local politicians and business leaders, emphasized that Poland

investment for infrastructure projects,” he added.

The Polish PM highlighted the economic strength of his country, pointing out that Poland’s economy has continued to grow in the last few years, despite the economic crisis. Mr Tusk also emphasized the high levels of FDI that are being pumped into Poland and the large-scale government spending being carried out on infrastructure.

wanted to increase cooperation in areas including defense, financial services, food, health tourism, medical services and oil, stressing at the Council of Saudi Chambers in Riyadh that it was also important to strengthen trade ties.

“We are also seeking Saudi

COURTESY OF FLICKR/KPRM

Oil and defense

PM Tusk talked up Polish investment opportunities while in the United Arab Emirates

On the final day of his visit Mr Tusk took part in the PolishSaudi Business Forum in Riyadh. There, the Polish PM revealed that following months of negotiations, Poland is very likely to soon make its first major purchase of Saudi oil.

“We recognize this trend as being an extremely important element of diversification,” Mr Tusk said during the meeting.

Moreover, the Polish Press Agency quoted Mr Tusk as saying that Saudi Basic Indus-

tries Corp (SABIC), the world’s biggest petrochemical firm, has expressed an interest in buying Polish state-owned chemical companies and in cooperating with Polish refiner PKN Orlen. Mr Tusk was accompanied on the trip by Orlen’s chief executive as well as by other businesspeople.

“It is very likely that apart from SABIC’s active participation in the potential privatization of Polish firms, a mutual enterprise on quite a large scale in the petrochemical sector between Orlen and SABIC will be possible,” Mr Tusk said.

Poland’s PM also spoke with Saudi Arabia’s defense minister during his trip, telling reporters afterwards that the meeting had provided the basis for future discussions on defense and armaments.

“This region has always been important for those companies of ours which are involved in the [sector]; here the patronage of the state is really the key,” Mr Tusk said.

Gareth Price

A herd of Poland’s famous wild bison may have to be culled after they were found to be infected with tuberculosis, a panel of 18 veterinary and breeding experts has decided. The panel plans to ask Polish authorities for permission to kill the 25-strong herd which lives near the village of Stuposiany in the Bieszczady Mountains, The Associated Press reported. “I would have preferred some other possibility, not so very drastic. (But) under these conditions I don’t see any and the commission did not see any either,” said veterinarian Miros∏aw Welz, a member of the panel.

Turkish Airlines nears LOT purchase Turkish Airlines is coming closer to finalizing a deal to purchase LOT Polish Airlines, according to sources cited by Rzeczpospolita. In March, Turkish Airlines conducted due diligence to analyze the financial situation of the Polish carrier, according to the newspaper. Talks with the Turkish carrier are being taken very seriously, said Magdalena Kobos, spokesperson for the Treasury.

Tesco to cut 3,000 jobs?

Tesco will soon start laying off employees in Poland, with trade unions estimating that as many as 10% of the company’s workforce, or almost 3,000 people, are set to lose their jobs, Puls Biznesu reported. But representatives of the company claim these numbers are too high. ●

NEWS

www.wbj.pl

Video game race Polish video-game makers, who have earned international recognition in recent years, are racing for the title of most popular Polish game, reports Parkiet. City Interactive is in the lead, with its “Sniper” selling 2.8 million copies to date.

Gaining on “Sniper” is CD Projekt’s “The Witcher,” which has sold 2.1 million copies.

Biedronka behind JM’s success Jeronimo Martins (JM), the Portuguese owner of Polish discount store chain Biedronka, strengthened its leading position in the Polish market in Q1. The company’s net profit soared 21% year-onyear in Q1 to €68.2 million, mainly due to the strong performance of its Polish unit. “We ... remain confident of opening c. 250 new stores and completing the roll out of the new layout by October 2012,” Jeronimo Martins said in a statement. ●

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Papa∏a case

World War II

Two charged with murder of ex-police chief

Jan Karski honored with US Presidential Medal of Freedom

Marek Papa∏a was shot dead in 1998 by criminals attempting to steal his car, say prosecutors Polish prosecutors charged two men in late April with the murder 14 years ago of former national police chief, Marek Papa∏a.

Testimony from a suspect arrested in 2011 suggests Mr Papa∏a, who died after being shot in the head, was killed during an attempted robbery of his car outside his Warsaw apartment in June 1998.

Jaros∏aw Szubert, spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office in ¸ódê, told a news conference that the murder “happened as a result of an armed robbery with a firearm.”

“They planned to steal General Papa∏a’s car. The fatal shot was fired during the attack.”

The spokesperson did not reveal whether the accused knew who Mr Papa∏a was.

Aside from the two who are facing murder charges and

charges of armed robbery, three others have been charged with armed robbery, including the suspect who gave the vital testimony in 2011.

Following the killing, many in Poland theorized that Mr Papa∏a had been shot on the orders of a criminal gang, or for political revenge.

The former police chief was linked to ex-communists and was due to start work in Brussels fighting organized crime. Several months before his death, Mr Papa∏a had been dismissed from his post as police chief by the rightwing government that was in power at the time.

Those charged with the murder and robbery belonged to a gang that stole hundreds of automobiles in the 1990s.

They were all in their 20s when Mr Papa∏a was shot.

In 2007, a US federal court in Chicago refused a Polish request to extradite Edward Mazur, a Polish-American businessman accused of ordering Mr Papala’s murder.

Gareth Price

Mr Karski was one of the first to report on the existence of Nazi extermination camps US President Barack Obama announced in late April that Jan Karski, a Polish World War II resistance fighter, will posthumously be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States’ highest civilian honor.

Mr Karski, who died in 2000 aged 86, worked as a clandestine officer of the Polish government-in-exile, and was one of the first people to give an eyewitness account of the treatment of Warsaw Jews by the Nazis after infiltrating the Warsaw Ghetto. He also reported on the existence of Nazi extermination camps.

“We must tell our children about how this evil was allowed to happen – because so many people succumbed to their darkest instincts; because so many others stood silent,” Mr Obama said at the US Memorial Holocaust Museum.

“But let us also tell our children about the Righteous Among the Nations. Among them was Jan Karski, a young

EAST NEWS

4

Jan Karski gave eyewitness accounts of the Warsaw Ghetto Polish Catholic who witnessed Jews being put on cattle cars, who saw the killings, and who told the truth, all the way to President Roosevelt himself,” he added.

After the end of WWII, Mr Karski published a book called the “Story of a Secret State: My Report to the World” and later became a professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service after emigrating to the US. “His life story epitomized his love of freedom,” Marcin Bosacki, a spokesperson for

Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said in a statement.

The Medal of Freedom was established in 1963 and has been presented to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.

Apart from Mr Karski, other Poles honored with this distinction include Pope John Paul II and Lech Wa∏´sa.

David Ingham

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FINANCE & ECONOMICS

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Public finances

Poland more resistant than PM Tusk: Budget surplus others in the region: Belka by 2016 ‘realistic’

COURTESY OF FLICKR/KPRM

NBP president Marek Belka feels that Poland is “less vulnerable” than other EU countries to a sudden cut in financing

Criminal records available online On April 27, 2012 legislation came into force which amended the Act on National Criminal Records, which contains data of persons who have been sentenced for crimes committed and have no right to appeal.

The change to the act is to implement the decision 2009/316/WSiSW relating to the establishment of the European Criminal Records Information System (ECRIS).

Moreover, it will be possible to submit

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In the opinion of the Supreme Administrative Court (valid judgment of April 3, 2012, court ref. no. II FSK 249/12) when a company gets credit in order to pay a dividend, this should be recognized as a cost connected with business activity conducted by the company. This is pursuant to Article 15 item 1 of the Act on Corporate Income Tax. This is because generating profits is the chief aim of a joint-stock company, and of the shareholders who have bought stock in the company.

In the opinion of the court, credit contracted by a company for payment of a dividend in a case where the company allocated its profits for development and current activity not only secures the source of income, namely the business activity, but also prevents the company from losing its financial liquidity. ●

Poland's unemployment rate, March 2011-March 2012

Jul

In the middle of April the Polish president signed an act ratifying a treaty between the Republic of Poland and the Czech Republic on the avoidance of double taxation. The treaty concerns corporate income tax and personal income tax.

Credit for payment of dividends is tax deductible

Ups and downs

1

Double Taxation Avoidance Treaty with the Czech Republic

Retail sales growth slowed in March to 10.7 percent y/y from 13.7 percent y/y in February, while the unemployment rate dropped by 0.2 percentage points to 13.3 percent in March. “Stronger sales prior to Easter could have helped to maintain the headline figure at a double-digit level. Retail sales growth in real terms in the whole of Q1 suggests a stabilization of consumer demand growth at a level close to that seen in Q4 2011,” BZ WBK wrote in a statement.

The bank assesses the data as neutral for the rate-setting Monetary Policy Council when deciding on interest rates, which have been left unchanged at 4.5 percent since June 2011.

“We expect that the [Council] will keep interest rates on hold. In our view, it will be difficult to gather a majority to

. '1

On April 20, 2012 the government adopted two drafts of new legislation aimed at reforming the retirement system in Poland. One of the drafts involved the gradual extension of the retirement age from 65 to 67 for men and from 60 to 67 for women. The second draft refers to the limitation of special retirement benefits for employees of uniformed services.

motions and requests for information from the National Criminal Records (and replies to them) electronically.

Every Polish citizen or a member of any other EU member state, as well as every person who is or was residing in one of these states, is entitled to submit a motion with a request for information about himself/herself contained in the criminal records of other EU member states.

Jun

Government extends retirement age

Retail sales and unemployment decrease

'11

Contact: Miros∏aw Stefanik ms@pnplaw.pl

y '1

Legal News

Ma

Remi Adekoya

1

Regarding public debt, the government expects it to come in at 50.5 percent of GDP by the end of this year and to drop under 50 percent by 2013.

“In favorable conditions, the ratio of the public debt [to GDP], according to Polish accounting, may be below 50 percent next year,” said Mr Rostowski.

“Poland, both in terms of sales channels and financial channels, is a country less vulnerable to the danger of such an ‘infection’ than most countries in the region, as indeed it turned out in 2009, when all [EU] countries fell into recession, and [Poland] did not,” he said.

“This year, we expect some slowdown, but again nothing like what would be similar to a MO, AT recession.”

anticipated that and, to a degree, we are already feeling the effect,” said the NBP chief at the annual conference of the IMF/World Bank Annual Spring Meetings in Washington, DC. He added that the next channel of “infection” is credit. “Countries heavily in debt, which include those in our region, may fear a sudden cut in financing,” Mr Belka explained.

r. ' 1

percent by 2013 and to 1.6 percent by 2014.

Although Mr Rostowski was reluctant to make a prediction about when Poland’s budget might have a positive balance, he said that a “slight surplus” might be possible by 2016 and that he “doesn’t exclude that it could happen earlier if there’s a good economic climate.”

Despite warnings from the International Monetary Fund that the euro-zone crisis may spill over to European countries not in the zone, National Bank of Poland president Marek Belka does not expect to see a recession in Poland this year.

“If the economic situation in Western Europe continues to slide, Polish exporters will have a hard time placing export goods. We have already

Ap r.

PM Tusk said a deficit under 3 percent is possible this year

Ma

Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that Eurostat figures released in April 23 which put Poland’s budget deficit for 2011 at 5.1 percent of GDP, less than the 5.6 percent planned by the government, means that a deficit under 3 percent this year and a surplus by 2016 is realistic.

“It is possible that we will achieve a budget surplus in three to four years. This is very important information,” said Mr Tusk.

Finance Minister Jacek Rostowski was also happy with the news, saying, “We have every reason to be happy with the [Eurostat] result. I must remind you that many analysts believed the budget deficit would significantly surpass our 5.6 percent target last year,” said Mr Rostowski.

In the government’s fiscal consolidation program, the deficit is expected to fall to 2.9 percent of GDP this year, to 2.2

COURTESY OF THE INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND

The prime minister and finance minister are optimistic about shrinking the deficit

Source: Central Statistical Office

back a hike at the upcoming Monetary Policy Council meeting, provided that NBP governor Marek Belka will not support such a motion,” the bank wrote.

The unemployment drop was expected, and is broadly in line with the seasonal trend that sees hiring increase in the spring.

RG, AK

Company savings increasing Polish companies are expected to start saving more in preparation for an upcoming economic slowdown. These savings will provide a buffer or reserve, which in the coming years will support the Polish

economy, say economists.

“This is a buffer, through which, if nothing unexpected happens, Poland will be provided with decent economic growth over the next few years,” Rados∏aw Bodys, chief

economist of PKO BP, told the Puls Biznesu daily.

By the end of 2011, Polish entrepreneurs held z∏.203 billion in bank deposits. This is equivalent to 13.3 percent of RG Poland’s GDP.

8

BUSINESS

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Oil refining

Energy

Enea joins four state-owned Orlen scraps plan to sell giants in search for shale gas Mazeikiai refinery ^

Enea, KGHM, PGE, PGNiG and Tauron are set to search together for shale gas in Poland “These companies are forced by the State Treasury; they would most likely never think of cooperating with each other otherwise. Nothing will come of this,” said ¸ukasz Prokopiuk, analyst at DM IDM. But ¸ukasz Cioch, general director of the Tischner European University Centre for Energy Studies in Kraków, did not share this skepticism.

“Exploring shale gas in Poland requires a cooperative approach and strong businessfocused leadership to leverage the positive effects of scale

and optimize risk distribution.

As private companies in Poland are nowhere near the potential required, I think this type of cooperation can be justified,” said Mr Cioch.

“In many respects, Poland is pioneering shale gas exploration in the EU, and, as long as it is business-relevant and not politically motivated, this type of joint-venture could contribute to an increasingly positive investment climate, especially for American and Canadian investors,” he added.

Alice Trudelle

Polish oil refiner Orlen has decided to keep hold of its troubled Mažeikiai refinery in Lithuania, the company’s chief executive said in late April.

“The management recommendation is to keep increasing the refinery’s value and to not continue the sale process. The supervisory board approved this recommendation,” Jacek Krawiec told journalists.

Japanese investment bank Nomura advised Orlen on its options for the refinery, which it had for a long time considered selling. In the end, based on conclusions from Nomura’s analyses, the company chose not to sell the asset, since its performance has improved and its debt load has shrunk in the last couple of years.

Orlen bought the Mažeikiai refinery in 2006 for $2.8 billion and has since invested over $700 million in the asset.

Transportation of raw materials to the refinery from Russia via an overground pipeline has been stopped

since Orlen made the acquisition. The refinery is now supplied with fuel which is first shipped into Lithuania and then transported to Mažeikiai by train, making the production process much more expensive. This is one of the main reasons Orlen considered selling the refinery.

While not ruling out the possibility of selling the refinery in the future, Mr Krawiec said Orlen didn’t receive satisfactory offers for the asset.

Orlen Lietuva, whose oper-

COURTESY OF ORLEN

COURTESY OF SHUTTERSTOCK

Polish utility Enea is set to join state-owned giants PGNiG, Tauron, PGE and KGHM in exploring and potentially extracting shale gas from Polish deposits, Poland’s gas monopoly announced in late April.

“The joint effort of all partners will make it possible to intensify the exploration for shale gas,” Joanna Zakrzewska, press officer at PGNiG, said in a statement. The firm is leading efforts, called for by the Polish government, for state-controlled firms to invest and cooperate in the sector.

Energy provider PGE, energy group Tauron and copper and silver miner KGHM signed three separate letters of intent with PGNiG regarding cooperation in shale gas projects in January.

Although they bring together phenomenal investment capacities, none of these companies has experience in searching for or exploiting unconventional gas, and some analysts are skeptical that the cooperation will bear much fruit.

The company plans to increase the value of its Lithuanian asset

^

Analysts are divided on the potential results of such cooperation

ations are centered around the Mažeikiai refinery, recorded an operational profit of z∏.73 million in the first quarter of this year, down z∏.27 million year-on-year. The company plans to process around 9 million metric tons of crude oil in 2012.

For PKN Orlen’s balance sheet, Q1 was a good period. It earned a net profit of z∏.1.26 billion for the first three months of 2012, a 15 percent y/y rise due to higher oil prices.

Orlen bought the Mazeikiai refinery in 2006

Gareth Price

BUSINESS

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

www.wbj.pl

9

Vodka market

The Polish firm needs the $100 million investment to finance its debts Vodka producer Russian Standard, a company owned by billionaire Roustam Tariko, has decided to invest $100 million in a stake of around 28 percent in Polish alcoholic beverage company Central European Distribution Corp (CEDC).

Based on a strategic agreement announced towards the end of April, Russian Standard (via Roust Trading) will buy CEDC shares for $30 mil-

lion and notes for $70 million that it can exchange for common shares in the Polish firm.

The Russian company already owns 10 percent in CEDC. Last year the Polish company posted losses of some $1.2 billion, a record for a company listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.

The Financial Times reported that CEDC’s expansion into the Russian market in recent years has seen the company lose money and force it to look for new investors. The cash injection from Russian Standard will now allow CEDC to finance

its debts.

“After many months of working on this transaction, [CEDC is] pleased to announce the signing of definitive agreements today with Russian Standard for a strategic investment that addresses our near term financial obligations,” said William V. Carey, president and CEO of CEDC, in a statement.

“Our partnership with Roustam Tariko and Roust Trading, will not only benefit CEDC from the financial and business side but with Mr Tariko’s vast experience in the Russian spirits market, he will

represent valuable support for management and the board in strengthening CEDC’s position in the Russian market, as well as in international markets,” he added.

CEDC is one of the world’s largest producers of vodka and the largest integrated company in the alcohol production sector in Central and Eastern Europe. Its brands include Absolwent, Parliament and Bols.

Russian Standard Vodka is the world leader when it comes to sales of original premium Russian vodka.

David Ingham

COURTESY OF CEDC

Russian Standard buys sizable stake in CEDC

Bols is one of the brands produced by CEDC

Polish banks see earnings rise in Q1 A number of Polish banks posted year-on-year net profit increases in the first quarter of 2012, mainly due to improved margins.

In particular, both Nordea Bank Polska and BZ WBK made strong starts to the year.

Nordea’s Q1 net profit increased from z∏.56.9 million to z∏.74.5 million year-on-year, while BZ WBK’s net profit rose to z∏.314 million compared to z∏.270 million in Q1 2011.

“The results for the first quarter of 2012 are positive … net profit increased by nearly 31 percent compared to the corresponding period of 2011,” Nordea Bank wrote in its report.

Tomasz Bursa, an analyst at Ipopema Securities, said that both Nordea and BZ WBK have done exceptionally well so far this year.

“They increased their client volumes and we are

now seeing the effects of that.

Also, both banks have a very low risk profile, because both have very good credit policies,” Mr Bursa said.

Bank Millennium’s Q1 profit also rose, but not by as much as the profits of BZ WBK and Nordea.

In Q1, Millennium earned a profit of z∏.110 million compared to last year’s z∏.101 million.

“Millennium’s Q1 results

were in line with analysts’ expectations,” said Micha∏ Konarski, an analyst at Wood & Company.

ING Securities analyst Piotr Palenik explained that Polish lenders have seen their takings rise due to their improved margins.

“What has affected the increased year-on-year net profit for banks is the improvement in margins, which is a result of the

increase in interest rates and reduced competition, as well as better loan volumes, especially in the corporate segment,” he said.

But although the beginning of 2012 has been positive for Poland’s banking sector, analysts predict that this won’t continue after the end of this year.

“The future for the banking sector this year depends on how the economy is going

to behave, and on whether we will experience an economic slowdown after the Euro 2012 soccer tournament,” Mr Konarski said.

“I predict that there will be a decrease in the growth rate of profit by the end of this year, and next year the banking sector won’t be doing as well due to economic slowdown and increased credit risk,” Mr Bursa said.

Izabela Depczyk

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OPINION & ANALYSIS

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

How to compete in Europe

I

nterest in the European Union’s competitiveness did not begin with the euro crisis. Safeguarding Europe’s advanced position in the world economy was, after all, a key motivation behind the creation of the single market. Since then, interest in EU competitiveness has risen further, spurred in particular by the challenge posed by countries like China.

“External competitiveness is a dangerous obsession” In order to ensure sustainable and inclusive economic growth in Europe, policymakers and the public must, above all, regard international trade as a mutually beneficial exchange of goods and services. Productivity growth and innovation are critical to reaping the benefits of this exchange, and, to ensure both, policies that cost European taxpayers nothing are at least as important as policies requiring public funds.

Not a zero-sum game The first step is to stop viewing international trade as a zero-sum game that costs some countries as much as

it benefits others. Obviously, companies within the same industry are in direct competition with each other, and gains in market share by one tend to come at the expense of competitors. So it follows that the payroll and earnings of a company will rise if it outperforms its competitors.

Unfortunately, many people believe that their country’s prosperity requires that it outperform other countries in the same way. This understanding of international competitiveness continues to motivate a wide range of policy initiatives, including industrial policies to create and defend “national champions” and support a variety of so-called strategic industries.

There are two problems with this approach. First, there is little evidence to support the view that industrial policies enlarge a country’s share in world trade. All too often, government interventions based on strategic-trade considerations simply provide cover for protecting domestic industries, which harms other countries – and ultimately the protectionist’s own economy.

Second, and more important, analogizing companies to countries is deeply flawed. When a company becomes more competitive, it crowds out its rivals; they get nothing in return. But when a country becomes more productive and increases its exports, it acquires the means to

import more, so other countries’ exports rise. Indeed, increasing imports is the ultimate reason for a country to boost its exports, whereas a company is motivated to outperform its competitors so that it never needs to buy anything from them.

nies typically try to innovate to survive. The EU would thus do well to combine budgetary support for R&D policies with competition rules that keep companies on their toes, while granting successful innovators appropriate patent protection.

‘Dangerous obsession’

Include services

Thus, external competitiveness is what the Nobel laureate economist Paul Krugman calls a “dangerous obsession” – at least to the extent that it is based on the company-country analogy. But if competitiveness refers to productivity, it remains a meaningful concept. Productivity growth and innovation benefit countries not by helping them to compete with other countries, but by enabling them to produce and consume more, or to produce and consume the same amount with fewer resources.

Understanding competitiveness in this sense is a prerequisite for successfully designing and implementing a growth agenda for Europe. Indeed, a considerable body of research – pioneered by Harvard economist Philippe Aghion and his colleagues – suggests that innovation is the key driver of economic growth in advanced countries.

This implies, first and foremost, the need to expose companies to strong domestic and foreign competition. Faced with strong competition and the threat of extinction, compa-

In recent decades, Europe has not moved vigorously enough on these fronts, but it is not too late to pick up the pace. Here, the services sector holds the greatest promise.

Our everyday experience inclines us to regard innovation in terms of more sophisticated and/or higherquality goods and production processes. And, indeed, manufacturing is arguably an important source of innovation and economic growth.

But any agenda aimed at stimulating economic growth in Europe must include the services sector.

Indeed, services account for about two-thirds of total value added in the EU economy. In employment terms, the services sector is larger still.

Moreover, since the 1990s, output growth in the EU has been primarily driven by expansion of services.

At the same time, productivity growth in the EU’s services sector has been lagging behind developments in the United States (even given the possibility that pre-crisis productivity growth in US financial services was partly notional). This suggests that there

Philippe Maystadt

remains untapped potential to boost innovation and productivity in Europe.

Of course, the best type of productivity growth in services results from innovation that improves quality rather than increases quantity with the same or fewer resources, notably labor. Think of health care, education, and care for the elderly. Productivity growth should not result in fewer employees taking care of more patients, students, and old people.

In raising productivity in services, what economists call “intangible capital” becomes ever more important.

Intangible capital results from investment in R&D, but it is also the result of investing in workers’ skills, organizational improvements, better processes, new designs, and so on.

Countries whose services sectors have made a large contribution to productivity growth have invested significantly in intangible capital, pointing the way to success in boosting innovation. This is the route that the EU should follow. ● Philippe Maystadt is a former Minister for Economic Affairs, Minister of Finance, and Deputy Prime Minister of Belgium. He was president of the European Investment Bank from 2000 to 2011.

Copyright: Project Syndicate/Europe’s World, 2012. project-syndicate.org europesworld.org

France’s elections: implications for the EU and Poland Dorota Liszczyk

A

fter the first round of the French presidential elections on April 22, current French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Socialist Party leader François Hollande will face off in the second round, scheduled for May 6. It is not a surprise that these two rivals will meet in this decisive battle. Indeed, since the official beginning of the campaign, the polls have given a clear indication as to who would be competing in the run-off. The only touch of uncertainty in the final weeks before the vote was the question of who would come in first and who would come in second. The French, who went to the ballot boxes rather enthusiastically – the turnout was over 80 percent – put Mr Hollande ahead of Mr Sarkozy by 1.5 percentage points.

It now seems highly likely that after three failed attempts, the left could return to the Élysée Palace.

Europe by Sarkozy, and by Hollande European issues are the subject of controversy in France, and they are usual-

ly included in the pre-election debates only with reluctance. This election was no different: Europe was not at the forefront of the issues that the candidates used to lure voters. Taking into account the growing indifference and even skepticism among the French when it comes to the current shape of Europe, the candidates did what they could so as not to appear too enthusiastic about the EU. However, the debt crisis affecting Europe, the economic slowdown and the discussion on the future of Europe meant that the candidates could not completely avoid the topic.

When it comes to Mr Sarkozy’s take on the EU, some key elements immediately come to mind. In his view, the EU is a construction in which the European Council (that is, heads of state or governments) takes the predominant role and the French president tries to extract the “hard core” – including countries of the euro area – leaving the rest of countries outside the center of decision-making.

It is Europe led by “Merkozy”

(France and Germany) which have chosen austerity as a cure for the eurozone’s woes. But while fighting for reelection, Mr Sarkozy expanded the scope of his proposals somewhat. He is not only demanding a debate on whether the European Central Bank should take on more of a role in sup-

“It now seems highly likely that after three failed attempts, the left could return to the Élysée Palace” porting growth, as the left insists, but is also proposing a reform of the Schengen Agreement. That should please the voters of the extreme right whose leader, Marine Le Pen, opposes the very concept of the visa-free Schengen area.

Mr Hollande’s vision of Europe is still to some extent opaque, as in his

official 60-point electoral plan only three points directly touch upon the Old Continent. In principle, the socialist European discourse was dimmed by one postulate – the need to renegotiate the so-called Fiscal Compact. Promotion of economic growth over austerity is what Mr Hollande wants to focus on. If he is elected, we will see whether Mr Hollande is determined enough to try to change the thinking on how to overcome the crisis or if he will instead settle for the declaration on growth, which was added to the Fiscal Compact.

Regarding EU decision-making, although his vision not as clear as Mr Sarkozy’s, Mr Hollande also appears to be in favor of the intergovernmental approach. It should also be noted that what is disturbing and may further hinder his pursuit of ambitious European policy are serious divisions within his Socialist Party on this issue.

through in Polish-French relations. It still will be difficult to develop the content of the Strategic Partnership which was concluded in 2008, since many of the countries’ interests diverge significantly. Nevertheless, Mr Hollande has given some positives signals which if clarified and put into practice could lead to an intensification of cooperation.

Mr Hollande has shown greater openness to cooperation with EU countries other than Germany, including Poland. What is noteworthy is that he specifically mentioned Poland as a possible partner in the context of future cooperation in the field of common security and defense policy. Also, with regard to the future Multiannual Financial Framework, Mr Holland demands less radical EU spending cuts than Mr Sarkozy, which seems favorable from the point of view of Polish interests. ●

Hollande and Poland A change in the Élysée Palace will not necessarily mean an immediate break-

Dorota Liszczyk is an analyst at the Polish Institute of International Affairs pism.pl

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POLAND INVESTMENT GUIDE W a r s a w B u s i n e s s J o u r n a l ’ s s p e c i a l s u p p l e m e n t o n P o l a n d ’s i n v e s t m e n t p o t e n t i a l

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Polish economic trends

Poland, Europe’s biggest construction site

During a visit to the United Arab Emirates in late April, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk encouraged businesspeople from his host country to invest in Poland, which he called “the biggest construction site in Europe” and the continent’s “biggest investment.”

The prime minister mentioned that Poland would be spending some $200 billion on infrastructure over the next decade. He also pointed to the fact that while EU economies had recorded cumulative growth of close to zero on average in the last four years, Poland had grown by 18 percent during the same period.

Mr Tusk spoke at the UAEPoland Business Forum which was attended by Abdul Rahman Saif Al Ghurair, the chairman of Dubai-based AlGhurair Group and vice president of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, who

SHUTTERSTOCK

While most of Europe’s economies seem to be stumbling along or remain mired in recession, Poland is still powering forward

Poland’s recent splurge on infrastructure, such as the new National Stadium in Warsaw, is set to continue spoke about the future of business relations between the two countries.

“Expanding into Eastern European markets is a strategic priority for the Dubai Chamber,” Mr Al Ghurair said. “Therefore we have this forum to discuss the strengthening of economic relations with our Polish partners,” he

added.

According to April IMF figures, Poland’s economy is expected to grow by 2.6 percent in 2012 and by 3.2 percent in 2013, making it the leader in terms of growth in Central and Eastern Europe. The Polish government itself has predicted a growth rate of 2.5 percent this year.

Privatization plans Regarding possible areas of interest for Gulf investors, Mr Tusk mentioned the fact that his government plans to privatize some 300 firms which it currently controls. The government is expected to continue selling stakes in its listed, large-cap companies, such as PKO Bank Polski, with assets

of $60.5 billion, and insurer PZU, with assets of $16.5 billion. The government will, however, maintain operational control over these firms, the Treasury Ministry announced in its 2012-2013 privatization plan released earlier this year.

The plan aims to raise $3.2 billion in 2012, compared with

privatization income of $4 billion in 2011, and $7 billion in 2010.

The Polish government owns about $30 billion worth of companies across various sectors.

The 2012-2013 program continues the state’s policy of selling stakes in large companies and selling controlling stakes in small companies, which has been in place since 2008. It includes plans to sell stakes in coking coal miner Jastrz´bska Spó∏ka W´glowa and other, unlisted, coal miners as well as power utilities and hundreds of smaller companies.

In addition to the sale of 279 companies controlled by the Treasury, the plan includes the sale of 15 companies overseen by the Defense Ministry, four companies overseen by the Economy Ministry and two overseen by the Transport Ministry.

Outsourcing Poland’s track record for attracting outsourcing investments is impressive. A large number of major Western multinationals, including IBM, Continued on p. 16 ➡

Investment outlook

Investing in CEE attractive for Gulf investors Opportunities are expected to be particularly bountiful in Poland this year

Artur Kluz

Izabella Szadowska

There are companies and projects in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) region that certainly have the potential to attract investors from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) – which includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates – in 2012. Many CEE countries have made tremendous progress during

the last few years and the vast majority are now well established economies with high potential for growth.

In a recent study by Ernst & Young, investors ranked CEE as the third-most attractive investment region in the world. Companies looking for opportunities in Europe are increasingly considering the CEE region, due to the fact that it offers dynamic growth prospects, high returns on investment and much more stable and predictable growth than crisis-stricken Western

Europe.

However, in order to secure a successful and profitable entry into CEE markets, some principles of investment need to be followed.

The CEE region and Poland Germany and Poland’s economies form a bridge between Western Europe and Central European countries. The CEE region itself borders the Baltic Sea in the north of Europe, as well as the Adriatic and the Black Sea in the south, and has

a population of over 180 million (including Ukraine).

The region’s work force is well educated and technically skilled, and labor costs remain very competitive compared with Western European countries. EU structural and cohesion funds allocated to CEE countries for infrastructure development stand at over €177 billion for the 2007-2013 period. Meanwhile the United Nations global economic forecast predicts average GDP growth of above 2.5 percent in CEE this year (with Poland at

4.1 percent), whereas the euro zone is expected to grow by just 0.3 percent.

The economic volatility of some CEE countries during the financial crisis did not negativeContinued on p. 16 ➡

In this supplement Poland’s economy . . . . . . . . . . . .13,16 Investment outlook . . . . . . . . . . .13,16 PAIiIZ interview . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14-15 Tender procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Setting up a business . . . . . . . . .18-19 Business organizations . . . . . . . . . .19 Chambers of commerce . . . . . . . . .20 Government agencies . . . . . . . . . . .20 Glossary of Polish terms . . . . . . . . .20

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POLAND INVESTMENT GUIDE

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Foreign direct investment

Poland reaching out to the world WBJ sits down with Bo˝ena Czaja, deputy president of the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIiIZ), to discuss Polish efforts to reach out to newer economic partners such as countries in Asia and the Middle East We also organized a trade mission to this year’s GULFOOD in February 2012 to present Poland’s food sector – Poland’s eco-friendly products, reasonably priced and adjusted to the region’s tastes, attracted much attention.

Our organization takes an active part in preparing business offers for the region. We do see great potential for our entrepreneurs in this wealthy market, and do not only focus on the big energy projects, but try to facilitate the entry of smaller producers. We helped gather businesspeople who accompanied the prime minister, for example from the tourism industry.

At the moment the trade exchange between the UAE and Poland varies from $0.3 billion to $0.8 billion annually.

Some concrete fields of cooperation are already well-developed. Poland exports cosmetics, food products, mechanical and electric appliances, and non-precious metals, while

COURTESY OF PAIIIZ

Alice Trudelle: Prime Minister Donald Tusk was recently in the United Arab Emirates, where he signed an agreement on economic cooperation.

What are the most promising sectors for economic cooperation between Poland and the UAE? Bo˝ena Czaja: There is no doubt that there are serious measures undertaken in Poland to stimulate cooperation with the whole of the Middle East. Countries from the region are treated with priority. Polish delegations attend vital events organized in the region to mark Poland’s presence in the region and make businesses there aware of what we offer.

Apart from the prime minister’s visit, November 2011 also saw an official delegation of the Polish undersecretary of state in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. PAIiIZ attended the Annual Investment Meeting Dubai in 2011 and will also be present at the event this year.

“We see a great potential for our entrepreneurs in the Middle East, and we do not only focus on the big energy projects”

Bo˝ena Czaja, deputy president of the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency importing aluminum, plastic products and textiles.

And what about Saudi Arabia?

Undoubtedly the visit of a high-ranking figure like the prime minister [who also visited Saudi Arabia at the end of April] may hardly be eclipsed

by any event and will certainly stimulate mutual contacts.

Which is not to say that these are nonexistent, since for example the year 2008 witnessed a 10-year record-high trade volume between Poland and Saudi Arabia.

Talks with Saudi partners show that among the potential

sectors which could see the most development in upcoming years are chemical products, plastics, rubber and glass, the food sector, and the wood and paper industry. There is also room for products from Polish ceramics firms, the defense industry and metallurgy, as well as opportunities for

cooperation in the fields of electrical power, environmental protection and water management.

There are Polish-Saudi companies established in Saudi Arabia which operate in other fields, such as BIATEL ARABIA, which is active in telecommunications and IT. In

POLAND INVESTMENT GUIDE

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

the context of Eastern Poland, which we promote, I think we should focus on the following sectors: automotive, especially luxury cars such as the Leopard car [produced by Polish company Leopard Automobile Mielec]; aviation, and in particular light and ultralight aircraft, gliders, as well as subcontracting projects and small yachts and boats from the Mazury region; food, and here in particular dairy products, fruit, honey and sweets.

We are also engaged in the promotion of Eastern Poland and this year during the 2nd Eastern Poland Business Forum in Kielce [on May 2425] we will focus on the Middle East and India. PAIiIZ is welcoming guests from these regions and will make an introduction to the country itself and its investment potential.

Are there other Asian markets that you find especially interesting and promising for Poland?

Yes, let’s not forget that there is a number of other interesting markets in Asia – of course China, India, Japan and South Korea. As a matter of fact, we have been organizing Poland’s participation in the international trade fair International Food Industry Exhibition in Seoul within the program to

“Euro 2012 only marks the beginning of the big infrastructure movement in Poland” promote Eastern Poland.

We decided to attend the fair because our trade mission to South Korea last year proved very, very successful.

The food sector, especially, drew a lot of interest in the country. Let me underline here that Poland has one of the most dynamic food processing industries in Eastern Europe.

Even despite the latest crises, Poland’s exports have been growing and even breaking records – [yearly] growth in Polish food export in 2010 reached 17.5 percent and in 2011 rose by another 12 percent.

Last year during our mission we were surprised by the interest in our food. Contracts were signed for export of meat and dairy products, as well as potatoes – and Eastern Poland is a macro region which has the most intensive potato cultivation in the whole of Poland.

Coming back to Europe, is there a life for investors after the Euro 2012 soccer championships, especially in the

infrastructure sector?

Of course there is. Euro 2012 only marks the beginning of the big infrastructure movement in Poland. Together with EU funds and the upcoming big soccer event we started to work really hard on infrastructure. I am convinced that investors who were attracted to Poland thanks to the event gained experience, learned how the Polish administrative system works and may only feel more at home after 2012.

The first investment projects always involve a kind of “learn from your mistakes” process. Further projects may only be easier to execute and thus are usually done in a more effective way.

We have to admit that a lot has been done in the preparations for Euro 2012 but there are still regions and places where infrastructure needs to be improved. The funds and the will are there, investors and time will certainly show us more and more effects, and Euro 2012 does not necessarily have to be involved. ●

Key sectors for foreign investors Automotive Poland is a leading market for passenger and commercial vehicles manufacturers and suppliers. An outstanding ratio between quality and cost of labor, and the presence of key automotive sub-suppliers are making Poland a very favorable investment destination. Fiat, GM, MAN, Toyota and Volkswagen are among well-known brands operating in the country.

Aviation Almost every passenger aircraft in the world has at least one part made in Poland. Key features of the Polish aviation sector include over 100 certified and trusted sourcing companies concentrated in the country’s aviation cluster, where 90 percent of the sector’s production and employment is located.

Biotechnology Although Poland’s biotechnology industry focuses mainly on the presentation and distribution of imported finished goods, transformation towards a highly advanced biotech sector is already under way. Among particularly valuable substances produced in here are cloned antibodies, diagnostic tests and hormones, with biopharmacology seeing fast development.

ed. They include LG, Samsung Electronics and Whirlpool.

Electronics Poland is the EU’s largest producer of TV sets.

The electronics industry’s total output is projected to reach $14.8 billion by 2013, while Poland’s domestic consumer electronics devices market is expected to be worth $7.6 billion in 2013. Foreign investments range from audio video to components, computers and telecoms.

IT The Polish IT market is the second largest market in the CEE, after Russia. Poland is seeing a rapid increase in domestic demand, and the presence of global companies such as Google, HP, IBM, and Microsoft also confirm the country’s significance as an investment destination for the sector.

Machinery and Steel Industry The machinery sector in Poland has been developing very dynamically in recent years. In 2009 the value of the sector was already z∏.22.3 billion. Growth is now expected at approximately 9 percent annually.

R&D BPO/SSC The CEE has enormous potential in the business services sector, and Poland is already home to international services centers in the fields of bookkeeping and finance, IT services and in R&D work. Poland’s main advantages are its favorable investment climate, highly qualified human resources and the development of a modern office market.

Domestic Appliances Domestic appliance factories which have invested in Poland are continually developing their production lines and the majority of the products from the country’s plants are export-

Comparing expenditure on R&D in Poland and other EU countries indicates that there is great potential for development of the sector.

Due to industrial traditions and a well developed scientific environment, Poland offers many attractive sectors for R&D investments.

Renewable Energy Poland’s population of 38 million and its booming economy have meant demand has risen for clean technologies and energy. The country is aiming to reduce its dependence on imports of oil and gas as well as the share of coal in its domestic energy production.

Source: PAIiIZ

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POLAND INVESTMENT GUIDE

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

➡ Continued from p. 13

being a major incentive for large multinationals.

Poland also offers significant advantages in other key areas: It is located in the heart of Central Europe, its population is the largest in the region, its economy the biggest and its average age is far below that of the EU. All this has led to an increasing number of firms choosing to locate their service centers in Poland.

HP and UBS have already opened Shared Service Centers (SSC) or Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sites in the country. In total, over 200 companies have chosen to locate BPO and SSC services in Poland and more than 40,000 jobs have been created as a result, according to a 2010 report by PwC. In 2011, the value of Polish outsourcing exceeded $4 billion.

Poland has a number of key competitive advantages when it comes to attracting outsourcing contracts. Experts and investors alike often tout Poland’s skilled, well-educated and multilingual workforce as

Shale gas In recent years, international companies have also been flooding into Poland in the hope of striking shale gas – a type of natural gas trapped in shale deposits deep under-

Regional powerhouse Market capitalization (in € billions) and number of listed companies, CEE stock exchanges, March 2012 Market capitalization

Listed firms 900

600

300

ge xc h

ien

kE

-V St w Wa r

sa

CE

ES

oc

EG

-P EG ES

CE

an

na

ue ra g

lja

es

jub

ap ES CE

EG ES CE

EG

-B

-L

ud

xc h kE toc

nS

Bu

lga

ria

na

t

ge an

an xc h

kE toc

tS

ch Bu

Br at

isl

av

ar es

aS

toc

kE

xc h

an

ge

ge

0

Source: FESE

ground. And it’s little wonder.

According to a report from the Polish Geological Institute (PIG), Poland’s shale gas reserves stand at between 0.35 trillion and 0.77 trillion cubic meters (tcm).

Although this was about 10 times less than the 5.3 tcm estimated by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) in April 2011, it would still be enough to cover Polish energy needs for 25-55 years according to Treasury Minister Miko∏aj Budzanowski, who has called the numbers “conservative.”

Gra˝yna Bukowska, a spokesperson for energy firm Chevron Polska Energy Resources, said PIG’s report “does not change Chevron’s plans in Poland. We remain committed to exploring potential for natural gas on our concession areas.” The US oil giant plans to drill at least three exploratory wells by the end of 2012.

Experts agree that harder data on Poland’s shale gas reserves will only be available in three to four years’ time. At that point equally important information regarding the actual profitability levels of production is also expected to surface.

In the meantime, technological breakthroughs could

COURTESY OF FLICKR/KPRM

Poland, the biggest construction site in Europe

The Warsaw Stock Exchange has become a regional leader also be a game changer, said Grzegorz Pytel, an energy expert. “Experience shows that typically once production starts, the results are much better than initial estimates. I expect in time Polish reserves to be more than 5.3 tcm. We still can expect a technological breakthrough that could make some options currently unavailable commercially viable in the future. If gas prices continue to go up, it will also change things.”

The Warsaw Stock Exchange

Poland’s stock exchange is the leader in the CEE region.

As of March 2012 it had a market capitalization of €125 billion, while former CEE powerhouse the CEESEG exchange in Vienna, is valued at €74.2 billion and the Prague Exchange at €31.3 billion, according to figures from the Federation of European Securities Exchanges (FESE).

When it comes to investment flow, the WSE saw €226 million channelled through the exchange from March 2011 to March 2012. In com-

parison, the Vienna exchange recorded €7 million for the same period.

The WSE currently lists over 432 firms and is considered among many economists as one of Eastern Europe’s biggest success stories.

Poland’s steady growth and economic resilience coupled with the presence of strong institutions which guarantee the rule of law and protection of private property make the country not only a profitable place in which to invest but also a secure one.

Remi Adekoya

Investing in CEE attractive for Gulf investors ➡ Continued from p. 13 ly impact on private equity (PE) and M&A transactions returns.

Poland, as a CEE tiger, is an example worth elaborating on.

A 2011 annual survey on Investment Attractiveness of Europe prepared by Ernst & Young placed Poland at the forefront of the most attractive investment destinations in Europe.

The largest economy in the CEE region, Poland has a population of over 38 million, which is young and willing to work hard. With high-potential sectors, such as automotive, electronics, machinery and steel, as well as pharmaceuticals, it is the only EU country whose economy has grown throughout the financial crisis.

What are GCC investors after?

Laws in GCC jurisdictions do not prohibit their nationals from making investments abroad. There are also no restrictions on repatriation of funds by GCC nationals. What GCC businesspeople look for when they consider making an investment varies depending on a number of factors. Historically there was a strong trend for GCC investors to invest in real estate assets locally as well as in the US or Europe and there was a significant focus on quick

and high return on investment.

But the financial crisis, which the GCC region has not been immune from, has seen investment interests evolve and shift into more diversified models.

According to a recent UNCTAD report, outward FDI from Arab countries reached

icantly. GCC state-owned corporations tend to make investments that are in line with state policies and the strategies of their governments. On the other hand, sovereign wealth funds and family offices prefer to invest in sectors that don’t yet form part of their portfolios, to

“Poland, a CEE tiger, is ranked at the forefront of the most attractive investment destinations in Europe” $169 billion during the period from 2001 to 2010, of which 82 percent came from GCC countries. This investment was part of the diversification policies of GCC countries as they move away from established oil and gas markets.

These days, investors from the Gulf not only seek political stability in investment locations, they are also interested in stable projected economic growth rates. GCC entrepreneurs have an increasingly long-term focus on acquiring equity or assets whose value is unlikely to depreciate, even if this means waiting a while for a return on their investment.

Sectors of interest for GCC investors fluctuate from one investor to another quite signif-

minimize investment through diversification.

risk

Impressive levels PEs’ fund-raising for the CEE region reached a significant level in 2011. Capital for CEE funds is still coming from the EU and the US but with increasing participation of global investors. Sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and family offices have all been participants in the fund of funds rush and are seeking new targets in CEE markets. There are some top PE houses that will raise new funds in 2012 as well, such as Enterprise Investors, which is seeking to raise $700 million for its eighth and newest fund.

PE transactions reached impressive levels last year, with

over 40 PE deals closed in the CEE region in 2011. Poland attracted over $1.5 billion of PE investment in 2011, followed by the Czech Republic and Hungary at approximately $400 million each, and Romania and Ukraine with some $70 million each. Communication, consumer goods and retail were the key sectors of focus for PEs last year.

The year 2011 was good for investor portfolio exits throughout CEE, with the average return on investment at over 100 percent. The Warsaw Stock Exchange also saw a lot of activity, being the European leader in terms of the number of IPOs in 2011.

The CEE is also a hot spot for infrastructure projects with 500 road infrastructure projects planned for implementation. Privatization efforts are also likely to remain stable in the region this year.

The key CEE sectors with high potential for growth are: agri-food, automotive, electronics, insurance, machinery and steel, and pharmaceuticals.

2012 CEE market preview Numerous investment funds are seeing more CEE company owners prepared to discuss a

potential share or asset sale.

More than 20 years since the start of CEE economies’ transformation, many local families who established businesses in the 1990s are seeking exit or external capital as well as advice on growth and expansion strategies for new markets.

Those CEE countries that are part of the EU but have kept their local currency such as Poland, Romania and Czech Republic, are likely to do the best in the coming years.

The largest chunk of this year is still ahead of us.

Aggressive investors focused on deals valued at over $50 million will make their mark.

Large deals already in the pipeline and many more in the

works attest to the fact that the CEE market is uniquely attractive for direct investments.

We are yet to see which direction the world will go in 2012. For the time being though, CEE has the means of attracting foreign investment through easy access to the EU market and relatively low labor costs for well-qualified professionals. ● Artur Kluz is an attorney, founder of The Hephaistone Group and partner at Metropolitan Capital Solutions.

Izabella Szadkowska is a barrister and solicitor, Senior Associate with Al Tamimi & Company, Corporate Commercial Department, Dubai.

What does the CEE offer?

The most potentially attractive CEE investment opportunities that GCC investors might consider are: • Fund of funds investments by sovereign wealth funds and family offices; •Direct investment or coinvestment in the most promising sectors in the CEE, such as automotive, consumer goods, medical services and pharmaceuti-

cals; • Large-cap investments in privatized companies and infrastructure projects; • Joint venture and partnership cooperation with CEE companies looking for global expansion; • Investors are clearly looking for growth in emerging economies as mature markets continue to underperform. ●

POLAND INVESTMENT GUIDE

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

www.wbj.pl

17

Legal View

Poland’s public tender requirements Paul Fogo is a senior attorney with Miller Canfield. fogo@millercanfield.com

Foreign vs domestic investors?

Foreign investors are entitled to compete for public contracts in Poland on the same terms and conditions as domestic entities. Specifically, the Act requires the public entity awarding such contract to ensure the “equal treatment of economic operators” (Art. 7(1)). No distinction is made between domestic and foreign investors.

Public tender requirements The Act, in general, applies to all public contracts in excess of €14,000 in value including, for example, those awarded by state

and local governments, cooperatives, public healthcare centers and any other entities which use public funds to finance at least 50 percent of a given project. State agencies that do not have “legal personality” are also subject to the Act, such as national forests.

Real property and telecommunication contracts, by contrast, are not subject to public tender requirements, and are instead governed by different regulations specific to each sector. Moreover, contracts related to the performance of an international obligation or labor issues are similarly exempt from the Act. Defense-related contracts may or may not be subject to Poland’s public procurement regulations, depending on the nature of the contract.

Public contracts may be awarded by one of six tender procedures, depending on the nature of the tender. The six include (1) open ten-

ders, (2) restricted tenders, (3) negotiated with publication, (4) competitive negotiations, (5) negotiated without publication and (6) single-source. The public entity administering the tender retains some discretion on the choice of tender. For instance, a tender may be restricted to only those bidders, regardless of the value of the tender, who are able to meet specific eligibility requirements set by the terms of the tender. Additionally, the option exists to submit bids via the internet in certain cases. The most common tender procedure is

Media patronage

AIM Congress 2012 Dubai will once again welcome business leaders, decision-makers from the world’s most prominent financial institutions and political leaders from around the globe for the second Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) this May 1-3.

AIM is an emerging market-led threeday FDI-focused event that includes an executive leadership conference, country presentations, workshops, site visits, a ministerial networking roundtable and an exhibition.

It is the region’s first Emerging Markets FDIfocused event to offer a perfect blend of trade fair and intellectual features aimed at enriching institutional, corporate and individual investors attending with a comprehensive set of guidelines for their future investment decisions in high growth regions.

The conference is born from a simple equation, or rather a succession, of paradigms: the continuous shift in the world economic order post 2008 recession, the prominence of fast-developing countries on the world stage and the drastic changes of global investors’ behaviors and choice of investment destination or vehicles.

that of an open tender, by which all interested parties may submit an offer. For contracts that require specialized services, expertise or technological know-how, the more limited types of tenders may be utilized, such as the negotiated, competitive and singlesource procedures.

Generally, public contracts involving the sale of goods or services up to €130,000 in value may utilize simplified tender procedures, and thereby avoid the need to follow all public tender requirements, including the need to post a bid deposit. However, the public entity retains the right to require such a deposit at its discretion.

SHUTTERSTOCK

The award of public contracts in Poland is regulated by the Public Procurement Act, originally enacted in early 2004 in advance of Poland’s accession to the EU on May 1, 2004 (the “Act”). The Act sets forth both the procedures for conducting a public tender, as well as defining when such procedures must be used in awarding public contracts. On average in Poland public contracts in excess of €35 billion in value are awarded annually.

In 2011 AIM attracted 2,300 visitors from some 90 countries and saw the completion of millions of dollars worth of business deals. This year’s event, which is once again being held at the prestigious Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Center (DICEC), a location firmly established as the largest and most sought-after events destination in the region, is set to be even bigger and better than in 2011.

The stellar triumph of the first edition of the Annual Investment Meeting was owed to a multiplicity of factors stemming from the realization that there was a missing link or connector between fast-developing economies registering record growth with limited or foreseeable sovereign risks and confident investors seeking new investment destinations.

Poland is set to be represented at AIM 2012 by the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIiIZ), as well as Poland’s only business weekly in English, Warsaw Business Journal. Those in attendance will be able to locate the WBJ stand at A8 in the main conference hall, with PAIiIZ situated nearby at D3. ●

European Union if the value of the tender exceeds €130,000 with respect to the sale of goods or services and €5,000,000 with respect to construction services. Current tender announcements throughout the EU can be viewed on the EU’s public tender website: ted.europa.eu. On any given day hundreds of tender announcements are published on the website. Public tenders in Poland having a smaller value are published locally in the Public Procurement Bulletin, which can be viewed at bzp0.portal.uzp.gov.pl.

Time frames The Act imposes various time frames in which a tender must remain open. Tenders worth up to €60,000 must remain open for at least 15 days. Tenders in excess of €60,000 must remain open for at least 52 days following publication in the Public Procurement Bulletin. The time frames are somewhat shorter for restricted tenders. ●

Information on the internet EU regulations require public tender announcements to be published in the Official Journal of the

The author wishes to acknowledge Marcin Zak in the preparation of this article.

18

POLAND INVESTMENT GUIDE

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Ten steps to setting up a business in Poland Want to establish a business in Poland?

Here are the ten steps you need to follow, according to experts at PwC Step 1: Notarize the company agreement • Time to complete: 1 day • Cost to complete: z∏.1,010 notary fee + 0.5% over z∏.60,000 + 22% on top of notary’s fee (VAT) + 0.5% of share capital (civil law transaction tax)

The statute of a joint-stock company should contain the following: • business name and company seat; • type of activity; • duration of the company, if limited; • amount of share capital, capital paid-in before registration, the nominal value of the shares and their number, the indication whether they are registered shares or bearer shares; • number of each type of shares and rights associated with specific share types, if applicable; • names and addresses of the founders; • number of members of the management board and supervisory board, or at least a minimum or a maximum number of the members and a person authorized to appoint the members; • a newspaper/periodical for

SHUTTERSTOCK

The statute (joint-stock company) or the articles of association (limited liability company) must be duly signed and drawn up in the form of a notarial deed.

publishing announcements, if the company intends to publish announcements outside of the Court and Economic Monitor (Monitor Sàdowy i Gospodarczy).

The articles of association of a limited liability company should contain the following: • business name and company seat; • type of activity; • duration of the company, if limited; • amount of share capital; • information as to whether a shareholder is entitled to one or more shares; • number and nominal value of shares subscribed for by individual shareholders.

Step 2: Establish the company’s address • Time to complete: 1 day

(lease contract); up to 2 months (a purchase of real estate) • Cost: upon negotiations The company should have its seat – a registered office in the territory of Poland. At the beginning, investors prefer signing a lease or rental contract with a landlord, which is often a company professionally offering a room and administration of incoming correspondence. Acquiring real estate is a more complex procedure. A contract of purchase of real estate or perpetual usufruct (a quasi-ownership of real estate belonging to the state or local community) must be made in the form of a notarial deed, without which it is invalid. A foreigner may purchase real estate or perpetual usufruct only after

receiving permission from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration (after asking for permission from the Ministry of Defense and, in the case of farmland, also after consultation with the Ministry of Agriculture). This may take up to two months.

Step 3: Register the company in the National Court Register (Krajowy Rejestr Sàdowy) • Time to complete: 7-14 days • Cost to complete: z∏.500 (registration fee) + z∏.500 (announcement fee) The next step is to submit an application for registration in the Register of Entrepreneurs in the National Court Register. The applications must be submitted to the regional economic departments of the

National Court Register where the seat of the company is located. The application, signed by all management board members, should be submitted with the following documents attached: • the statute or articles of association; • documents appointing the members of the company’s governing bodies; • a statement of all members of the management board that the contributions towards initial capital have been made by all shareholders in full (limited liability companies) or payments towards shares and noncash contributions as required under the statute have been made in a lawful manner (joint-stock companies); • a list, signed by all members

of the management board, giving the names of the shareholders (individuals and companies) and the number and nominal value of shares held (limited liability companies); • surnames and forenames and addresses of the management board members (limited liability companies); • specimens of the management board members’ signatures, certified by a notary or made in person in the presence of the court; • notarial deeds on establishing the company and on the subscription of shares (joint-stock companies); • a receipt for the payment of shares, certified by a bank or an investment company.

If there are contributions in kind to be made after the registration, a statement from all members of the management board that the contributions are ensured is required by law (joint-stock companies); • a document confirming the company’s right to use the premises or immovable property where its seat is located.

According to the Act on the National Court Register, along with the application for registration in the Register of Entrepreneurs in the National Court Register, the applicant shall also submit: • an application for an entry in the National Official Register of Economic Entities (REGON) (see Step 4); • registration as a payer of insurance contributions (as defined by the provisions of the social insurance system) (see Step 8); • an application to assign a

POLAND INVESTMENT GUIDE

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

tax identification number (NIP) to the company (see Step 6).

The court of registration will send the aforementioned applications, notifications and registrations not later than within three working days from the day on which the entry is made. It must send them to: • the statistical office of the voivodship in which the company has its seat; • the head of the tax office indicated by the company.

Having obtained information regarding the assigning of a NIP number to the company, the court of registration will send the registration as a payer of insurance contributions (as defined by the provisions of the social insurance system) to the appropriate regional unit of the Social Insurance Institution (Zak∏ad Ubezpieczeƒ Spo∏ecznych).

Step 4: Apply for a REGON identification

number • Time to complete: 1 day • Cost to complete: no charge The REGON number is issued by the statistical office, free of charge and usually straight away.

Step 5: Open a bank account • Time to complete: 1 day • Cost to complete: no charge (depending on the bank) As required by Polish law, every company is obliged to have an account with a Polish bank. In order to open an account the company should present, depending on the bank, at least the statute and notarial deeds on establishing the company and on the subscription of shares, or the articles of association and specimen signatures.

Step 6: Obtain a tax identification number (NIP) • Time to complete: up to 4 weeks

• Cost to complete: no charge

EU remitter.

In order to benefit from VAT deductions and issue invoices, the company must have a tax identification number (NIP).

The following documents should be filed in order to obtain a NIP: • statute or the articles of association; • documents confirming legal title to premises or real estate on which the company’s seat is located; • bank account agreement.

The account book should be kept in Polish using Polish currency (z∏oty, PLN).

Step 8: Register with the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) • Time to complete: 1 day • Cost to complete: no charge Within seven days of the employment of its first employee, the employer should be registered at the Social Insurance Institution as a payer of insurance contributions. Further, each employee should be registered by the employer as an insurance contribution beneficiary within seven days as of the date of his/her employment.

www.wbj.pl

Within 30 days of the launch of its business activity, the employer is obligated to notify in writing the labor inspectorate office pertinent for the employer’s business location.

The notification should include information on the location, type and scope of the business. An update of the notification should be filed if any of the data changes, particularly changes in the company’s technological or production profile if this change could influence employees’ health. The notification can be filed via an e-form available on the inspectorate’s website.

19

for the employer’s business location. The notification should include information on the location, type and scope of the business. An update of the notification should be filed if any of the data changes, particularly changes in the company’s technological or production profile if this change could influence employees’ health.

The notification can be filed via an e-form available on the inspectorate’s website. ●

Step 7: Register for VAT • Time to complete: 1 day • Cost to complete: z∏.170 The company is obliged to register for the purposes of VAT before conducting its first VAT-covered business activity. If the company plans to conduct any activity involving the intra-Community supply of goods or services, it is obliged to register as a VAT

The registration documents should be filed with the ZUS inspectorate responsible for the employer’s business location.

Step 9: Notice to National Labour Inspectorate (Paƒstwowa Inspekcja Pracy) • Time to complete: 1 day • Cost to complete: no charge

Step10: Notice to Chief Sanitary Inspectorate (Paƒstwowa Inspekcja Sanitarna) • Time to complete: 1 day • Cost to complete: no charge Within 30 days of the launch of its business activity, the employer is obligated to notify in writing the sanitary inspectorate office pertinent

Material for this article is reprinted from Warsaw Business Journal’s Investing in Poland 2012.

BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS Organization name Address Tel./Fax E-mail Web page

Number of member companies

Membership fee (zł.)

Registration fee (zł.)

Market sectors

Services

Year founded

Top local executive / Title

1991

Marek Goliszewski President

Varies

None

All sectors

Providing economic law information (Polish and EU); promotion and advertising; spokesperson in crisis situations; advice and consulting on economic law, tax, manager training, 2007-2013 EU funds, legal transformation of companies, cost reduction, recruitment and selection, restructuring; representing companies’ interests; partner and contractor acquisition intermediation; posting and dissemination of information and companies’ offers

Over 7,000

Varies

The amount of monthy membership fee

Banks; construction; chemicals; advisory; education; power engineering; pharmaceticals; finance; mining industry; steel mills; IT; infrastructure; media; automotive; clothing; mail; law; health services; shipyards; telecoms; transport; tobacco; insurance; gas; gastronomy; printing; consulting; property development; fuel industry

Representation of members’ rights and interests; public relations management; support for Polish employers and entrepreneurs acquiring EU funds; economic consultancy; legislative applications; market research; legal advice; expertise; representation of Polish entrepreneurs in EU institutions; training sessions

1989

Andrzej Malinowski President

WND

2,800

1,000

All sectors

Legal, financial and organization consultancy; member representation before state authorities; meetings with state representatives, politicians, etc.; training; discount system; “Inwestor Zagraniczny” – quarterly

1989

Marcin Gurda General Director

Polish Business Club Association Public Benefit Organization ul. Rzeźbiarska 80, 04-620 Warsaw 22 815-2200/22 815-6298 pkb@pkb.org.pl, www.pkb.org.pl

200

2,000

2,000

SMEs; transport; insurance; automotive; service-retail companies; medical services

Support for Polish enterprise development; business representation of members in Poland and abroad; maintaining of relations with local authorities and government

1990

Ryszard Konwerski President

Polish Chamber of Commerce ul. Trębacka 4, 00-074 Warsaw 22 630-9600/22 827-4673 kig@kig.pl www.kig.pl

153

2,400

100

Industrial and commercial sectors

Export support; training; facilitating new commercial contacts; organization of fairs and conferences; promotion; public relations services

1990

Andrzej Arendarski President

Polish Chamber of Commerce of Importers, Exporters and Cooperation ul. Św. Marcin 80/82, 61-809 Poznań 61 851-7848/61 851-7828 izba@pcc.org.pl, www.pcc.org.pl

500

100-350

200

Food; metals; plastics; furniture; trade; renewable energy; automotive

Advisory; information; training; documents legalization; electronic signature; support for the cluster initiatives

1995

Henryk Judkowiak President

None

Banks; financial institutions; insurance; automotive; media; food sector; chemicals sector; pharmaceuticals; cosmetics; aviation

Economic law lobbying; giving opinions about legal projects and budget; representation for Tripartite Commission; negotiations with trade unions; representation of Polish entrepreneurs in European institutions; support of day-to-day activities of members; workshops; trainings; conferences; contact with Polish and foreign experts

1999

Henryka Bochniarz President

Business Centre Club Pl. Żelaznej Bramy 10, 00-136 Warsaw 22 625-3037/22 621-8420 biuro@bcc.org.pl www.bcc.org.pl

Employers of Poland ul. Brukselska 7, 03-973 Warsaw 22 518-8700/22 828-8437 office@pracodawcyrp.pl www.pracodawcyrp.pl

Foreign Investors Chamber of Industry and Commerce in Poland ul. Pańska 73, 00-834 Warsaw 22 314-7575/22 314-7576 biuro@izbainwestorow.pl, www.izbainwestorow.pl

Polish Confederation of Private Employers Lewiatan ul. Zbyszka Cybulskiego 3, 00-725 Warsaw 22 559-9900/22 559-9910 lewiatan@pkpplewiatan.pl, www.pkpplewiatan.pl Notes: WND = Would Not Disclose.

2,500

3,500

WND

20

POLAND INVESTMENT GUIDE

www.wbj.pl

CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

SELECTED GOVERNMENT AGENCIES

Tel./Fax E-mail Website

Top executive

Tel./Fax E-mail Website

Top Executive

(+48) 22 520-5999/22 520-5998 office@amcham.com.pl www.amcham.pl

Joseph Wancer

(+48) 0-800-380-084/22 318-5330 info@arimr.gov.pl www.arimr.gov.pl

Tomasz Kołodziej

(+48) 22 456-4009 bbc@belgium.pl www.belgium.pl

Marc Cottyn

Agricultural Property Agency ul. Dolańskiego 2, 00-215 Warsaw

(+48) 22 635-8009/22 635-0060 anr@anr.gov.pl www.anr.gov.pl

Leszek Świętochowski

(+48) 22 622-2056/22 622-2056 info@bpcc.org.pl www.bpcc.org.pl

Alan Jarman

Central Statistical Office Al. Niepodległości 208, 00-925 Warsaw

(+48) 22 608-3000/22 608-3860 dane@stat.gov.pl www.stat.gov.pl

Janusz Witkowski

(+420) 596-612-230/(+420) 596-612-231 cpok@opolsku.cz www.opolsku.cz

Magdalena Holeksová

Chancellery of the Prime Minister Al. Ujazdowskie 1/3, 00-583 Warsaw

(+48) 22 694-6000/22 625-2637 sprm@kprm.gov.pl www.kprm.gov.pl

Tomasz Arabski

French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Poland ul. Widok 8, 00-023 Warsaw

(+48) 22 690-6880/22 696-7590 ccifp@ccifp.pl www.ccifp.pl

Monika Constant

Chief Police Station ul. Puławska 148/150, 02-624 Warsaw

(+48) 22 621-0251/22 601-2921 sip@policja.gov.pl www.policja.pl

Marek Działoszyński

Irish Chamber of Commerce in Poland ul. Mysia 5, 00-496 Warsaw

(+48) 22 583-1207/22 690-7590 info@enterprise-ireland.com www.icc.org.pl

Kenny Morgan

Customs Service ul. Świętokrzyska 12, 00-916 Warsaw

(+48) 33 857-6251 info.sluzbacelna@kat.mofnet.gov.pl www.mf.gov.pl

Jacek Kapica

Italian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Poland ul. Kredytowa 8/26, 00-062 Warsaw

(+48) 22 828-2008/22 826-0936 sekretariat@cciip.pl www.cciip.pl

Donato Di Gilio

General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways ul. Żelazna 59, 00-848 Warsaw

(+48) 22 357-8888/22 357-8763 kancelaria@gddkia.gov.pl www.gddkia.gov.pl

Lech Witecki

Netherlands-Polish Chamber of Commerce Al. Jana Pawła II 29, 00-867 Warsaw

(+48) 22 653-7652/22 653-7874 office@nlchamber.com.pl www.nlchamber.com.pl

Geert Embrechts

Ministry of Economy Pl. Trzech Krzyży 3/5, 00-507 Warsaw

(+48) 22 693-5000/22 693-4046 mg@mg.gov.pl www.mg.gov.pl

Waldemar Pawlak

Polish-Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry ul. Kopernika 30, 00-336 Warsaw

(+48) 22 828-5102/22 828-5101 info@pbihp.pl www.pbihp.pl

Józef Łochowski

Ministry of Foreign Affairs Al. J. Ch. Szucha 23, 00-580 Warsaw

(+48) 22 523-9000 zo.sekretariat@msz.gov.pl www.msz.gov.pl

Radosław Sikorski

Polish-Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce ul. Bobrowiecka 4A/54, 00-728 Warsaw

(+48) 22 642-6960/22 642-6960 biuro@pbih.com.pl www.pbih.com.pl

Vladislav Angelov

Ministry of Labor and Social Policy ul. Nowogrodzka 1/3/5, 00-513 Warsaw

22 661-1000/22 661-1336 info@mpips.gov.pl www.mpips.gov.pl

Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz

(+48) 690-370-759 e.gricuk@pccc.pl www.pccc.pl

Michael Miasek

Ministry of Regional Development ul. Wspólna 2/4, 00-926 Warsaw

(+48) 22 461-3000/22 461-3275 uwagi.do.mrr@mrr.gov.pl www.mrr.gov.pl

Elżbieta Bieńkowska

Polish-Chinese Chamber of Industry and Commerce ul. Świętojańska 46/8, 81-393 Gdynia

(+48) 58 660-8986/58 660-8989 office@pchiph.org pchiph.org

-

Ministry of Treasury ul. Krucza 36/Wspólna 6, 00-522 Warsaw

(+48) 22 695-8000/22 628-0872 minister@msp.gov.pl www.msp.gov.pl

Mikołaj Budzanowski

Polish-German Chamber of Industry and Commerce ul. Miodowa 14, 00-246 Warsaw

(+48) 22 531-0500/22 531-0600 info@ahk.pl ahk.pl

Michael Kern

National Bank of Poland ul. Świętokrzyska 11/21, 00-919 Warsaw

(+48) 22 653-1000/22 620-8518 listy@nbp.pl www.nbp.pl

Marek Belka

Polish-Indian Chamber of Commerce ul. Bukowska 12, 60-810 Poznań

(+48) 61 865-3823/61 624-2114 biuro@piig-poland.org www.piig-poland.org

Ryszard Sznajder

National Labor Inspectorate ul. Krucza 38/42, 00-926 Warsaw

(+48) 22 420-3731/22 420-3455 kancelaria@gip.pl www.pip.gov.pl

Anna Tomczyk

Polish-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce Al. Niepodległości 69, 02-626 Warsaw

(+48) 22 322-7667/22 322-7667 info@ppcc.pl www.ppcc.pl

Pedro Pereira da Silva

Polish Agency for Enterprise Development ul. Pańska 81/83, 00-834 Warsaw

(+48) 22 432-8080/22 432-8620 biuro@parp.gov.pl www.parp.gov.pl

Bożena Lublińska-Kasprzak

Polish-Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry ul. Zimna 2/2, 00-138 Warsaw

(+48) 22 654-7373/22 654-7388 prihp@prihp.pl www.prihp.pl

Hanna Wielgosz

Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIiIZ) ul. Bagatela 12, 00-585 Warsaw

(+48) 22 334-9800/22 334-9889 post@paiz.gov.pl www.paiz.gov.pl

Sławomir Majman

Polish-Spanish Chamber of Commerce ul. Arabska 9, 03-977 Warsaw

(+48) 22 511-1570/22 511-1571 phig@phig.pl www.phig.pl

Stefan Bekir Assanowicz

Polish Tourism Organisation ul. Chałubińskiego 8, 00-613 Warsaw

(+48) 22 536-7070/22 536-7004 pot@pot.gov.pl www.pot.gov.pl

Rafał Szmytke

Polish-Swedish Chamber of Industry and Commerce ul. Chmielna 101/102, 80-748 Gdańsk

(+48) 58 763-1469/58 768-1480 psig@psig.com.pl www.psig.com.pl

Tadeusz Iwanowski

Public Procurement Office ul. Postępu 17a, 02-676 Warsaw

(+48) 22 458-7702/22 458-7700 uzp@uzp.gov.pl www.uzp.gov.pl

Jacek Sadowy

Polish-Swiss Chamber of Industry and Commerce ul. Niepodległości 69, 02-626 Warsaw

(+48) 22 322-7625/22 322-7626 swisschamber@swisschamber.pl www.swisschamber.pl

Marek Kondrat

Social Insurance Institution ul. Szamocka 3, 5, 01-748 Warsaw

(+48) 22 667-1000/22 667-1418 – www.zus.pl

Zbigniew Derdziuk

Polish-Turkish Chamber of Commerce ul. Trębacka 4, 00-074 Warsaw

(+48) 22 630-9783/22 828-4199 office@ptcoc.eu www.ptcoc.eu

Marek Nowakowski

Supreme Chamber of Control ul. Filtrowa 57, 00-950 Warsaw

(+48) 22 444-5000/22 444-5793 nik@nik.gov.pl www.nik.gov.pl

Jacek Jezierski

Polish-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce ul. Szpitalna 1/28, 00-020 Warsaw

(+48) 22 827-0081/22 827-1079 puig@puizba.pl www.puizba.pl

Jacek Piechota

The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection Pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1 ,00-950 Warsaw

(+48) 22 556-0800/22 826-6125 uokik@uokik.gov.pl www.uokik.gov.pl

Małgorzata Krasnodębska-Tomkiel

Scandinavian-Polish Chamber of Commerce ul. Wiśniowa 40B/9, 02-520 Warsaw

(+48) 22 849-7414/22 646-4930 spcc@spcc.pl www.spcc.pl

Carsten Nilsen

The Patent Office of the Republic of Poland Al. Niepodległości 188/192, 00-950 Warsaw

(+48) 22 579-0000/22 579-0001 informacja@uprp.pl/www.uprp.pl

Alicja Adamczak

Name Address American Chamber of Commerce in Poland ul. E. Plater 53, 00-113 Warsaw

Belgian Business Chamber Al. Jerozolimskie 92, 00-807 Warsaw

British Polish Chamber of Commerce ul. Nowogrodzka 12/3, 00-511 Warsaw

Czech-Polish Chamber of Commerce ul. Janáčkova 10, 702 00 Ostrava, Czech Republic

Polish-Canadian Chamber of Commerce ul. Nowogrodzka 11, 00-513 Warsaw

Name Address Agency for Restructuring and Modernisation of Agriculture ul. Poleczki 33, 02-822 Warsaw

Glossary of useful Polish terms for investors Burmistrz, Prezydent, So∏tys – Mayor While the English word “mayor” describes the elected head of any city or town, regardless of its size, Polish makes a distinction. A major of an urban area like Warsaw or Kraków has a prezydent, while a mid-sized town will have a burmistrz. Villages are headed by a so∏tys.

Kodeks Spó∏ek Handlowych – Commercial Companies Code The Commercial Companies Code is the legislation that regulates the legal forms in which entities may conduct economic activities. It also regulates the manner of the day-to-day functioning, restructuring and the liquidation of companies.

Krajowy Rejestr Sàdowy (KRS) – National Court Register The KRS is a public register run by the Ministry of Justice. It comprises three different registers: a register of entrepreneurs; a register of associations,

voluntary and professional organizations, foundations and public institutions of social service; and a bankruptcy register. All new businesses must register with the KRS. Numer Identyfikacji Podatkowej (NIP) – Tax Identification Number A NIP is a 10-digit identifier which allows tax to be paid. All individuals and economic entities must possess one. It is assigned by the Tax Office.

Paƒstwowa Inspekcja Pracy – National Labor Inspectorate The National Labor Inspectorate supervises and inspects the obeisance of labor law in Poland. It is subordinate to Parliament. Among other powers, the Inspectorate has the right to conduct inspections of all employers and of entrepreneurs who are not technically employers but “have natural persons perform work for their benefit.”

Powszechny

Elektroniczny

System

Ewidencji LudnoÊci (PESEL) – Universal Electronic System for Registration of the Population A PESEL number is the equivalent of a REGON number for physical persons. It is an 11-digit statistical identifier which conveys four pieces of information: birth date, personal identifier number, gender and a “control digit.”

Rejestr Gospodarki Narodowej (REGON) – Register of the National Economy A REGON number is a nine-digit statistical identifier for businesses issued by the Central Statistical Office (G∏ówny Urzàd Statystyczny, GUS). A 14-digit REGON number is issued to local entities whose main branches are located elsewhere in Poland.

Umowa o dzie∏o – Contract for specific task A contract for specific task relates to the performance of a specific task/work and is primarily attractive

for employers because the tax and insurance contributions are lower than with an employment contract.

Umowa o prac´ – Employment Contract The “standard” type of a contract for the performance of work in Poland is an employment contract. All types of employment contracts require the employer to bear significant tax and social security contributions.

Umowa zlecenia – Contract of mandate This is a popular form of independent contractor (non-employment) agreement. The key difference between this and an umowa o dzie∏o is that it is usually for the performance of one specific task, such as that of a craftsman.

Whether an umowa zlecenia is suitable depends on the type of project or work, but it may serve for a longer period of time and involve repetition.

Województwo – Voivodship

Voivodships are the largest administrative divisions in Poland. Each voivodship has a popularly elected Voivodship Council (sejmik województwa) which holds four-year terms.

The number of councilors on each voivodship council varies by voivodship. There are 16 voivodships in Poland today, the outcome of a 1999 reform. Between 1975 and 1998 Poland comprised 49 voivodships.

Zak∏ad Ubezpieczeƒ Spo∏ecznych (ZUS) – the Social Insurance Institution ZUS, which is controlled by the Ministry of Labor, runs Poland’s social security system. Its responsibilities include pension and disability payments, as well as collecting and accounting for contributions to the National Health Fund, the Labor Fund and the Guaranteed Employee Benefit Fund. Employers whose workers are employed under full employment contracts are required to make ZUS contributions. ●

Apricot Capital Group is planning a number of new projects in Warsaw

The Polish market offers lots of opportunities to invest in historic property 22

23

LOKALE IMMOBILIA

W a r s a w B u s i n e s s J o u r n a l ’s w e e k ly s u p p l e m e n t o n re a l e s t a t e , c o n s t r u c t i o n a n d d e v e l o p m e n t

United Technologies Corporation’s (UTC) OTIS and Carrier are the first tenants in developer HB Reavis’s Konstruktorska Business Center office project in Warsaw. The companies will take up a total of 2,300 sqm in the scheme in April 2013. The tenants signed the transaction with HB Reavis for over 10 years.

Talks are currently underway regarding an additional 500 sqm that other UTC companies could potentially take up at Konstruktorska Business Center.

Construction on the investment, which will provide more than 48,000 sqm of leasable space, started in April last year and is scheduled to finish in Q1 2013.

Saturn leases at Europa Centralna Electronic goods retailer Saturn has leased 3,750 sqm of space in Helical Poland’s Europa Centralna retail park in Silesia, becoming, next to Tesco, Castorama and Jula, an anchor tenant in the 67,000-sqm scheme. “We are delighted to have attracted Saturn to Europa Centralna. The brand has a wonderful profile and reputation in electronic retailing in Poland and is an important part of our commercial offer,” stated Peter Evans, leasing director at Helical Poland. ●

In this issue InterContinental sale . . . . . . . .21 Azora buys offices . . . . . . . . . .21

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012, LI 17/17-18

Investment market

Warimpex to sell 50% stake in Warsaw’s InterContinental hotel The company plans to finalize the deal for the prime facility before the end of 2012 Developer Warimpex has announced plans to sell its 50 percent stake in the InterContinental hotel in downtown Warsaw.

In a statement, the company said the transaction will be finalized before the end of this year.

“The transaction will have a very positive impact on the result and the liquidity of the company in 2012,” the company wrote.

However, Warimpex’s regional director Christoph Salzer told Lokale Immobilia that a confidentiality agreement forbids him from revealing who the potential buyers are or how much the transaction would be worth.

“What I can say is that the InterContinental is a wonderful hotel. It has always been part of our business to sell hotels from time to time

SHUTTERSTOCK

First tenants at Konstruktorska

•

The five-star hotel is situated in downtown Warsaw to generate equity for new projects,” Mr Salzer added.

Mr Salzer also said that this is not a sign that Warimpex is backing out of the Polish market.

“The Polish market is the the most important market for us,” he added.

The remaining 50 percent stake belongs to Austrian building and development

company UBM. “We are not interested in buying Warimpex’ stake,” Katarzyna Szumaƒska-Kalisz, a spokesperson for UBM told Lokale Immobilia.

The five-star hotel is situated in the heart of Warsaw on ul. Emilii Plater. The facility offers 326 guest rooms and 75 luxury Residence Suites.

Izabela Depczyk

Azora buys three office buildings in Warsaw Spanish investment fund Azora Europe has bought three office buildings from Polish developer Eko Park for €54 million. Together, the buildings comprise Harmony Office Center II, and are part of the

Millennium Park complex in Warsaw.

Harmony Office Center II is situated in Warsaw’s Mokotów district and includes three class-A office buildings which have a combined area of

18,100 sqm. Two of these buildings are occupied by Millennium Bank Polska.

The developer of these buildings was NSB, a company which belongs to the Eko Park group.

Harmony Office Center II is the sixth acquisition made by Azora Europe in the office real estate sector in Central and Eastern Europe, and their third acquisition in Warsaw.

Together with the Harmony

Office Center II, Azora Europe has eight real estate properties in Poland and one real estate property in Prague.

Their combined value is estimated at €190 million.

Izabela Depczyk

CBRE named agent for new Tarnowskie Góry mall

New regional mall . . . . . . . . . .21 Apricot interview . . . . . . . . . . .22 Property-related stocks Historic property

. . . . .22

. . . . . . . . . . .23

Chmielna Park construction . .24 Unidevelopment in Poznań . . .24 Sustainable building . . . . . . . .25 Skanska’s Green Towers . . . . .25 Concept Tower certification .25

CBRE has been named the exclusive marketing and leasing agent for a new shopping mall in Tarnowskie Góry, Silesia voivodship, that will be built at the site of the city’s existing Gwarek wholesale

center. The investor behind the project has not yet been revealed.

The planned development, which has been designed by the vsf-creative studio, will comprise 23,000 sqm of space with

approximately 75 retail units and will be the first project of its kind in Tarnowskie Góry.

Construction on the new shopping center is scheduled to launch at the end of the second quarter of 2013. Tenants

of the planned mall will include supermarket operator MarcPol which will occupy 3,000 sqm in the development.

“The center is in a very good location with a long commercial tradition, which will

certainly be an additional asset that speaks in favor of visiting the place,” Magdalena Fràtczak, retail space department director at CBRE, said in a statement.

Adam Zdrodowski

www.wbj.pl

DHL leases from Prologis DHL Exel Supply Chain has leased 33,800 sqm at developer Prologis’s Prologis Park Dàbrowa distribution center in Dàbrowa Górnicza, Silesia voivodship. The transaction was facilitated by CBRE. “The new lease agreement with DHL reflects our high-quality industrial offering and ability to fulfill the requirements of the largest players in the global market,” Micha∏ Czarnecki, vice president for leasing and development in Poland at Prologis, said in a statement.

SEGRO secures tenants Industrial developer SEGRO has secured logistics solutions provider DB Schenker Logistics as the first tenant at its SEGRO Logistics Park Gdaƒsk in northern Poland. The company has also recently signed conveyor manufacturer FlexLink for its Tulipan Park Poznaƒ project in western Poland. ●

LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Developers

Ripe for development Lokale Immobilia talks to Agnieszka Jaworska, development manager at real estate developer and manager Apricot Capital Group, about the company’s plans for the Polish market Adam Zdrodowski: Apricot Capital Group entered Poland in 2007 and has recently launched its first office project in Warsaw. Have you been waiting for the right moment to start building or did you need that time to develop your business in the country?

Agnieszka Jaworska: Our idea in 2007 was to buy cheap plots without an approved planning decision or master plan because we did not want to compete with other developers paying market prices.

In 2008, we sold our retail project on ul. Radzymiƒska [in Warsaw] to Kaufland supermarkets before the financial crisis and since then we have just been obtaining permits for our plots in ˚oliborz and Mokotów and securing more plots for future projects.

Your first Polish project is located in an area of Warsaw’s ˚oliborz district that has until recently been mostly associated with industrial space. Do you think the neighborhood could become an

attractive office location in the near future?

We believe that ˚oliborz is already a very attractive location for offices. It doesn’t suffer from traffic problems and the access to the city center is much better than from Mokotów, for example. We like this project so much that we are actually planning to keep the building for our own fund.

How many apartments will be built within the residential part of the ˚oliborz project and when will construction on those housing units launch?

The residential part of the ˚oliborz project, called “˚oliborz Park,” will comprise 350 apartments. The complex has a valid building permit and we are currently preparing a tender for a general contractor. We plan to deliver the first phase at the end of 2013.

Apricot is also planning an office building on ul.

Domaniewska in Warsaw’s

Mokotów district. Can you reveal any more details?

We will develop an office complex of around 32,000 sqm of GLA and it will have the maximum [number of] parking [spaces possible] in the whole area. The disadvantage of that part of Mokotów is that competition is huge and a lot of projects have been delivered recently or are under construction, which has made rent levels fall.

The main advantage is that I find most of the projects being built in the area to be really similar and as if they were designed 10 years ago.

We will have the concept for our project in around three months and our building will be a landmark for the whole area. We think that top companies will prefer to pay €1 more in headline rent and stay in a unique place.

Where will Apricot’s planned retail project in Warsaw be located? How large will the investment be, what will its format look like, and when could construction start?

We are planning a 30,000sqm retail park on the eastern side of the Vistula.

Again, it will be different

COURTESY OF APRICOT CAPITAL GROUP

22

Apricot Capital Group has recently launched construction on its first office project in Poland (vizualization above) from anything seen in Warsaw. It will be composed of retail boxes of 150 sqm of space on two floors and they will be for sale or for rent. It will look like a luxury version of the retail park on ul. Bartycka [in Warsaw].

Are you considering more land acquisitions in Warsaw?

If so, for which kinds of projects and in which locations?

We are currently in negotiations with a big multinational firm for whom we will con-

struct a built-to-suit office and warehouse project in Warsaw, and we are also very interested in office projects on the eastern side of the Vistula.

Are you planning expansion to other Polish cities?

For outside Warsaw, we are only interested in joint ventures for retail projects with companies that need an equity partner but have a ready project. We won’t develop anything by ourselves outside Warsaw in the short term. ●

Property-related stocks Security

Closing price on April 26

% change (week)

52-week low

52-week high

% change (year)

Total shares

Market value (z∏. mln)

BUDIMEX

78.00

-6.98

64.00

109.00

-28.57

25,530,098

1,991.35

CELTIC

14.15

9.27

12.95

22.70

-26.34

34,068,252

482.07

DOMDEV

36.50

-0.35

23.50

50.80

-23.16

24,670,397

900.47

ECHO

3.92

-2.00

3.05

5.55

-23.29

420,000,000

1,646.40

ELBUDOWA

105.00

-5.41

87.00

168.00

-33.54

4,747,608

498.50

ENERGOPLD

1.80

-4.76

1.80

4.00

-54.31

70,972,001

127.75

ERBUD

15.30

-11.30

14.15

38.00

-60.47

12,644,169

193.46

GANT

7.58

3.84

5.85

14.03

-46.20

20,499,953

155.39

GTC

7.15

3.32

6.10

21.18

-66.67

219,372,990

1,568.52

HBPOLSKA

0.52

-27.78

0.52

2.35

-75.81

210,558,445

109.49

JWCONSTR

5.44

4.21

4.36

15.50

-63.73

54,073,280

294.16

LCCORP

1.41

-0.70

0.85

1.58

-10.19

447,558,311

631.06

MARVIPOL

7.38

-8.89

6.20

9.95

-12.97

36,923,400

272.49

MIRBUD

1.14

-29.19

1.14

4.14

-70.00

75,000,000

85.50

MOSTALWAR

13.61

10.20

11.30

41.20

-66.81

20,000,000

272.20

MOSTALZAB

1.24

-8.15

1.07

2.89

-54.91

149,130,538

184.92

ORCOGROUP

14.05

-2.16

13.05

38.20

-59.91

17,053,866

239.61

PBG

23.21

-23.90

22.50

164.00

-85.75

14,295,000

331.79

PLAZACNTR

2.44

-6.15

1.80

5.15

-49.27

297,174,515

725.11

POLAQUA

5.49

-5.34

4.53

18.93

-70.32

27,500,100

150.98

POLIMEXMS

1.03

-1.90

0.78

3.53

-70.66

521,154,076

536.79

POLNORD

13.90

2.96

11.03

32.47

-57.49

23,798,439

330.80

RANKPROGR

12.19

-11.47

8.60

16.97

-5.72

37,145,050

452.80

ROBYG

1.30

-6.47

1.04

2.10

-36.27

257,390,000

334.61

RONSON

1.03

-2.83

0.77

1.58

-33.55

272,360,000

280.53

TRAKCJA

1.06

8.16

0.65

3.53

-69.97

232,105,480

246.03

ULMA

58.20

-11.62

57.00

87.50

-33.86

5,255,632

305.88

UNIBEP

5.11

-8.75

4.47

7.30

-32.32

33,927,184

173.37

WARIMPEX

4.20

3.70

2.95

10.89

-60.38

54,000,000

226.80

ZUE

7.00

-5.66

5.07

12.85

-45.53

22,000,000

154.00

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE

www.wbj.pl

23

Historic property

COURTESY OF HOME BROKER

This historic villa near Warsaw is priced at z∏.4.2 million

The Polish market offers some jewels for investors who are patient and love historic properties The International Day for Monuments and Sites was celebrated around the globe on April 18 to promote awareness of the world’s cultural heritage and to point to the need for its protection and preservation.

In Poland, where many pieces of historic property were neglected or ruined during the communist era, a large number of manors and palaces still await investors who would be able to help restore the buildings’ original character.

The country has already witnessed successful renovations of historic structures, as well as the establishment of prosperous private businesses on the grounds of many such premises. Arguably, many more such opportunities exist for those who are not put off by the potentially time-consuming and costly renovation process.

From palace to hotel

about developing the property for social events such as weddings, anniversary celebrations and the like. We’re operating as a B&B now but we’re developing a second building which will allow us to expand into hosting local events,” he added.

Mr Reyher admitted that investment in historical property meant additional work and costs that the building of a new structure would not have involved. The historical palace had to be thoroughly renovated, with parts of the buildings having been stabilized and strengthened.

“It’s certainly different from new construction,” he said. “Renovating old floors, ovens, fireplaces, doors and crown molding is much more costly than buying new. Of course, we installed a modern central heating plant and all the plumbing, electrical installations, etc, is entirely new,” Mr Reyher added.

According to Mr Reyher, the cooperation with the historic preservation authorities has generally been good. The authorities’ main concern is that the facade of the palace

Historic bargains According to a recent report by real estate advisory Home Broker, the Polish market offers a number of interesting pieces of historic property which, mostly due to the fact that they require renovation, can be acquired at a relatively

COURTESY OF KEHRT REYHER

A Polish-American couple,

Marzenna and Kehrt Reyher, recently opened a boutique hotel in an 18th-century palace located in the village of Nak∏o in the Silesia region, which they purchased 10 years ago.

Just before that, the Reyhers accidentally came across an old estate north of Warsaw while on a Sunday drive a decade ago. A conversation with a real estate agent who was at the site sparked off their interest in historical property and soon afterwards they began to search for an old building to invest in.

Having considered approximately 10 pieces of historical property, the couple decided to buy the Nak∏o palace, whose design they liked from the very beginning and which was smaller than the other estates they had seen.

“Only mega-millionaires can afford to keep a place such as this as a private home. We knew from the beginning that we’d have to develop some business around it and, obviously, that’s the hospitality business,” Mr Reyher said.

“It’s about renting rooms, yes, but more importantly

Kehrt and Marzenna Reyher are renovating an 18th-century palace in Silesia

and certain interior features stay as true to the original as possible.

“We obviously had to make adjustments to the floor plan, to provide for bathrooms, for example, and we had no real problems making those adjustments,” Mr Reyher said. He added that the authorities have proven to be pretty flexible.

The Reyhers hired a professional construction engineer to ensure they stayed abreast of the regulations and to take care of the necessary administrative permits.

“The historic preservation authorities have more and more understanding when private investors are involved in such projects; they understand that historic buildings must have new functions and that the costs are high,” Mr Reyher said.

COURTESY OF HOME BROKER

A timeless appeal A renovated 18th-century wooden manor near Kraków, priced at z∏.2.5 million low price.

The study mentioned, among other things, a 330-sqm 19th-century watermill near Bielsko-Bia∏a that costs z∏.450,000 and a 1,100-sqm 19th-century forester’s lodge for which the owner hopes to receive z∏.950,000.

Generally, historical estates are priced in proportion to the condition they are in, since the process of renovating such a property usually requires considerable financial outlays, the Home Broker study said.

Currently available in the market, for instance, is a renovated 18th-century wooden manor near Kraków whose offer price is z∏.2.5 million and a well-preserved palatial complex, located in KujawskoPomorskie voivodship and dating back to 1800, that can

be bought for nearly z∏.3 million.

Financing problems According to Home Broker analysts, buying historic property and using it for business purposes can be a profitable investment. However, the potential investor is likely to experience problems with securing bank financing for the planned purchase, especially if the property in question is to be used as the collateral.

“Banks are wary of such collaterals as they see them as being illiquid. This is why most of them will refuse to grant financing for such a purchase or will offer a double margin,” said Grzegorz Chojnacki, a Home Broker advisor in Warsaw.

Adam Zdrodowski

24

LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Residential

COURTESY OF TAUBER PROMOTION COURTESY OF MADE IN PR

Construction on Chmielna Park underway

Unidevelopment enters Poznaƒ residential market

Chmielna Park will comprise a total of 314 apartments

The first phase of the investment will deliver 55 apartments by the third quarter of 2013 Warsaw Stock Exchange-listed developer Inpro has launched construction on its Chmielna Park multifamily residential project in Gdaƒsk, on the Baltic coast. The first of a planned three phases of the investment is scheduled to be completed in the third quarter of next year.

Located on Gdaƒsk’s Wyspa Spichrzów (Granary Island),

the Chmielna Park development will comprise three buildings, including one high-rise structure, with a total of 314 apartments. The first building to be built within the complex will deliver 55 housing units.

Chmielna Park apartments are sized from 35 sqm to 170 sqm and priced between z∏.5,500 and z∏.8,500 per sqm.

Sales of homes in the first phase of the development launched in Q3 last year, with 21 units having been offloaded so far.

“The investment enjoys

The Hevelia project will consist of six four-storey buildings

ample buyer interest. We launched sales of apartments in building A in September last year and almost 40 percent of the units have already been sold,” Rafa∏ Zdebski, commercial director at Inpro, said in a statement.

Founded in 1987, Gdaƒskbased Inpro is one of the largest development companies in the Tri-city market. The developer’s ongoing projects include Kwarta∏ Kamienic, City Park and Osiedle Jab∏oniowa in Gdaƒsk.

Adam Zdrodowski

Construction on a new multifamily residential project called Hevelia is scheduled to launch in Poznaƒ, Wielkopolskie voivodship, in the third quarter of this year. The scheme will be a joint investment of Warsaw-based Unidevelopment and a local developer called Monday Development.

“The Hevelia estate is our first investment in Poznaƒ, this is why we are developing it together with Monday Development which knows the

nature of the [local] market very well,” Zbigniew GoÊcicki, president of the management board of Unidevelopment, said in a statement.

“The construction of multifamily estates in other Polish cities gives our company a chance to develop so we are not ruling out the launching of more investments outside Warsaw,” Mr GoÊcicki added.

Sitting on 12,500 sqm of land located at the intersection of Poznaƒ’s ul. Heweliusza and ul. Palacza, the

Hevelia project will consist of six four-storey buildings comprising a total of 174 apartments. The units, which are scheduled to be completed in Q4 2013, are priced from z∏.6,300 per sqm.

Fully owned by Warsaw Stock Exchange-listed construction company Unibep, Unidevelopment is currently involved in residential projects in Warsaw including Point House in Mokotów and Lykke in Bia∏o∏´ka.

Adam Zdrodowski

Advertorial feature

KLIKOMATS IN CH FORUM – NEW TECHNOLOGIES AT YOUR SERVICE There are six of them and they attract attention. They look like gigantic smartphones and have touch screens and panels displaying adverts and announcements.

They are equipped with interactive maps of the mall, will help you find the way to a shop or spot, find a given kind of product and check what time and where the next bus departs. They also display news items about the mall – the same ones that are uploaded on its website. They are the KLIKOMATS – CLICK MACHINES. They have recently taken the area of the Forum shopping mall in Gliwice by storm. Where does their name come from? “It alludes to our CLICK [KLIK] multimedia loyalty programme that grants additional benefits to frequent shoppers, which we have been developing since the spring of 2010. Customers clearly like it because approx. 30,000 users have already registered in our system. CLICK was also created in order to facilitate the management of our flagship pro-sales campaigns such as competitions and lotteries,” explains Agnieszka Mielcarz, managing director of CH FORUM on behalf of Avestus Real Estate.

KLIKOMAT: more than a trendy gadget The CLICK MACHINES go with the

times. They follow new trends of visual advertising that not only influences our senses but, more importantly, encourages customers to get involved in more frequent interaction. An engaged customer is the dream of every marketer. Mobile applications and devices utilizing technological novelties are modern tools that make this dream come true.

But the CLICK MACHINES are not only spectacular gadgets.

Integrating these modern devices with the CLICK loyalty platform shows the direction of CH FORUM’s strategy and the hopes this Gliwice-based mall puts in innovative technologies.

“Apart from useful functionalities, the CLICK MACHINES are designed to service our marketing campaigns such as lotteries. So far a lot of activities related to these campaigns took place at our information point. CLIK MACHINES will relieve information point staff and automate these

The machines are undergoing their first test right now. A diamond lottery that uses the CLICK MACHINES was launched in CH FORUM in mid-April.

Customers can now scan their till receipts, print lottery cards or check whether they have won an immediate prize – a voucher worth z∏.50, of which there are 2,000 in the lottery.

CLICK and what next?

pro-sales undertakings. Some of these activities were moved to our website and Facebook profile a long time ago. The CLICK MACHINES are another step towards modernity,” explains Agnieszka Mielcarz.

Shopping malls get bolder and bolder in reaching for technological novelties. To what extent will this change the habits of shopping mall customers?

The issue seems to be slightly more complex. “While opening ourselves to new technologies we do not forget about more traditional marketing media and try to find a suitable balance between the two. Not all age groups absorb technological gadgets to the same degree,” says Agnieszka Mielcarz, who

also points out that the retailers have a role to play in this process.

“A lot depends on the level of their cooperation with facility managers. Even the best mobile applications will not fully use their potential unless all tenants get equally involved in their development and content providing.” Then the question whether it is the shopping mall or the shop itself that should try to ‘catch the customer’ using geolocation tricks gets a completely different meaning.

Meanwhile, the next development stadium of the CLICK platform at CH FORUM will be a mobile application which is to move all the functionalities of the CLICK MACHINES to users’ devices.

“There will be as many CLICK MACHINES as the customers interested in them. However, before this takes place, the introduction of the application will be preceded by a detailed analysis of the functioning of the stationary devices. We will most probably ask various groups of customers to give us their opinions about them. However, we need some time in order to accomplish that,” Agnieszka Mielcarz informs us. ●

LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Sustainable building

Understanding the costs Many Polish developers, building owners and tenants are holding on to the notion that building green must be expensive Although they are generally aware of the advantages of sustainable building, many players in the Polish real estate market still think it is more costly than it really is.

A new survey by Colliers International Poland, “Is the grass greener for green building certifications?” completed in April 2012 with the participation of 65 developers, building owners and major tenants, found that 52 percent of respondents believe that green buildings cost significantly more to build than conventional buildings. But Colliers estimates that in the CEE region, most green buildings cost just over 1 percent more to build.

“I am not surprised at this result, because that’s what we hear most often. We need to show real examples of green buildings throughout the

region so that this misconception fades away. The good news is, with so many new projects in Poland we won’t be lacking examples,” said Devin Saylor, head of Colliers’ green certification services for the CEE region.

According to Ulrich Schweig, head of technology center sustainable construction at Strabag, the sooner sustainable solutions are incorporated into a project, the easier and cheaper it is. “The biggest problem we have is that as a contractor we get ready plans and then the client says he wants to achieve a certain level of certification,” he said.

Part of the belief that green must be expensive is also attributable to the fact that many Polish players think green building materials are difficult to find in Eastern Europe and are more expensive. As many as 74 percent of respondents to Colliers’ survey said they believed this.

“I was very surprised.

Although distributors and producers need to make themselves more widely known, sustainable building materials including

cleaning products, concrete, glass, and paints are already widely available in Poland.

Moreover, products are considered to be “local” in an 800-km radius from the project site, which in Poland’s case includes Germany and many other CEE countries,” said Ms Saylor.

Proof that more and more people recognize certain advantages of sustainable building, however, is that as many as 92 percent of respondents correctly said that green buildings can cost less to operate and maintain, and sell for more than non-green buildings.

One example of this is Rondo 1 in Warsaw, which reduced its running costs by 15 percent with a relatively small investment to achieve LEED Gold certification in 2011, according to Karol Bartos, managing director Poland at MGPA. “I think it’s good news that people recognize the added value of green buildings, because now it’s a matter of understanding costs, and then there is really no objection to building green,” said Ms Saylor.

Alice Trudelle

Developer Skanska Property Poland has completed the first of two buildings in its Green Towers office complex in Wroc∏aw, Lower Silesia voivodship. The first tenants, Ernst & Young and Grupa Allegro, have already moved into the facility.

Located on Wroc∏aw’s ul.

Strzegomska, the Green Towers scheme comprises two 10storey buildings that will deliver a total of 23,300 sqm of leasable class-A office space.

The project is being built in line with the principles of sustainable development and will be LEED-certified.

Construction on the Green Towers investment has been underway since April 2010.

COURTESY OF QUESTIA

Skanska completes first Green Towers building in Wroc∏aw

The Green Towers scheme will comprise 23,300 sqm of office space The second phase of the complex, which will deliver 11,600 sqm of space, is scheduled to

be completed at the turn of 2012 and 2013.

Adam Zdrodowski

Concept Tower in Warsaw set for double certification Developer Concept Development has announced that it will secure both LEED and BREEAM certification for its Concept Tower office building in Poland. According to the company, the project will be the first office scheme in Poland applying for both certificates.

Apart from environmental concerns, increasing the investment value of the building and

enhancing its attractiveness for the so-called green investment funds is an important factor that led to the decision to obtain double certification for Concept Tower, the developer said in a statement.

“Prestigious double certification additionally increases the value of the building, which automatically translates into advantages for investors and tenants,” said Rafa∏ Maresch,

president of the management board of Concept Development.

Located at the intersection of ul. Karolkowa and ul. Grzybowska in Warsaw’s Wola district, the Concept Tower project will be a 15-storey building offering over 8,800 sqm of office and retail space. The scheme is scheduled to be completed in the fourth quarter of Adam Zdrodowski 2012.

www.wbj.pl

25

26

THE LIST

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Construction & Real Estate

Commercial Real Estate Developers - Retail

Rank

Ranked by retail investments completed in 2010

Company name Address Tel./Fax E-mail Web page

Gross Building Area Gross Leasable Area (GBA) of retail (GLA) of retail investments completed investments (sqm): completed (sqm): 1st half of 2011 / 2010 / 1st half of 2011 / 2010 2009 / 2008 / 2009 / 2008 Overall

www.bookoflists.pl

Specialization

Key current investments: name (location; space - sqm; GLA; completion year)

Largest investments recently completed: name (address; space sqm; GLA; completion year)

Total employees / Year founded

Top local executive / Title

Inter IKEA Centre Polska SA Pl. Szwedzki 3, Janki, 05-090 Raszyn 1 22 711-2300 inter@ikea.com www.iicg.pl

WND 120,000 WND WND WND

WND 103,000 WND WND

Shopping malls

Shopping mall (Lublin; WND; 80,000; 2014); Park Handlowy Bielany (Wroc∏aw; WND; 60,000; 2014)

Port ¸ódê (¸ódê; 120,000; 103,000; 2010)

WND 2001

Carl Tomas Rask

Plaza Centers Poland Sp. z o.o. ul. TaÊmowa 7, 02-677 Warsaw 2 22 231-9900/22 231-9901 headoffice@plazacenters.pl www.plazacenters.pl

100,000 95,000 WND WND WND

40,000 37,000 WND WND

Shopping and entertainment centers

Toruƒ Plaza (Toruƒ; 100,000; 40,000; 2011)

Suwa∏ki Plaza (Suwa∏ki; 55,000; 20,000; 2010); Zgorzelec Plaza (Zgorzelec; 40,000; 17,000; 2010)

20 1998

Eli Mazor

Liebrecht & wooD Poland Sp. z o.o.

Al. Jerozolimskie 212A, 02-486 Warsaw 3 22 571-4444/22 571-4443 info@liebrecht-wood.com www.liebrecht-wood.pl

WND 79,177 120,490 136,734 WND

WND 16,361 16,906 17,292

Office buildings; outlet centers

Plac Unii (Warsaw; 15,500; 15,181; 2013); Morski Park Handlowy (Gdaƒsk; 160,247; 58,254; 2012)

Fashion House Gdaƒsk (Gdaƒsk; 79,177; 16,361; 2010); Fashion House Sosnowiec (Sosnowiec; 120,490; 16,906; 2009); Fashion House Warszawa (Warsaw; 136,734; 17,292; 2008)

35 1994

Marc Lebbe; Patrick Van Den Bossche

Polimeni International LLC ul. W∏adys∏awa IV 43, 81-395 Gdynia 4 58 669-6000/58 669-6001 sekretariat@polimeni.pl www.polimeni.pl

– 16,843 40,801 33,099 149,587

WND WND WND WND

Commercial buildings

WND

WND

30 1999

Karol Kalicki

WND 768 WND WND 768

WND 721 WND WND

Office, retail, residential buildings; hotels

Wspólna Project (Warsaw; WND; WND; WND); Królewska Project (Warsaw; WND; WND; WND)

Zebra Tower (Warsaw; 17,800; 16,160; 2010)

WND 2007

Edmund Völker

AIG/Lincoln Polska Sp. z o.o. ul. Grzybowska 5A, 00-132 Warsaw NR 22 564-5000/22 564-5085 office.warsaw@aiglincoln.com.pl www.aiglincoln.com.pl

116,000 WND WND WND WND

42,000 WND WND WND

Office buildings; shopping malls; warehouses and logistics parks; residential complexes

WND

Aquapark (Radom; 5,850; WND; 2010)

WND 1997

Brian Patterson

Apsys Polska Sp. z o.o.

Al. Jana Paw∏a II 27, 00-867 Warsaw NR 22 701-9200/22 701-9201 office@apsysgroup.pl www.apsysgroup.pl

WND WND WND WND 270,000

WND WND WND WND

Shopping malls

WND

WND

176 1997

Fabrice Bansay

Caelum Development - grupa kapita∏owa ul. Prosta 51, 00-838 NR 22 586-9790/22 586-9799 info@cealumdevelopment.eu www.caelumdevelopment.eu

WND WND 8,100 68,600 318,575

WND WND 5,300 33,200

Shoping malls

Nova Park (Gorzów Wielkopolski; 75,000; 32,433; 2012); Parklake Plaza (Bucharest, Romania; 180,000; 67,000; 2013)

Galeria Wis∏a (P∏ock; 55,600; 22,600; 2009); Galeria Askana (Gorzów Wielkopolski; 55,000; 18,000; 2007); Galeria M∏yƒska (Racibórz; 2,800; 4,200; 2008)

95 2002

Niall O’Higgins

Capital Park SA ul. Marynarska 11, 02-674 Warsaw NR 22 318-8888/22 318-8889 biuro@capitalpark.pl www.capitalpark.pl

WND WND WND WND_ 13,363

5,407 1,018 2,907 968

Retail buildings

Street Mall Vis a Vis Radom (Radom; 3,951; Street Mall Vis a Vis ¸ódê (¸ódê; WND; 7,078; 3,663; 2010); Cristal (Gdaƒsk; WND; 1,744; 2013); Royal Wilanów (Warsaw; WND; 7,000; 2010); Olsztyn Business Polonia (Olsztyn; WND; 2014); Art Norblin (Warsaw; WND; 21,000; 1,126; 2009); Toruƒ Szeroka 19 (Toruƒ; WND; 2015) 1,709; 2009); Tczew Dàbrowskiego (Tczew; WND; 421; 2007)

42 2003

Jan Motz

Centrum Development & Investment Polska Sp. z o.o. ul. Bonifraterska 17, 00-203 Warsaw NR 22 351-0100/22 351-0101 cdi@centrumdi.com www.centrumdi.com

WND WND 100,000 WND WND

WND WND 41,000 WND

WND

WND

DH Renoma (Wroc∏aw; 99,500; 41,000; 2009)

WND 2002

Bart∏omiej Hofman

DEKADA REALTY Sp. z o.o.

Al. Niepodleg∏oÊci 124, 02-577 Warsaw NR 22 851-3465/22 851-0121 biuro@dekadarealty.pl www.dekadarealty.pl

10,200 WND 11,300 WND 21,500

6,900 WND 6,600 WND

Shopping malls

Dekada Sieradz (Sieradz; 22,500; 10,000; 2011); Dekada ˚yrardów (˚yrardów; 5,100; 3,800; 2012); Dekada Olsztyn (Olsztyn; 4,100; 3,700; 2012)

Galeria Jeziorak (I∏awa; 11,300; 6,600; 2009)

12 2007

Aleksander Walczak

ECC Real Estate Sp. z o.o. ul. Ostrobramska 75C, 04-175 Warsaw NR 22 611-3700/22 611-3753 info.europe.ce@eccrealestate.com www.eccrealestate.com

WND WND WND WND 108,600

WND WND WND WND

Retail, residential, office buildings

Milano (Warsaw; 2,500; 1,530; WND); Promenada Resort Mall (Chiang Mai, Thailand; Pu∏awska 111A (Warsaw; 19,700; WND; 2010); 90,000; WND; 2012); “Podkowa” housing Promenada (Warsaw; 120,000; WND; 2005) development (Poznaƒ; 33,000; WND; WND)

6 1989

Adrian Heymans

ECE Projektmanagement Polska Sp. z o.o. ul. Fabryczna 5A, 00-446 Warsaw NR 22 310-6000/22 310-6002 info@ece.pl www.ece.pl

WND WND WND 20,000 460,000

WND WND WND 5,000

Shopping malls and multipurpose facilities

Galeria Kaskada (Szczecin; 120,000; 42,000; 2011)

Galeria ¸ódzka (¸ódê; 110,000; 45,000; 2008); Galeria Ba∏tycka (Gdaƒsk; 110,000; 39,500; 2007); Galeria Krakowska (Kraków; 129,000; 60,000; 2006); Galeria Dominikaƒska (Wroc∏aw; 60,000; 32,000; 2001)

WND 1997

Rüdiger Dany

Echo Investment SA Al. SolidarnoÊci 36, 25-323 Kielce NR 41 333-3333/41 333-2333 office@echo.com.pl www.echo.com.pl

WND WND WND 6,700 484,000

WND WND WND 6,700

Shopping malls; hotels; residential, office buildings

Outlet Park Szczecin (Szczecin; 30,200; Pasa˝ Grunwaldzki (Wroc∏aw; 120,000; 50,000; 24,000; 2012); Galeria Amber (Kalisz; 88,000; 2007); CHR Galaxy (Szczecin; 94,000; 42,000; 33,500; 2013); Galeria Olimpia (Be∏chatów; 2003); Galeria Echo (Kielce; 58,000; 26,000; 48,100; 32,200; 2012) 2002)

325 1994

Piotr Gromniak

Globe Trade Centre SA ul. Wo∏oska 5, 02-675 Warsaw NR 22 606-0700/22 606-0410 gtc@gtc.com.pl www.gtc.com.pl

WND WND 130,000 WND 392,500

WND WND 49,000 WND

Office, residential buildings; shopping malls

Galeria Wilanów (Warsaw; WND; 60,000; 2013)

Galeria Mokotów (Warsaw; 150,000; 62,500; 2000); Galeria Kazimierz (Kraków; 112,500; 38,200; 2005); Galeria Jurajska (Cz´stochowa; 130,000; 49,000; 2009)

163 1994

Piotr Kroenke

Grupa Inwestycyjna Hossa SA ul. W∏adys∏awa IV 43, 81-395 Gdynia NR 58 620-7033/58 620-7669 info@hossa.gda.pl www.hossa.gda.pl

WND WND WND 9,000 47,800

WND WND WND 9,000

Residential, commercial buildings

Omega (Gdaƒsk; 5,820; 4,796; 2012); Gama (Gdaƒsk; 6,170; 5,104; 2012)

Garnizon.biz (Gdaƒsk; 10,000; 9,000; 2008); CH Madison (Gdaƒsk; 22,300; 21,100; 2003); CH HOSSA (Gdynia; 9,300; 6,900; WND)

161 1989

Mariusz Gawron

S+B Plan & Bau Warschau Sp. z o.o. ul. Mokotowska 1, 00-640 Warsaw 5 609-307-099/22 375-3010 izabella.kieler@sb-gruppe.at www.sb-gruppe.at

Managing Director

Managing Directors

Vice President

Managing Director

General Director

Managing Director

President

President

President

President

Managing Director

President

General Director

President

THE LIST

Rank

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Company name Address Tel./Fax E-mail Web page

Gross Building Area Gross Leasable Area (GBA) of retail (GLA) of retail investments completed investments (sqm): completed: 1st half of 2011 / 2010 / 1st half of 2011 / 2010 2009 / 2008 / 2009 / 2008 Overall

www.wbj.pl

27

Specialization

Key current investments: name (location; space - sqm; GLA; completion year)

Largest investments recently completed: name (address; space sqm; GLA; completion year)

Total employees / Year founded

Top local executive / Title

Europa Centralna (Gliwice; 270,000; 67,000; 2012)

Park Handlowy M∏yn (Wroc∏aw; WND; 10,000; 2008)

17 2004

Jonathan Tinker; Peter Evans

WND 2006

Yann Guen; Maciej Kie∏bicki

Helical Poland Sp. z o.o. ul. Wspólna 35/9, 00-519 Warsaw NR 22 556-5400/22 826-5615 mc@helicalpoland.pl www.helicalpoland.pl

WND WND WND WND 50,000

40,000 WND WND 10,000

Retail parks

Mayland Real Estate Sp. z o.o. ul. Pu∏awska 427, 02-801 Warsaw NR 22 546-9800/22 546-9898 contact@mayland.pl www.mayland.pl

WND WND WND WND WND

WND WND WND 130,000

Shopping malls

METRO Properties Sp. z o.o.

Al. Krakowska 61, 02-183 Warsaw NR 22 500-0000/22 500-0113 info@metro-properties.pl www.metro-properties.pl

40,000 WND WND WND_ 860,000

29,000 WND WND WND

Retail buildings

M1 Cz´stochowa (Cz´stochowa; 9,700; 5,300; 2013)

M1 Zabrze (Zabrze; 12,600; 8,000; 2010); M1 Kraków (Kraków; 8,100; 6,900; 2010); Makro Kraków (Kraków; 11,000; 8,500; 2010)

316 1996

Renata Kinde-Czy˝; Andreas Thamm

NAP Invest Group ul. Nowogrodzka 21, 00-511 Warsaw NR 22 262-2000/22 262-2001 info@napinvest.com.pl www.napinvest.com.pl

3,700 WND 17,000 2,000 WND

3,500 WND 13,000 WND

Shopping malls; retail parks; residential buildings

Centrum Zakupów Zàbki (1) (Zàbki; 3,100; 2,900; 2011); 2 residential projects (Lublin; 19,000; WND; WND); residential project (Warsaw; 9,000; WND; WND)

Centrum Zakupów Zgierz (Zgierz; 3,700; 3,500; 2010); Galeria Rembieliƒska (Warsaw; 17,000; 13,000; 2008)

WND 2007

Bogdan ˚o∏nierzak

Neinver Polska Sp. z o.o. ul. ˚elazna 28/30, 00-832 Warsaw NR 22 822-1200/22 822-1222 komunikacja@neinver.com www.neinver.com

WND WND WND WND 114,000

114,000 114,000 WND WND

FACTORY outlet centers; FUTURA retail parks; shopping malls; office buildings

Galeria Katowicka (Katowice; WND; 46,000; Galeria Malta (Poznaƒ; WND; 54,000; 2009); 2013); FACTORY Warszawa Annopol FUTURA Park Wroc∏aw (Wroc∏aw; WND; (Warsaw; WND; 19,700; 2012); FUTURA Park 31,800; 2006); FACTORY Poznaƒ (Luboƒ; WND; Kraków (2) (Modlniczka; WND; 44,000; 2011) 15,200; 2007)

80 2000

Barbara Topolska

NORDIC DEVELOPMENT SA ul. Emilii Plater 53, 00-113 Warsaw NR 22 540-7160/22 540-7161 info@nordicdevelopment.pl www.nordicdevelopment.pl

WND WND WND WND WND

WND WND WND WND

Retail, residential buildings

Wyspa M∏yƒska (Bydgoszcz; 29,000; WND; Nordic Residence (Bydgoszcz; 34,000; WND; WND); Marina (Bydgoszcz; WND; WND; (Bydgoszcz; WND; WND; 2013); Lake Residence (Osielsko; WND; WND; 2010); Nordic Tower2009) 2013)

20 2007

Jon Therkildsen

Sjaelso Poland Sp. z o.o.

Al. Rzeczpospolitej 18/70, 02-972 Warsaw NR 22 419-2000/22 419-2010 sjaelso@sjaelso.pl www.sjaelso.pl

WND WND WND WND WND

WND WND WND WND

WND

WND 2007

John Kristensen

WND WND 76,500 WND 480,000

WND WND 33,750 WND

Retail and entertainment buildings

30 1994

Zygmunt Chyla

TK Development SA ul. Mszczonowska 2, 02-337 Warsaw NR 22 572-2910/22 572-2911 tkd-warsaw@tk.dk www.tk-development.com

Notes: NR = Not Ranked, WND = Would Not Disclose. Research for The List was conducted in October 2011. Number of employees is as of September 2011. All information pertains to the companies’ activities in Poland. Companies not responding to our survey are not listed.

Footnotes: (1) Completed November 30, 2011; (2) Completed October 19, 2011.

CH Wzgórze (Gdynia; WND; 70,000; 2013); CH Karolinka (Opole; WND; 70,000; 2008); CH CH Jantar extension (S∏upsk; WND; 46,000; Jantar (S∏upsk; WND; 22,000; 2008); CH Pogoria 2012) (Dàbrowa Górnicza; WND; 38,000; 2008)

WND

WND

TIVOLI Commercial (Warsaw; 6,800; 5,600; Galeria Tarnovia (Tarnów; 36,500; 16,550; 2009); 2011); Galeria Sandecja (Nowy Sàcz; WND; Galeria Sandecja (Nowy Sàcz; 40,000; 17,200; 4,700; 2012) 2009)

Board Members

Board Member; President

President

General Director

President

President

President

To the best of WBJ ’s knowledge, the information is accurate as of press time. While every effort is made to ensure accuracy and thoroughness, omissions and typographical errors may occur. Corrections or additions to The List should be sent, on official letterhead, to Warsaw Business Journal, attn. Joanna Raszka, ul. Elblàska 15/17, 01-747 Warsaw, via fax to (+48) 22 639-8569, or via e-mail to wbjbol@wbj.pl. Copyright 2011, Valkea Media SA. The List may not be reprinted or reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission of the publisher. Reprints are available.

28

MARKETS

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Stocks report

world stock indices DJIA

NASDAQ

13,204.62 (April 26 close)

S&P500

3,050.61 (April 26 close)

1.86% (for the week)

FTSE100

1,399.98 (April 26 close)

1.43% (for the week)

DAX

5,748.70 (April 26 close)

1.67% (for the week)

0.07% (for the week)

Low volumes in a choppy week

NIKKEI225 6,739.90 (April 26 close)

9,561.83 (April 26 close)

1.03% (for the week)

-0.28% (for the week)

CHANGE: 6.51%

CHANGE: 15.17%

CHANGE: 9.63%

CHANGE: 0.86%

CHANGE: 10.94%

CHANGE: 11.70%

(year to April 26)

(year to April 26)

(year to April 26)

(year to April 26)

(year to April 26)

(year to April 26)

52-week high: 13,243.83

52-week high: 3,134.17

52-week high: 1,422.38

52-week high: 6,103.70

52-week high: 7,600.41

52-week high: 10,255.20

52-week low: 10,404.49

52-week low: 2,298.89

52-week low: 1,074.77

52-week low: 4,791.01

52-week low: 4,965.80

52-week low: 8,135.79

Andrew Nawrocki WBJ market analyst Political uncertainty throughout Western Europe created worry for investors in late April, causing stocks to open lower on Monday, April 23.

The collapse of the Dutch government as well as uncertainty surrounding the French presidential election sent shares lower across Europe, with both the overall WIG and blue-chip WIG20 falling about 2.5 percent by closing.

On Tuesday, European markets got a little relief as debt sales on the old continent were well received, pushing bond yields lower.

Strong corporate earnings for big US manufacturers also added some momentum, with stocks regaining some of their losses from the previous day.

Both the WIG and WIG20 gained about half a

Major indices WIG

39,761.78 (April 26 close)

WIG20

2,209.63 (April 26 close)

26.04

25.04

24.04

23.04

20.04

19.04

18.04

17.04

16.04

13.04

12.04

11.04

10.04

26.04

25.04

24.04

23.04

20.04

19.04

18.04

17.04

16.04

2,000

13.04

39,000

12.04

2,080

11.04

39,800

10.04

2,160

05.04

40,600

04.04

2,240

03.04

41,400

02.04

2,320

30.03

42,200

29.03

2,400

28.03

43,000

05.04

52-week low: 2,089.84

04.04

Change year to April 26: 0.71%

03.04

52-week low: 36,549.47

02.04

52-week high: 2,932.62

Change year to April 26: 3.77%

30.03

Change for the week: -1.01%

29.03

52-week high: 50,219.70

28.03

Change for the week: -1.47%

Top 5 SOBIESKI PROJPRZEM ABMSOLID BIOTON CEDC

Closing 240.00 8.17 2.83 0.09 14.95

% change (week) 52-week high 34.83 368.50 17.05 13.75 15.04 15.10 12.50 0.17 10.74 35.53

52-week low 113.00 5.75 1.49 0.06 9.27

Top 5 GTC PZU CYFRPOLSAT PEKAO BRE

Closing 7.15 319.60 13.71 147.00 290.00`

% change (week) 3.32 2.44 1.41 1.03 -0.34

52-week high 21.45 398.60 17.69 177.30 351.70

52-week low 6.01 283.10 11.60 115.10 203.30

Bottom 5 MIRBUD HBPOLSKA MISPOL PBOANIOLA PBG

Closing 1.14 0.52 1.47 2.69 23.21

% change (week) -29.19 -27.78 -25.76 -25.28 -23.90

52-week low 1.10 0.49 1.47 2.44 21.31

Bottom 5 PBG TAURONPE LOTOS GETIN ASSECOPOL

Closing 23.21 4.64 28.80 2.27 46.44

% change (week) -23.90 -7.57 -4.19 -3.81 -2.66

52-week high 164.80 6.81 49.00 15.06 55.45

52-week low 21.31 4.54 21.30 2.01 34.50

52-week high 4.18 2.45 6.55 7.70 164.80

Currency report

‘Merkozy’ under threat

Other indices sWIG80

9,773.24 (April 26 close)

NewConnect

40.20 (April 26 close)

52-week high: 12,932.00

WIG-Banki

5,700.92 (April 26 close)

Change for the week: -2.83%

52-week high: 58.92

Change for the week: -0.45%

52-week high: 7,316.39

Change year to April 26: -3.11%

52-week low: 40.19

Change year to April 26: 2.84%

52-week low: 4,944.19

44,0

Adam Narczewski X-Trade Brokers DM SA

26.04

25.04

24.04

23.04

20.04

19.04

18.04

17.04

16.04

13.04

52-week low: 8,218.71

10.04

05.04

04.04

26.04

25.04

24.04

23.04

20.04

19.04

18.04

17.04

16.04

9,600

13.04

2,300

12.04

9,800

11.04

2,360

10.04

10,000

05.04

2,420

04.04

10,200

03.04

2,480

02.04

10,400

30.03

2,540

29.03

10,600

28.03

2,600

03.04

Change year to April 26: 13.59%

02.04

52-week low: 2,076.52

30.03

Change year to April 26: 9.51%

29.03

Change for the week: -2.82%

28.03

52-week high: 2,959.86

12.04

2,398.59 (April 26 close)

11.04

mWIG40 Change for the week: -2.31%

6,000

43,2

5,900

42,4

5,800 5,700

41,6

5,600 40,8

SOURCE: WSE

26.04

25.04

24.04

23.04

20.04

19.04

18.04

17.04

16.04

13.04

12.04

11.04

10.04

05.04

04.04

03.04

02.04

30.03

29.03

28.03

5,400

26.04

25.04

24.04

23.04

20.04

19.04

18.04

17.04

16.04

13.04

12.04

11.04

10.04

05.04

04.04

03.04

02.04

30.03

29.03

28.03

5,500 40,0

percent, with TVN (up 3.08 percent) and JSW (up 2.99 percent) seeing the largest gains.

Stocks continued their climb on Wednesday.

Despite a lackluster start and some poor data being released, Polish stocks fed on positive comments from US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke in the late afternoon, after he pledged additional support to aid the US economy. Both the WIG and WIG20 closed about a quarter of a percent higher.

On Thursday, Polish indices outperformed most of their European peers, feeding once again on strong corporate earnings as well as better-than-expected overseas housing data.

Finally, on Friday April 27, the WIG closed up 1.57 percent. ●

The week beginning April 23 was a volatile one, with investors reacting negatively to the news that President Nicolas Sarkozy had lost the first round of the presidential elections in France. It seems markets have gotten used to the “Merkozy” (German Chancellor Angela Merkel-President Sarkozy) coalition fighting the debt crisis in Europe, and any political changes are seen as putting future reforms at risk.

Risk aversion hit investors, causing the EUR/USD to slide to its weekly lows at $1.31, while the EUR/PLN and USD/PLN shot up all the way to z∏.4.21 and z∏.3.21 respectively. The situation changed on Wednesday, when the US Federal Reserve stated that it was ready to act if the econo-

my deteriorates. That calmed investors and optimism returned, causing a reversal on the currency charts. The EUR/USD rebounded and climbed all the way above the $1.32 level.

In the Polish market, minutes from a meeting of the interest-rate-setting Monetary Policy Council were published, showing that a proposal – eventually rejected – had been made to hike the headline rate by 25 basis points.

This information proves that we cannot expect an interestrate cut this year. An increase is possible, unless economic growth shows clear signs of slowing.

The EUR/PLN regained ground as it slid to around z∏.4.18, mirrored by the USD/PLN which declined even further, all the way to z∏.3.16. ●

currency rates 3.9295

26.04

27.04

3.8952

25.04

SOURCE: NBP

3.9368

3.9440 23.04

3.9018

3.8961 20.04

0.1079

0.1076 27.04

3.5

24.04

PLN-100JPY

4.2

26.04

0.1082 25.04

0.1085 24.04

23.04

0.1078 20.04

3.4809

3.4820 27.04

0.10

0.1083

PLN-RUB

0.11

26.04

3.4841 25.04

3.4992 24.04

3.4853

3.4991 23.04

27.04

26.04

25.04

24.04

20.04

5.1244

5.1171

5.0952

5.1552

5.1242

PLN-CHF

3.6

3.4

23.04

4.8

20.04

3.1666 27.04

3.1599

5.0

5.1457

PLN-GBP

5.2

26.04

3.1675 25.04

3.1946 24.04

3.1972 23.04

3.0

20.04

3.1828

4.1820 27.04

4.1825

4.1870

PLN-USD

3.5

26.04

24.04

23.04

4.1

20.04

4.2

25.04

4.2059

4.1885

4.2033

PLN-EUR

4.3

SPORTS

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

www.wbj.pl

29

American football

Soccer

Eagles win extends streak

Legia Warszawa wins Polish Cup

bid for Topliga Most Valuable Player by piling up a half-dozen touchdowns and over 300 yards

rushing in a 73-0 Devils romp over the Dom-Bud Kraków Alex Zarganis Tigers.

COURTESY OF FACEBOOK / LEGIA WARSZAWA

The Warsaw Eagles extended their winning start to the Topliga season with a 66-26 win over the AZS Silesia Rebels in the fourth round of matches in the Polish American Football League.

The Rebels jumped out to an early 13-0 lead against the undefeated Eagles but Tyrone Landrum quickly put thoughts

of an upset to rest, scoring five touchdowns in what turned into a comfortable win for the league leaders.

Elsewhere Koz∏y Poznaƒ continued their dismal start to the season as they fell to 0-4 after losing 48-6 to the Gdynia Seahawks. Sebastian Krzysztofek scored three touchdowns in the game for the Seahawks.

In the weekend’s other game the Wroc∏aw Devils’ running back Niles Mittasch ensured his side didn’t miss starting quarterback Krzysztof Wydrowski, who was out injured, as he put in an early

COURTESY OF MARCIN FIJA∏KOWSKI / WARSAW EAGLES

The Warsaw Eagles remain at the top of the league after a 6626 victory over the Silesia Rebels

Legia players celebrate their cup win

The Eagle's Piotr Osuchowski carries the ball

Euro 2012

Euro trophy tours Poland and Ukraine Poland’s interior minister also announced the introduction of Euro 2012 border controls The trophy awarded to winners of the UEFA European Football Championship was on display in Warsaw in late April, as the first stop on a tour of Poland and Ukraine.

The Henri Delaunay tro-

phy, which is named after the first secretary general of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and founder of the European championship, was presented to fans at the capital’s Plac Defilad by former world and European champion Christian Karembeu and legendary Polish soccer player Andrzej Szarmach.

“Everywhere I go in Poland I can sense the grow-

ing excitement. I am sure the Euro will be a huge and fantastic event for Poland.

This trophy tour is a sign that the tournament is very close, and people can see that the party is close to getting started,” said Mr Szarmach.

Poland’s Interior Minister Jacek Cichocki also announced in late April the planned temporary reinstatement of border controls

in certain areas during the Euro 2012 championship.

Mr Cichoski did, however, confirm that this would not cause difficulties for Polish citizens, who will be able to cross Poland’s borders as usual. Border controls will be introduced from June 4 to July 1 but will be intermittent and limited to specific locations, the interior minister said.

David Ingham

The game ended in a 3-0 win for the league leaders against title rivals Ruch Chorzów Polish soccer club Legia Warszawa won its 15th Polish Cup after defeating Ruch Chorzów 3-0 in late April in Kielce.

The two sides were separated by just one point at the top of the Ekstraklasa league table as WBJ went to press, but on the night there was a gulf in class between the teams as Legia easily brushed aside its title rivals.

Serbian forward Danijel Ljuboja opened the scoring for Legia inside eight min-

utes, before goals on either side of half time for Miroslav Radoviç and Micha∏ ˚yro allowed the team from the capital the opportunity to secure yet another cup victory.

“We won the first battle against Ruch, but we still have another in the league – I hope we win that one, too,” Legia defender Jakub Wawrzyniak told reporters after the game.

“We had more quality than they did today,” he added.

Legia was on top of the league table with 49 points, and Ruch in second with 48 points as of press time.

David Ingham

Sailing

Riding on the wave of success You’ve had an incredibly successful career breaking numerous records and winning lots of international titles. What is your motivation and how has success influenced you?

Mateusz Kusznierewicz: Each success gives me wings and confirms that what I do makes sense. The fact that all the hard work and effort that I have made actually brings results is a source of great satisfaction for me. But success and prizes are not the most important thing. Sailing is my passion, and setting new goals gives me motivation to keep working. Success is just the cherry on the cake.

What achievements in your career are you most proud of?

Most certainly being world champion in 2008 in the Star Class. In that regatta 114 sailing crews from all over the world took part and the level was very challenging. Racing amongst so many fantastic

rivals, and winning against them, gave me a great deal of satisfaction.

What was it like to compete at the Olympic Games and what did it feel like to win a gold medal for Poland at the Atlanta Olympics?

It was one of the most precious moments of my life. It was the first medal at the Olympic Games for a Polish sailor and it was gold. That was really something. When I heard the Polish anthem on the podium I was very proud.

At that time I was a young, ambitious and not a very experienced athlete. That gave me the edge over competitors who were nervous and tense. In a way, my lack of awareness was my strength.

How is your life during competition different to when you are at home?

During the regatta each day is precisely planned. The drill, appropriate nutrition, extreme

concentration, physical and mental effort – these factors are essential.

When I come back home I need to have some peace and quiet, so I can relax. My everyday life is still active. I run on the beach, I roller-skate. I like reading on the terrace. It might sound surprising, but the sound of the sea makes me feel calm.

What advice would you give to young people who want to get involved in sailing and to one day compete at the highest level?

The best way to start a sailing adventure is to go on a sailing camp. You have to try something to know if you are really interested in it. Going on an open sea cruise isn’t a good idea at the start. I would recommend starting on one of the Polish lakes or in the Bay of Gdaƒsk. If it is something that you want to keep doing, the next step would be to join a sailing club where you can train and gain the necessary skills.

This spring you signed a new sponsorship contract with Qualia Development – can

you tell us some details about this cooperation?

My first contact with Qualia Development was from a different angle. I was looking for an apartment which would ensure safety, peace and comfort for me and my family, close to the forest and sea, and at the same time located near Gdaƒsk where I work and train. After a long search I chose an apartment in Neptun Park, an investment created by Qualia Development. Only then came the idea of me taking part in the promotional campaign.

Our cooperation is a bit different than a regular contract with a sponsor. Apart from my image being shown on billboards and promotional materials, I will also encourage my neighbors and acquaintances to take part in all sorts of sports events like regattas, cruises, and events on the beach, which is located just 120 steps from my apartment.

Finally, it’s an important time of year for you right now.

What are your main aims for the near future?

Tough times are ahead of me.

Before London I am taking part in the World Champi-

onships and in regattas on the Olympic reservoir. But most important is good health and

COURTESY OF QUALIA DEVELOPMENT

WBJ sits down with professional sailor and Olympic gold medal winner Mateusz Kusznierewicz to talk about his career highlights and life away from professional sports

Mateusz Kusznierewicz

good luck, and what you usually wish sailors – fair wind and a following seas. ●

30

LIFESTYLE

www.wbj.pl

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

Film festival

COURTESY OF PROJECT-NIM.COM COURTESY OF MANZAREK-ROGERS.COM

What’s up, doc?

Ray Manzarek (left) of The Doors and guitarist Roy Rogers

Concert

“Project Nim” is this year’s standout documentary Planete+ Doc Film Festival May 11-20 Warsaw, and various locations across Poland Since starting back in 2004 the Planete+ Doc Film Festival has grown into one of the largest events of its kind in the world, attracting film fans both from Poland and abroad to Polish cinemas. Last year alone some 30,000 movie lovers packed cinemas in

Warsaw and across Poland to see some of the world’s best documentaries.

The over 150 movies being shown at this year’s event are split in to 14 categories covering a wide range of broad topics including; Intimate Stories; LSD: Love, Sex and Dreams; Climate for Change and Heroes Are Among Us. Among the standout films for 2012’s edition is “Project Nim.” Directed by James

Marsh, the man behind 2008’s Academy Award-winning documentary “Man on Wire,” “Project Nim” is an unflinching and at times heartbreaking biography of Nim Chimpsky, a chimpanzee who was brought up by humans as part of a psychological experiment.

For more information, log on to planetedocff.pl David Ingham

Legends of rock

Manzarek Rogers Band May 10 Stodo∏a, ul. Batorego 10 Warsaw The organ player from one of the 1960s’ most influential bands and an eight-time Grammy-nominated slide guitarist have recently united to form a rock ‘n’ roll blues band set to perform in Warsaw this May.

Ray Manzarek was one quarter of legendary West Coast band The Doors, the group behind such classic hits as “Light my Fire,” “Break on Through (To the other Side)” and “People are Strange.” His partner in the Manzarek Rogers Band is Roy Rogers, famed for his work with the The Delta Rhythm Kings and as producer for late guitar legend John Lee Hooker.

Those thinking of attending the show shouldn’t expect the two famed performers and their band to break from the traditional blues rock ‘n’ roll template but for lovers of this style of music this gig represents a not-to-be missed opportunity to see two musical legends in action.

For more information, log on to stodola.pl David Ingham

Sponsored article

San Lorenzo – Italy in the heart of Warsaw High-quality products, traditional recipes, and an Italian chef make San Lorenzo a not-to-miss spot in the capital In search of an Italian culinary treat in the Polish capital? Look no further. San Lorenzo, opened almost two decades ago on Al. Jana Paw∏a II in downtown Warsaw, was the first and remains one of the only genuine Italian restaurants in town.

Whether you want to meet up with friends, sip on Italian wine, watch soccer along with a group of happy and noisy Ital-

ian fans, or dine in an elegant setting, you can have your pick. San Lorenzo is a two-inone kind of place, with a downstairs bar area and an upstairs, more elegant, dining room.

The bar area offers a wide choice of wines, with over 100 different kinds of Chianti, but also wines from the different regions of Italy, from the southern islands of Sardinia and Sicily to hilly Tuscany and Piedmont, at the foot of the Alps. Prices start at z∏.75 per bottle. And if you get hungry, the bar menu offers delicious Italian pasta al dente. Whether it is spaghetti alla

carbonara, bucatini alla amatriciana or penne alla maremmana you are craving, the pasta dishes are all priced at z∏.19 each.

The dining part of the restaurant, with its Belle-Epoque interior, is more formal, and perfectly suited for either a romantic or business dinner. Whatever the type of evening you have in mind, the service remains professional but informal, and gives that real Italian, homey feeling.

The restaurant prides itself on receiving fresh seafood deliveries three times a week, which the chef can prepare to the diners’ liking, be it, on the grill, baked in salt, or served with a sauce, the choice is yours. Among the most popular dishes are spaghetti with half a lobster, fresh tuna tartar, but also the fiorentina steak.

Whatever your craving, the restaurant offers only fresh and high-quality ingredi-

BROUGHT TO YOU BY SAN LORENZO

ents. For example, many products, such as Parmesan cheese and Parma ham, are imported directly from Italy. San Lorenzo’s team also prepare fresh pasta and bake their own bread.

If you have a bit of a sweet tooth, then make sure to try one of the many desserts prepared every day from scratch by Italian chef Luca, who says his favorite is the milles feuilles cake. San Lorenzo also offers the opportunity for organizing private parties, for which you can set up a tailor-made menu with the restaurant’s chef. With its genuine Italian chef, original Italian products, fresh seafood and home made pasta and bread, San Lorenzo really provides a unique Italian experience right in the heart of Warsaw.

LAST WORD

APRIL 30 – MAY 13, 2012

www.wbj.pl

31

Tech Eye

The great camel conundrum

probably won’t help you much.

The Handpresso Wild ESE, meanwhile, was something Techeye came across while reading about a ridiculous-looking “Baccarat Crystal Camel,” which functions as a lamp or fruit dish or something and costs about half a million USD. Standing in sharp contrast – both in terms of price and general usefulness – the Handpresso Wild ESE is a portable espresso maker sold by an eponymous French firm (handpresso.com).

The product design is elegantly awkward. Or awkwardly elegant, if you prefer. You pour 50 ml of hot

Swiss bike crafter BMC has teamed up with Lamborghini to make 30 ultra high-end two-wheelers with carbon frames and rims, custom finishes and Shimano DI2 electronic shifting. That last part refers to a fancy gear-shifting system, if you’re unfamiliar with the concept.

The BMC impec Automobili Lamborghini Edition bike costs an equally high-end €20,000, with the brand name accounting for about half, we assume. That’s a hefty price tag for a bicycle, but only a third the cost of a half-decent racing camel. Just in case you were wondering. ●

COURTESY OF BMC

water into the plastic chamber, insert an “easy serving espresso” (ESE) pod, let it brew for a few ticks and then serve.

That’s the elegant part. The awkward part is where you use the pump hidden in the handle to build pressure, kind of like pumping up a bike tire. We’d recommend against doing this in public, as you’ll look like a complete tool.

The Handpresso Wild ESE costs €99, with a box of 200 ESE pods running around €63 (depending on the coffee blend).

Last up is the BMC impec Automobili Lamborghini Edition bicycle, which apparently has much in common with camels. We discovered it linked to a site about camel racing, but it was also mentioned in articles about camel milk and … um … camel hoof.

None of that’s important, of course. What matters is that COURTESY OF HANDPRESSO

Controller from N-Control (avengercontroller.com).

Referred to as “the straw that broke the camel’s back” by one frustrated blogger, the Avenger Elite is an adapter for Xbox 360 and PS3 controllers which adds levers and triggers to mix so that gamers don’t have to take their thumbs off the analog sticks. According to N-Control’s marketing hype, this increases accuracy and lets players “up their game,” particularly in competitive shooters.

Does it really? Sure, if you invest enough time in learning the new control scheme, though it does nothing for Techeye – we’re all thumbs when it comes to first-person shooting games. But the buzz in the gaming community is largely positive and the Avenger Elite’s quirky levers and triggers have made control pads more friendly for some disabled gamers, which is cool.

If any of the above appeals, you can pick up an Avenger Elite in early May for around $50. Just keep in mind that if you really suck at games, it COURTESY OF N-CONTROL

Can a camel lick its own back? Can it? Argh… Techeye has been tormented by this question for weeks.

We don’t really need to know, but at the same time we need to. You know?

The internet has been no help. It hosts terabyte upon terabyte of lolcats, creepy 4chan memes, reality TV gossip forums and the ravings of mad bloggers, but seemingly nothing about whether a camel can backlick. Dromedary or Bactrian.

For shame, internet. For shame.

Techeye has wasted an embarrassing amount of time in our quest for camel knowledge. Thankfully the effort was not for nought – we found some interesting gadgets in the process, including the Avenger Elite

Ever been thoroughly vexed by a lack of useless knowledge? Let us know: techeye.wbj@gmail.com

Warsaw Business Journal’s hugely popular investment guide To order a print copy or digital version of the publication, e-mail kwilinski@valkea.com or call +48 (22) 639 85 67, ext. 208