WBJ #10 2013

Outrage over Orban

Register row

Future forward

New constitutional amendments in Hungary have EU officials threatening to kick it out of the bloc

The government is requiring tiny firms to invest in cash registers, to the chagrin of enterpreneurs 6

Techeye looks at futuristic tech that’s here today 23

WWW.WBJ.PL

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VOLUME 19, NUMBER 10 • MARCH 18-24, 2013 . z∏.12.50 (VAT 8% included) . ISSN 1233 7889 INDEX-RUCH-332-127

LOKALE IMMOBILIA

Since 1994 . Poland’s only business weekly in English

Goodbye SEZs? COURTESY OF CBRE

REAL ESTATE

• MIPIM coverage • Holland Park sold • Warehouses rising 15-17

Hands in the till The government wants to move more retirement payments from open pension funds to the state-run behemoth ZUS 5

In this issue Poland’s two deputy prime ministers are at loggerheads over whether to keep Poland’s special economic zones going past 2020 11 SHUTTERSTOCK

News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-4 Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-6 CeBIT Special Report . . . . . . . . . . .8 Opinion & Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Cover Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Interview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Finance & Economics . . . . . . . . . .14 Lokale Immobilia . . . . . . . . . .15-17 The List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 Lifestyle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 Last Word . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Francis’ firsts

Hit or glitch?

Many were surprised by the election of Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio as pope. Polish experts were no exception 3

WBJ takes a look at whether Polish companies were able to benefit from their time in the spotlight at CeBIT

8

NEWS

www.wbj.pl

265 is the number of popes who served the Roman Catholic Church before Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio was elected the 266th pontiff last week.

1.3% was Poland’s CPI inflation value for February.

14.4% was the Poland’s unemployment rate in February, according to Ministry of Labor estimates.

€2.8 billion

was the value of commercial real estate investment transactions in Poland in 2012.

“We all know we’ll have a happy ending when it comes to approving the EU budget by European Parliament.”

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, commenting on the non-biding EP resolution to reject a deal reached by EU leaders on the bloc’s next seven-year budget unless significant changes are made to the plan.

Figures in focus Welcome, and enjoy your stay Total nights spent in hotels and similar accommodation in selected EU countries, 2012 summer season (in millions) 150 135 120 105 90 75 60 45 30 15 0

ria Po Cz l ec and hR ep ub lic Cy pr us Hu ng ar y La tvi a* *

nc e

Bu lga

ny

*Highest in the EU **Lowest in the EU

Fra

Jacek Ciesnowski

Quote of the Week

ma

ever, that the company was unable to find the root cause of the problem, and just worked around it instead.

The new battery was redesigned and reinforced.

According to its designers it can withstand 80 possible malfunctions, covering all of the potential failure scenarios that they could envisage. The aircraft maker will also bolster quality control at battery component makers.

If the certification process proves successful, the company will start fixing the planes in the order they were delivered, as the company doesn’t have the capacity to work on all 50 planes at the same time.

LOT expects to be one of the first airlines to have its machines fixed.

ly

be delivered in 2014 have been postponed.”

The Dreamliner’s problems stem from an issue with its battery. In January, one caught fire on a Japan Airlines machine and another melted on an All Nippon Airways flight. After weeks of trying to find a solution to this problem, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved a plan to test the device for further certification.

“If we look at the normal process and the way in which we work with the FAA, and we look at the testing that’s ahead of us, it is reasonable to expect we could be back up and going in weeks, not months,” the 787’s chief engineer, Mike Sinnett, said at a briefing in Tokyo.

Mr Sinnett admitted, how-

Ita

After months of its newest planes being grounded, officials from airplane maker Boeing said that it is now just a matter of weeks until the Dreamliners are able to fly commercially again.

All of the 50 Boeing 787’s in use worldwide were grounded in January, two of which belong to Polish airline LOT. One is waiting in its hangar in Warsaw, the other in Chicago.

After a meeting between LOT and Boeing officials last Friday, the airline’s spokesperson Marek K∏uciƒski said that he expects the Dreamliners in the air “in the summer.”

Mr K∏uciƒski added that the matter of compensation was discussed. “It has been agreed that all of the advanced payments for planes that were to

Ge r

The Composite Leading Indicator (CLI) for Poland amounted to 100.58 points in January, compared to 100.41 in December 2012, the OECD said. Compared to January 2012, the CLI was up by 0.24 points.

Polish CLI takes into account the real effective exchange rate, the WIBOR 3M interest rate, activity in the processing industry, number of job offers and coal production activity. As the OECD explains, if the CLI is above 100 points and keeps growing, it signals economic expansion.

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner

*

OECD expects Polish economy to grow

Numbers in the News

ain

The European Parliament passed a resolution saying that it does not agree with the EU budget for 2014-2020 and that it demands amendments to it. The resolution is not legally binding. The EU MPs have declared they would support the new budget only after a satisfactory result is reached in negotiations with the Council of the European Union. The Parliament is demanding all liabilities from the previous budget be paid before the new budget period begins.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Sp

European Parliament against budget settlement

MARCH 18-24, 2013

COURTESY OF BOEING

2

On WBJ.pl *Highest in the EU **Lowest in the EU

European Commission wants severe punishment in horse meat scandal The European Commission wants to make sure that the entities responsible for horse meat found in beef samples are severely punished, European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy Tonio Borg said.

He said that an investigation is under way and Europol is also involved. All member countries are to be notified of the results.

The EC is working on a report that would discuss the possibility of detailed labeling on meat with information on the place of breeding, slaughtering and meat processing. ●

Looking for an ‘enemy’ Outspoken professor and social liberal Magdalena Âroda discusses a recent rowdy nationalist demonstration right outside her lecture room. Log on to WBJ.pl to read the full interview online this week.

Calendar

March 18

PRCH RETAIL TRENDS SEMINAR

Event:

During this seminar, experts will discuss the latest trends in the field of research, development and investment in shopping centers and retail chains.

Warsaw Mariott Hotel, Aleje Jerozolimskie 65/79, Warsaw PRCH.org.pl

Location:

Web:

Location:

Web:

21-22 EUROPEAN EXECUTIVE FORUM

Web:

This conference, entitled “Leadership in Changing Europe,” will examine various leadership issues.

Hotel Sheraton, ul. Boles∏awa Prusa 2, Warsaw Executive-club.com.pl

26

CONTEMPORARY ART AUCTION

Event:

At this auction collectors will have a chance

Event:

Location:

to bid on classics of Polish abstract art (works by Stefan Gierowski, Wojciech Fangor, Leon Tarasewicz) and Art Informel (Aleksander Kobzdej). There will also be some surrealist works (Zdzis∏aw Beksiƒski, Jerzy Duda-Gracz).

DESA Unicum auction house, ul. Marsza∏kowska 34-50, Warsaw www.desa.pl

27

YOUNG ART AUCTION

Event:

This edition of the Young Art Auction will present nearly 100 works by young Polish artists – bidding starts from z∏.500 for each piece.

DESA Unicum auction house, ul. Marsza∏kowska 34-50, Warsaw www.desa.pl

Location:

Web:

Source: Eurostat

Company index All Nippon Airways......................................2 Lehman Brothers ......................................10 Almaviva ......................................................6 LG ..............................................................11 Asseco..........................................................6 LOT ..............................................................2 Auchan ......................................................16 Makerbot....................................................23 Bank Pocztowy ............................................5 ManpowerGroup ........................................14 Bausch & Lomb ........................................16 Michelin ....................................................22 BGK ............................................................14 Microsoft..................................................6, 8 BILANS ......................................................13 Oktawave ....................................................8 Biosense Technologies ............................23 Oracle Polska ..............................................6 Bluesoft ......................................................8 Outbox..........................................................8 BNP Paribas..............................................21 Panattoni ..................................................16 Boeing..........................................................2 BTC ..............................................................8 PGE ..............................................................6 Bumar..........................................................6 PGNiG ..........................................................5 CBRE..........................................6, 15, 16, 17 PKO BP ........................................................5 Cisco ............................................................8 Poczta Polska..............................................5 Comarch ..................................................6, 8 Prologis......................................................16 Connectis ....................................................6 PZU ..............................................................6 Cushman & Wakefield ........................15, 16 Real............................................................16 DahliaMatic..................................................6 Ronson Development ................................15 Digital Core Design ....................................8 Savills Poland..............................................6 Echo Investment........................................15 Sequence ....................................................8 ExxonMobil ..................................................6 Softline ........................................................8 Fineus ..........................................................8 SoftProduct..................................................8 Google ........................................................23 Sygnity..........................................................6 IFIS Finance ..............................................16 Talisman Energy..........................................6 Infovide-Matrix ............................................6 Virgo Systems..............................................8 ING Bank ..................................................16 Intel ..............................................................8 W. Kruk ......................................................16 IT Works ......................................................6 Warsaw Stock Exchange ....................15, 16 Japan Airlines ............................................2 X-Trade Brokers ........................................20 Kulczyk Silverstein Properties ............15,16 Zeto ..............................................................6

NEWS

MARCH 18-24, 2013

International

AFP/EAST NEWS

Poland, world welcome new pope

Pope Francis greets the crowd from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome

Pope Francis’ ascension heralds several firsts, and has brought back old controversies The election last week of Argentinian Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio as the Catholic Church’s 266th pope surprised many, and Polish church officials were no exception.

“I don’t know him at all,” Polish Bishop Tadeusz Pieronek said of Mr Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, in an interview with news station TVN24.

“He’s from outside Europe, and he’s a Jesuit. It could mean that changes [to the Catholic Church] are coming.”

Though surprise was most Vatican-watchers’ initial reaction, a look back at the last conclave, in which Joseph Ratzinger was elected pope, could have given a clue to how the cardinals would vote this time. Reportedly, Cardinal Bergoglio came in second to Cardinal Ratzinger – who became Pope Benedict XVI – back in 2005.

Catholics in Poland and around the world now await the first South American pope’s first actions, to see how this member of the Jesuit order (he is also the first Jesuit to become pope) will lead the gigantic but scandal-laden Catholic Church.

Reform ahead?

Vatican experts in Poland praised the choice, hoping Pope Francis could reform the Roman Curia, the Vatican’s

administrative body. “It’s a clear signal that cardinals expect changes, fresh blood and new ideas,” said Artur Sporniak, a journalist from Tygodnik Powszechny, in an interview with radio station TOK FM. “They’ve made it clear that they want someone from outside the system to reign over Catholic Church,” he added.

However, others were more skeptical. Father Kazimierz Sowa, director of religious TV station Religia.tv, told radio station Radio Zet that he doesn’t expect a revolution.

“The balance of power might shift a little bit, and some interesting personnel changes in the Curia might occur,” he said.

Polish President Bronis∏aw Komorowski sent a congratulatory note to the Vatican, wishing the new pontiff “great strength in fulfilling his new and very important mission, not only for the Catholic Church, but also the whole world.” He also invited the newly elected pope to visit Poland.

Mixed signals Reactions in Pope Francis’ home country were mixed.

Many people celebrated in the streets, almost as if their team had won the World Cup. However, Argentinian President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was subdued in her congratulations: “On behalf of myself and of the Argentine government, and on behalf of the people of our country, I want to salute you and express my con-

gratulations on your election as the new Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church,” she wrote in a statement.

Ms Kirchner’s reserved remarks likely stem from the fact that Mr Bergoglio, who was then Archbishop of Buenos Aires, strongly opposed her decision in 2010 to legalize same-sex marriage.

“This is no mere legislative bill.

It is a move by the father of lies to confuse and deceive the children of God,” he said at the time.

Past allegations Some allegations from the new pope’s past have begun to surface again. Some claim he cooperated with the military regime ruling Argentina in the 1970s, which kidnapped and killed thousands of people. Two Jesuit priests were kidnapped by the regime, reportedly after Mr Bergoglio withdrew his order’s protection of them. A spokesperson for the new pope called the accusations “old slander.”

Under Mr Bergoglio’s leadership, Argentina’s bishops issued a collective apology in October 2012 for the church’s failures to protect its flock.

However the statement blamed the violence of the time roughly equally on both the junta and its enemies.

“Bergoglio has been very critical of human rights violations during the dictatorship, but he has always also criticized the leftist guerrillas; he doesn’t forget that side,” his official biographer Sergio Rubin said.

Jacek Ciesnowski

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NEWS

www.wbj.pl

MARCH 18-24, 2013

Europe

Budapest’s constitutional Polish ‘racial genocide’ case too old to be solved changes spark outrage Back in June of last year, prosecutors for the Institute of National Remembrance reopened the 70-year-old case of 20 Jewish women who were raped and murdered in Bzury, a town in northeastern Poland. Polish authorities were unable to name the victims or perpetrators.

The crimes which Prosecutor Rados∏aw Ignatiew called “racial genocide,” occurred in the summer of 1941, when the women, aged between 15 and 30, were sent from the Szczuczyn ghetto in northern Poland to work on a farm in the village.

Hungary’s parliament, dominated by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s Fidesz party, has adopted several controversial changes to the country’s constitution that many say undermine democratic values and the rule of law.

The new changes allow the constitutional court to challenge laws only on procedural grounds, not on their substance, and scrap all decisions made by the court before 2012, discarding a body of case law often used as reference.

EU politicians swiftly voiced their outrage. In a statement, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said that the changes to Hungary’s constitution “raise concerns with respect to the rule of law, EU law, and Council of Europe standards.”

Martin Schulz, president of the European Parliament, told

COURTESY OF THE HUNGARIAN PARLIAMENT

The EU’s political establishment has protested loudly, even suggesting Hungary could be thrown out of the bloc

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is raising hackles again CNBC that an EU member state could be kicked out of the bloc if it did not respect European rules and rights, but added that he was wary of passing judgment prematurely.

Mr Orban has some supporters in Poland, though.

After his party lost Poland’s 2011 parliamentary elections, Law and Justice leader Jaros∏aw Kaczyƒski said, “I’m certain that the day will come that we will succeed, and Warsaw will become Budapest,”

referring to Fidesz’s 2010 election win.

While Mr Kaczyƒski is yet to comment on the recent developments in Budapest, some of his supporters have been less quiet. Last week, right-wing newspaper Gazeta Polska organized a trip for its readers to Hungary to show their support for Mr Orban and his policies. According to organizers, “hundreds of Poles” took part in the excursion.

Jacek Ciesnowski

There, a group of villagers robbed the women, beat them, raped and finally murdered all 20. Their bodies were buried in the nearby forest.

Only one of the perpetrators, Stanis∏aw Zalewski, was arrested – by communist authorities after the war – and stood trial. He spent 15 years in prison for his crimes. Six others were involved but did not face any charges.

In an interview with The Jerusalem Post Mr Igniatew explained that he had no other choice. “None of [the perpetrators] remain alive, we know

that for sure. However, we found some evidence that two or three other people may have taken part in this crime.

After all the time that has passed, we were unable to find any evidence of their guilt.

After making every possible inquiry, I decided to close the case.”

Mr Ignatiew added that he is now investigating a similar case that occurred in Wàsosz, where, on the night of July 5, 1941, more than 100 Jews were killed by their Polish neighbors.

Jacek Ciesnowski

Murder at the philharmonic A 29-year-old stagehand at the Philharmonic in Jelenia Góra, Lower Silesia, was charged with murder in the double homicide of a young female harpist and a security guard inside the orchestra’s building last week.

The suspect is only known as Micha∏ M., since according to Polish law, suspects’ and victims’ full names cannot be revealed while their case is ongoing.

The two victims, Pawe∏ K., the 60-year-old security guard, was found on the ground floor, and Wiktoria J., the 27-yearold harpist, was found on the first floor. An autopsy showed the harpist was strangled and the guard died of head wounds.

Violetta Nizio∏ek, the prosecutor’s spokesperson, said that the suspect had been questioned and charged with murder.

“Micha∏ M. has been put under arrest for three months, pending further investigation,” Ms Nizio∏ek said. “He partly confessed to the charges concerning the death of the guard, but was saying he did not remember anything concerning the harpist,” she added.

The philharmonic orchestra will play Mozart’s Requiem for the victims on March 22.

Marta Mardosz

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BUSINESS

MARCH 18-24, 2013

Banks

www.wbj.pl

5

Pension funds

Ministers enter row Greater state control over Bank Pocztowy over pensions Treasury Minister Miko∏aj Budzanowski and Minister of Administration and Digitization Micha∏ Boni are butting heads over who should control Bank Pocztowy, a lender that offers banking services at Poland’s post offices.

State-owned PKO BP, Poland’s largest bank, holds a 25 percent stake in Bank Pocztowy and is on the lookout for takeover targets. It has repeatedly offered to take over a majority share from Poczta Polska (Polish Post), the staterun postal services firm that owns the remaining 75 percent, but to no avail.

PKO says Bank Pocztowy needs a capital increase of some z∏.500 million. Its most recent offer, made in February, proposed a capital increase of z∏.380 million, z∏.290 million of which would be paid by PKO. In return, PKO would receive an additional 25 percent of shares and an option to buy the remaining

With changes proposed by the government, private pension funds will lose a sizable chunk of their funds COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Who will control the rapidly growing bank with outlets located in Poland’s post offices?

PKO BP and Poczta Polska are fighting for control over Bank Pocztowy ones in the upcoming years.

After that offer was rebuffed by Poczta Polska, which said it was now considering buying out PKO for full ownership of the firm, the ministers began sounding off.

Treasury Minister Budzanowski has come out strongly in support of PKO. “From the standpoint of the banking sector, the move to consolidate Bank Pocztowy with PKO BP is the most rational one,” he told reporters last week.

On the other hand Minister Boni, whose ministry supervis-

es Poczta Polska, has publicly said that he favors the postal service taking over all of Bank Pocztowy’s shares.

At the heart of the matter is PKO’s expansion plans versus Poczta Polska’s need for additional revenue streams.

Both want to control a rapidly growing bank that could gain a significant chunk of the market among elderly Poles, many of whom don’t have a bank account and still pay their bills at the post office.

Jacek Ciesnowski

Consumer rights

Gas suppliers using illegal contracts to fleece customers

Poland’s natural gas suppliers are flouting regulations in their contracts with customers, sometimes inserting clauses that are outright illegal, the country’s consumer watchdog has found. In every single gas-supply agreement that the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) examined, it found irregularities.

The regulator examined 159 templates that were used in some six million agreements concluded by 16 major gas suppliers in Poland – seven subsidiaries of the stateowned natural gas company PGNiG and the nine largest alternative gas suppliers.

All of the standard agreements that were studied either included clauses that were illegal or contained other violations. For example, the supplier was given the right to terminate the contract under conditions not allowed by law.

The companies also limited consumers’ right to lodge

SHUTTERSTOCK

Poland’s consumer watchdog found irregularities in every agreement it examined

Customers were unaware that the contracts they were signing with gas companies were disadvantageous complaints.

Altogether, 178 irregularities were found, including as many as 134 clauses which are illegal, UOKiK said.

As follow-up to the audit of gas-supply agreements, UOKiK ordered a consumerawareness survey aimed at finding out how much consumers know about their rights and whether they had ever experienced problems with gas companies.

According to the survey, consumers have little or no idea about their rights and the

suppliers’ obligations. Only 19 percent of consumers were aware that they could change their gas supplier. As many as 29 percent were convinced that switching to a different company was not an option.

Most consumers also did not know were to turn in case of a dispute with the supplier.

Only one out of four respondents named the correct institutions: the energy regulatory office (9 percent) or consumer protection officers (17 percent).

Beata Socha

Poland’s finance ministry is working with the economy ministry to introduce changes to the pension system that would curb the activity of privately owned open pension funds (OFEs) and put pensioners’ money in the hands of the state-run Social Insurance Institution (ZUS).

The economy ministry wants to reduce the fees paid to OFEs or make them depend on investment results.

The ministry is considering using the funds as a means for strategic government invest-

ments in things like infrastructure, the energy sector, health care and R&D. Economy Minister Janusz Piechociƒski also said that membership in OFEs should become voluntary.

The finance ministry had suggested earlier that money collected in a person’s OFE account should be transferred to ZUS 10 years before they reach retirement age.

Better safe than private “Funds accumulated by OFE members nearing retirement age, and even more so by already retired OFE members, should not be exposed to investment risk,” Deputy Finance Minister Wojciech Kowalczyk wrote in a letter to Gazeta Wyborcza.

Private pension funds con-

stitute one of the two parts of the mandatory system, alongside state-managed insurance at ZUS. The reforms that established the private system were introduced in 1999.

Since then, a part of pension contributions paid by every working Pole has been transferred to the private funds. Between 1999 and 2011, 12.22 percent of total salary was transferred to ZUS, while OFEs got 7.3 percent of an insured person’s earnings.

Plugging a hole Mr Kowalczyk added that the proposed solutions “have the least negative impact on public finances” and allow for the use of ZUS’s structures and procedures that are already in place.

Beata Socha

Where does the money go?

Division of pension contributions between ZUS and OFEs (in % of total earnings) 1999-2010

2011*

2012

2013

2014

2015-2016

2017**

ZUS

12.22

17.22

17.22

16.72

16.42

16.22

16.02

OFE

7.3

2.3

2.3

2.8

3.1

3.3

3.5

* from May 2011 ** target

Source: Rzeczpospolita

BUSINESS

www.wbj.pl

Canadian Talisman Energy may withdraw from shale gas activities in Poland.

“Talisman Energy is changing its operation strategies for the coming years as the result of changes on the oil and gas market,” Tomasz Gry˝ewski, the company’s director, told Reuters. The company may decide to divest its Polish operations, he added. An announcement of the decision is expected along with first-quarter results.

Talisman would be the second large foreign player to withdraw from shale gas drilling in Poland, after ExxonMobil left last year.

Government could dissolve Bumar group According to Rzeczpospolita, the Polish government is considering further integrating defense industry companies around Bumar.

Another solution would entail dissolving Bumar’s capital group and forming new holdings, based on product groups. The new state defense holding company would only supervise the production companies and not perform business activity itself.

Moody’s: GDP to grow 1.9% in 2013 Ratings agency Moody’s sees Poland’s GDP growth at 1.9% in 2013. The agency said that low internal demand and the ongoing crisis in the euro zone will bring down Polish growth. Poland’s economy is seen as stronger that of other countries in the region.

PGE reduces dividend as profit drops Poland’s largest energy firm PGE announced it would most likely pay out a dividend of z∏.0.86 per share, or z∏.1.61 billion in total. This would be 53% less than last year’s dividend of z∏.1.83 per share. The final decision on the amount paid out to shareholders depends on the company’s annual general meeting. It is still uncertain what the company’s main shareholder, the State Treasury, will press for at that time. ●

Regulations

New cash-register rules mean plenty of headaches for businesses The regulations will require expensive changes for SMEs that already earn tiny amounts From March 1, every business with revenue exceeding z∏.20,000 (about €4,800) annually from the sale of goods or services to individuals must use a cash register to record its transactions.

Previously, the limit had been set at z∏.40,000 and several types of business were exempt from the requirement, such as dance schools or driving instructors.

The new regulations are aimed at curbing the gray economy, according to Poland’s finance ministry, which was behind the new rules. But business owners, for their part, complain that the increased red tape is threatening their competitiveness.

Receipts galore Earlier this year the government imposed another law reinstating a five-year period during which retailers have to store all of their sales receipts. The peri-

New regulations have boosted demand for cash registers od had previously been shortened to just two years in 2008 in an attempt to reduce bureaucracy. However, according to the finance ministry, regulations requiring that all VATrelated documents be kept for five years necessitated the reinstatement.

To add insult to injury, starting April 1, companies will have to squeeze far more detailed

product information onto their receipts. According to the new law, products must be completely identifiable based on their receipt description. Therefore a simple entry “milk” will no longer be enough. Now, the receipt will probably have to state the type and quantity of the milk, though no one is sure how the regulations will be enforced in practice.

Investment volume to reach €1 billion in H1 That comes after Poland had one of its best years in 2012, at €2.7 billion Real estate services provider Savills forecasts that €1 billion will be transacted in the Polish commercial property market during the first half of 2013.

This comes after a blockbuster 2012, when Poland recorded its highest annual investment volume since 2006, at €2.7 billion, representing 8 percent year-on-year growth.

Micha∏ St´pieƒ, senior consultant at Savills Poland, explained that investors put a strong focus on prime assets in 2012, which was reflected in the country’s highest-ever average transaction value, at €64 million, despite a small number of deals.

Savills notes that the office and retail sectors dominate the Polish investment market, however in 2012 the warehouse sector’s share of the total volume reached 17 percent, up from 6 percent in 2011. In total there were 11 investment transactions in this sector worth €436 million, up 200 percent compared with 2011.

In the office sector, Warsaw remains a key investment destination, a survey by advisory CBRE found. The study ranked Warsaw in the top five European destinations that real estate investors plan to target in 2013. CBRE experts believe this is underpinned by Poland’s relatively favorable economic performance to date and its positive outlook.

Mike Atwell, head of CEE capital markets at CBRE in Poland, said that while Lon-

don stands out as the single most attractive city on the continent for the second consecutive year, with Munich, Berlin and Paris moving up in the ranks, Warsaw remains Central and Eastern Europe’s “goto destination” for commercial property investors.

Mr Atwell added that Poland continues to be seen as one of the most promising destinations and continues to attract funds.

Marta Mardosz

Which European city is most attractive for purchases in 2013?

London Munich Berlin Paris Warsaw Dublin Hamburg Frankfurt Madrid Amsterdam Brussels Stockholm Moscow Barcelona Milan %

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Registers in demand Unsurprisingly, in view of these new regulations, cash registers have quickly become scarce.

The cheaper models are sold out, while the more expensive ones cost at least z∏.3,000. That amount is no trifle for a business making just z∏.20,000 a year.

Cash-register producers are already drawing up waiting lists

for customers looking to buy cheaper models. They have even begun providing entrepreneurs with statements for the Polish tax authorities, confirming that they are waiting for a cash register.

Maintaining such huge amounts of paper poses certain technical difficulties, such as finding suitable space for storage and making sure the paper used in the cash registers is of sufficient quality to last five years.

In view of the widespread discontent among retailers, the ministry has decided to allow for receipts to be stored in electronic form – a feature offered by more modern (and more expensive) cash registers.

Storing the data electronically, however, would mean replacing old registers. The cost of doing so for the entire trade sector is estimated at some z∏.90 million.

The finance ministry says the regulation “will not impact the economy’s competitiveness, entrepreneurship or the way business is done.”

Beata Socha

Asseco pushes its way into the lead for major gov’t IT contract

Real estate

CBRE European Investor Intentions Survey 2013

Next shale gas firm to go?

MARCH 18-24, 2013

SHUTTERSTOCK

6

A court decision has prevented the Polish Agency for Development and Modernization of Agriculture (ARiMR) from signing a deal with Krakówbased Comarch, which had originally won a tender for the upkeep and development of one of Poland’s largest IT systems – OFSA, which manages subsidy payments to farmers.

The winner of the tender was selected based on price and its solution to a test problem. Asseco, Poland’s largest IT firm, filed a court claim earlier this year complaining that Comarch had failed to solve the test problem correctly. If Asseco ends up with the contract, it stands to earn nearly z∏.41 million.

When original bids were opened at the end of 2012, Asseco came in fifth, while the

top of the list belonged to yet another consortium comprising firms IT Works and Almaviva. In February 2012, however, ARiMR disqualified the offer, and Comarch was pushed to the top of the list.

Asseco has proven it doesn’t take blows lying down on several occasions. Last year the WIG20-listed company’s president, Adam Góral, wrote a letter to Prime Minister Donald Tusk, after Polish insurer PZU, in which the Treasury holds a significant stake, selected an American contractor for a major IT system worth hundreds of millions of z∏oty.

“We are taking away our own chance to build a Polish Microsoft,” he wrote to the prime minister at the time.

Beata Socha

The last shall be first Bids for ARiMR tender as of December 2012 Company

Amount bid (in z∏. mln)

IT Works and Almaviva

9.92

Comarch

28.76

Zeto ¸ódê, Zeto Olsztyn, Connectis

29.36

Infovide-Matrix, DahliaMatic, Oracle Polska

31.75

Asseco

40.65

Sygnity

43.98 Source: ARiMR

8

CEBIT - SPECIAL REPORT

www.wbj.pl

MARCH 18-24, 2013

Technology

Poland at CeBIT: failure or success?

CeBIT in Hannover is the biggest IT sector exhibition in the world. In 2012, over 300,000 people visited the fair.

For Polish tech firms, however, 2013 was special, since Poland was chosen as the event’s “Partner Country.”

Politicians used the occasion for photo ops and speeches. Polish technologies – such as devices developed by Virgo Systems and used in Mars Rover Curiosity, or the world’s fastest microchip, produced by Digital Core Design from Bytom – garnered worldwide headlines.

But that was just a small part of CeBIT. Most of the business there was done behind the scenes, by smaller, lesser-known companies, which used the opportunity to showcase their products and talents for the first time.

‘TalentIT People’ In most of the exhibition halls, there were special sections with dozens of exhibitors from Poland packed into one big cluster. The space was rented by the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) and stands there used the same graphic theme (few Polish companies decided to rent bigger space on their own).

All of this provided better visibility, since the Polish exhibition logo towered above all of the other stands. However, there was limited space that

the companies could use to showcase their products. In one of the halls, the stand belonging to the German branch of Polish IT giant Comarch was the same size as that of all of the other Polish companies in the same room, combined.

It was difficult to showcase anything in such small spaces, so many of the stands looked similar. Mostly, the Polish stands consisted of someone standing behind a counter, with trinkets, pens and various promotional materials.

The motto of the Polish exhibition was “Poland TalentIT People.” And while it wouldn’t pass through spellcheck software, the motto is an apt summary of many Polish companies’ main selling point. “[The motto] fits our business idea: Selling our products to foreign clients using highly educated Polish IT specialists.

We have graduates, we have young, highly skilled people – 350 of them. We heavily advertise that,” said Christian Kuhr, business development manager at Outbox, a company that specializes in customer relationship management (CRM) software.

Outbox is already present in the UK, Austria, Switzerland and Germany. The firm said it was trying to use CeBIT as a tool to expand its presence in the country.

“We are counting on these Polish ‘zones.’ People who

CeBIT by the numbers • 3,000 sqm is the overall space rented by the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) for the Polish companies it invited to CeBIT. • 122 was the number of Polish exhibitors at CeBIT. • At least 10 is the number of business meetings that each Polish company held during the fair.

• 134,000 is the number of people that watched the online broadcast from CeBIT provided by PARP. On average, viewers spent seven minutes watching the coverage.

Source: PARP

COURTESY OF PARP

This year’s Polish presence at the annual CeBIT international technology fair in Hannover, Germany was bigger than ever. With Poland as the fair’s “Partner Country,” over 100 Polish companies attended for the first time.

Was it a failure or a success? WBJ was there first-hand to find out

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (far left) and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (second from left) play with some Polish technology at this year’s CeBIT

of these devices; we provide software and a help desk to run them,” said Micha∏ Olan, product manager at BTC. “We’re able to block the device, delete sensitive data or even restore it.”

Another company with a similar approach was Softline, which helped carry out Poland’s most recent census in 2011 and is trying to sell its software to South American countries.

“This was a huge undertaking. It involved 24,000 different devices, and we had to provide all the necessary software for them,” said Robert Dygas, sales director at Softline. “It’s the type of project that is a top priority for governments and officials are looking for someone with experience in the field.”

‘Why so serious?’ come here have already answered the question ‘Are you interested in Poland?’ with a ‘yes.’ So it’s an easy start for us,” added Mr Kuhr.

Participants regularly mentioned the low cost of Polish products and specialists. Many companies from Western Europe and the United States are looking for more costeffective alternatives outside their country, in India, but Poland has some advantages that its Asian competitors don’t.

“Many companies are looking for alternatives [to India], mostly because of the clash of cultures. That might sound strange, but it’s very important in the IT sector,” said Wojciech Pawiƒski, CEO of Bluesoft, which provides various types of software.

Going both local and global Some companies went to Hannover to find new clients, or companies that could help them enter foreign markets.

One such firm was Fineus, whose flagship product is accounting software that allows you to hire a CFO for as little as a few hours if needed.

“We deal with very sensitive data, so we’re looking for partners that are trusted in their local market and could resell our products,” said Piotr Przewrocki, CEO of Fineus.

SoftProduct, a veteran in

the software development field (its history dates back to the mid-1980s), chose an original approach to doing business at CeBIT. The firm looked for German companies that could help them sell their products outside Europe.

“We don’t believe we can sell a lot in Europe,” said SoftProduct CEO Krzysztof Olszewski. “People here have everything, we need to look at other markets. And Germans are good at doing this. For example, in Myanmar there’s no German embassy, but there are already 30 financial brokers there trying to open the market for Germany.”

Ironically, some Polish firms came to Germany just to meet other Polish firms. “People here have time, and are here for the same reasons as we are – to talk business,” said ¸ukasz Starzec, a sales specialist at Sequence, a Polish distributor of electronics.

“In Poland we’d be able to set up maybe two meetings a day because of all the distance that we would need to cover.

Here everyone is in the same place,” he added.

Trying to conquer the world But there were also companies that used the fair to find new customers, regardless of their origin.

“We had meetings with potential clients from Brazil,

Norway, South Korea,” said Dariusz Nawojczyk, marketing officer from Oktawave, a cloud computing company.

“We’re targeting SMEs from around the world, because we think the largest companies will be the last ones to use clouds, since they have already spent a fortune on their IT resources and would like to make use of them.”

The cloud computing sector was very visible at CeBIT, as “the cloud” has become a buzzword in the IT sector over the last few years.

Oktawave prides itself on providing what it says is the fastest storage available on the market, and the company is waiting for an EU patent for its solution. They’ll have to work pretty hard to get a slice of that pie, though, because most of the global IT giants, including the likes of Cisco and Microsoft, are already providing cloud services.

BTC came to CeBIT with its own software solution (“Oxeris”), and a partnership agreement with Intel for EMEA markets. That way the company could offer a unique package of both software and hardware solutions in antitheft technology.

“We can secure your device, whether it’s a smartphone, laptop or desktop computer. Intel Anti-Theft Technology is installed on millions

Government authorities and institutions were present at CeBIT as well. Many Polish attendees criticized Poland’s Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) for being present, mostly because the body isn’t exactly known for its innovative technologies, but also because it only provides services for the Polish market.

But at least ZUS had some interactive, multimedia presentations that attracted some visitors. This was in stark contrast to the Grodzisk Mazowiecki stall, where the image of a middle-aged official, standing bored behind a desk with a bowl of hard candy probably didn’t appeal to many passers-by.

With so many Polish companies present at CeBIT for the first time, the question remains: Will they come back?

And the answer, seemingly, is probably not. The way business is done today, with video conferencing available to everyone, means it’s more cost-effective to simply send sales representatives to the fair. Renting a booth could be an option, but for marketing reasons only.

Most of the people that spoke with WBJ said the same thing: Deals are rarely signed at CeBIT, but contacts are made and talks are scheduled that could lead to more business after the show is over.

Jacek Ciesnowski

10

OPINION & ANALYSIS

www.wbj.pl

MARCH 18-24, 2013

Currency war and peace Much of the hype surrounding last month’s meeting in Moscow of G-20 finance ministers and central bankers was dedicated to so-called “currency wars,” which some developing-country officials have accused advanced countries of waging by pursuing unconventional monetary policies.

But another crucial issue – that of long-term investment financing – was largely neglected, even though the endgame for unconventional monetary policy will require the revitalization or creation of new long-term assets and liabilities in the global economy.

The collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008 drove up risk premiums and triggered panic in financial markets, weakening assets in the United States and elsewhere, and threatening to provoke a credit crunch. In order to avoid asset fire-sales – which would have led to the disorderly unraveling of private-sector balance sheets, possibly triggering a new “Great Depression” or even bringing down the euro zone – advanced countries’ central banks began to purchase risky assets and increase lending to financial institutions, thus expanding the money supply.

Liquidity spillover

limited.

Some believe that the elimination of macro-financial tail risks, the gradual strengthening of global economic recovery, and the increase in existing asset prices will eventually convince cash hoarders to increase their exposure to new ventures in advanced economies. But such optimism may not be warranted. In fact, at the recent G-20 meeting, the World Bank presented an Umbrella Report on Long-Term Investment Financing for Growth and Development. The report, based on analysis from various international organizations, highlights several areas of concern.

For starters, banks’ current retrenchment of long-term investment financing is likely to persist.

After all, many of the advancedcountry banks, especially in Europe, that dominated such investment – for example, financing large-scale infrastructure projects – are undergoing deep deleveraging and rebuilding their capital buffers. So far, other banks have been unable to fill the gap.

But several years of ultra-loose monetary policy in the advanced countries has led to significant liquidity spillover abroad, putting excessive upward pressure on higher-yielding developing countries’ currencies.

With developing countries finding it difficult to deter massive capital inflows or mitigate the effects – owing to economic constraints, like high inflation, or to domestic politics – the “currency wars” metaphor, coined in 2010 by Brazil’s finance minister, Guido Mantega, has resonated widely.

Moreover, only a small portion of the liquidity created by unconventional monetary policy has been channeled toward households and the small and medium-sized enterprises that generate most new jobs.

Instead, crisis-affected global financial entities have used it to support their efforts to deleverage and to rebuild their capital, while large corporations have been building large cash reserves and refinancing their debt under favorable conditions. As a result, economic growth and job creation remain lackluster, with the availability of investment finance for long-term productive assets – essential to sustainable growth – severely

Regulatory reforms needed Furthermore, the effect of internationally agreed regulatory reforms –

most of which have yet to be implemented – will be to increase banks’ capital requirements while shrinking the scale of maturity transformation risks that they can carry on their balance sheets. The “new normal” that results will likely include scarcer, more expensive long-term bank lending.

The World Bank report also points out that, as a consequence of banking retrenchment, institutional investors with long-term liabilities – such as pension funds, insurers, and sovereign wealth funds – may be called upon to assume a greater role in funding long-term assets. But, to facilitate this shift, appropriate financing vehicles must be developed; investment and risk-management expertise will have to be acquired; regulatory frameworks will have to be improved; and adequate data and investment benchmarks will be needed. These investors must focus on the small and medium-size enterprises that banks often neglect.

Finally, local-currency bond markets – and, more generally, domestic capital markets – in emerging economies must be explored further, in order to lengthen the tenure of financial flows. Local-currency gov-

Otaviano Canuto ernment-debt markets have performed fairly well during the crisis, while local-currency corporate-debt markets have played a more modest role as a vehicle for longer-term finance. This suggests that domestic reforms aimed at reducing issuance costs, improving disclosure requirements, enhancing creditors’ rights frameworks, and tackling other inhibiting factors could bring high returns.

Anxiety over unconventional monetary policies and “currency wars” must not continue to dominate global policy discussions, especially given last month’s pledge by G-20 leaders not to engage in competitive currency devaluations. Instead, global leaders should work to maximize the liquidity that unconventional policy measures have generated, and to use it to support investment in longterm productive assets. Such an approach is the only way to place the global economy’s recovery on a sustainable footing. ● Otaviano Canuto is vice president for poverty reduction and economic management at the World Bank.

Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2013.

Project-syndicate.org

Bulgaria’s revolt against consensus Ivan Krastev The logic behind the European Union’s drive to constitutionalize budget constraints and remove key economic decisions from electoral politics is internally sound. After all, a common currency without a shared political sphere can survive only if electing a new national government does not mean changing basic macroeconomic policies.

But the logic of the EU’s effort collapses at a crucial point. When voters are unhappy with the economic status quo, but lack the power to change the relevant policies through democratic processes, they fall for conspiracy theories, turn on the political establishment, and demand a radical transformation of existing arrangements.

Many European countries are now embroiled in such revolts, as popular backlash against tough austerity turns into protest against the functioning of representative democracy. With populist movements gaining traction across Europe, the left-right dichotomy is fading. Now, it is the people versus the political class, “us” against “them,” the 99 percent against the 1 percent.

Protests spark changes Consider the current wave of popular protests against rising electricity bills in Bulgaria, which has already brought down the country’s center-right government. While Bulgaria has a low budget deficit, it remains the EU’s poorest member state, weighed down by slow GDP growth and high unemployment. Almost one million Bulgarians have left the country since 1989.

As austerity policies – including wage freezes and delays on valueadded tax reimbursements to businesses – squeeze citizens, reports of government corruption and the influence of organized crime have incited public outrage. The lack of European flags at the demonstrations – and the fact that protesters have largely scapegoated the Czech and Austrian electricity providers that control the local market – reflects a dearth of hope that the EU can help to change the situation.

But widespread outrage does not translate into a strong vision. While Bulgaria’s protesters forced the government to resign, they did not demand a new government. Rather, they called for the immediate fulfillment of vague, often contradictory

demands, including a new constituent assembly and radical changes to the political system. They appear to expect their government to function like a computer – enter a command and the desired program is run – but they lack a strategy for building such a system.

As a result, the recent outburst of civic energy is unlikely to fix Bulgaria’s problems. Given the movement’s lack of inspiring leaders, the political establishment’s quick call for early elections will most likely be enough to keep new figures out of the political arena. In the absence of galvanizing demands, the demonstrations’ most likely outcome will not be far-reaching political and economic reform. Rather, we can expect a new generation of expatriate Bulgarians (though, as the United Kingdom’s current debate over Bulgarian and Romanian immigrants suggests, they probably will not be welcome elsewhere in Europe).

Political turmoil In Bulgaria, newly founded political parties won elections twice in the last decade, and most Bulgarians voted differently in 2009 than they had in 2001. Since the hyper-inflation of

1997, the country has been governed from the right, by the Union of Democratic Forces; from the left, by the Bulgarian Socialist Party; from above, by the king-turned-prime-minister, Simeon II of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha; and from below, by Boyko Borisov, the former head of Simeon’s security detail.

Amid these radical shifts, macroeconomic policy remained largely unchanged, with all governments adhering to a prudent fiscal and monetary stance. Indeed, despite rampant poverty and a currency-board system, which prohibits devaluation, Bulgaria’s budget deficit is less than 1 percent of GDP, and its public debt-to-GDP ratio is roughly 18 percent (compared to budget deficits of roughly 3.5-4 percent of GDP and average debt-toGDP ratios of roughly 90 percent in the euro zone as a whole).

Now, in addition to lower electricity prices, citizens are calling for a new constitution, and demanding an overhaul of the political class. What is at stake in Bulgaria today – as in Italy – is the country’s very governability.

Bulgaria’s experience demonstrates that, while democratic gover-

nance can be manipulated to distract voters from demanding economic reform in the short run, such a strategy ultimately will prove to be highly damaging. By taking away people’s power to influence the outcomes that matter to them, the EU’s new policy paradigm has diminished their loyalty to both national and European policies and leadership, while destroying their sense of civic responsibility.

Europe’s choice is not between austerity and economic growth.

Rather, EU leaders must choose between flexibility and rigidity, between permitting voters to make mistakes or losing legitimacy. As Bulgaria’s crisis demonstrates, without hope, financial stability is just another name for stagnation. ● Ivan Krastev is chairman of the Center for Liberal Strategies, Sofia, and permanent fellow at the institute for Human Sciences (IWM) in Vienna.

His latest book is “In Mistrust We Trust: Can Democracy Survive When We Don’t Trust Our Leaders?”

Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2013.

Project-syndicate.org

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11

Foreign investment

Poland’s economy minister wants to extend the lifetime of special economic zones, but he’s running into resistance from others within the government Since 1995 Poland has used special economic zones to attract investors both foreign and domestic. They are a popular selling point, mentioned often in promotional materials of cities, regions, and Poland’s foreign investment agency, PAIiIZ. The zones offer preferential conditions, allowing investors to operate for years at lower tax rates, while governments offer special support from co-funding of infrastructure to preferential grants and loans.

But their time is running out. By December 31, 2020, all of the zones will be required to close their doors, as it were, by ending the special tax breaks and benefits to investors. Limits were put on their lifetime to prevent the market from becoming permanently skewed in favor of the companies that invest in them.

But with some 250,000 jobs having been created in the zones and investment reaching as high as z∏.84 billion, many are loath to let them close. Already once, in 2008, their lifetimes were extended.

But now, with the zones due to expire in 2020, there is less than seven years left during which companies could receive the benefits SEZs offer. That’s hardly enough time, taking into account the years that it takes to, for example, build a factory, hire workers and begin operations.

That could make all the difference for a company deciding whether to invest in

Poland, or in Romania or Bulgaria, for example, which are both in the EU but can offer lower labor costs.

Passing the test Now, Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Janusz Piechociƒski wants to keep them open until 2026. Last Monday, he held a conference outlining his plan and making his case. “What would the unemployment rate in M∏awa be without the investment of LG?” asked Mr Piechociƒski at the conference, referring to the TV-maker’s huge production investment in the city.

The investment was made in the Warmia-Mazury a Special Economic Zone.

“SEZ tax breaks have cost the state some z∏.10 billion.”

“When it comes to the labor market, SEZs have passed the test,” said Deputy Labor Minister Rados∏aw Mleczko at the conference.

Special Economic Zones in Poland have allowed us to survive a very difficult restructuring process in industries such as mining and steel, which meant the loss of some 400,000 work places,” he added.

Tax revenue lost But not everyone is so keen.

Finance Minister Jacek Rostowski – responsible for keeping Poland’s budget in line – has voiced his opposition to keeping the zones open. He argues that the zones don’t always serve their purpose, claiming that grocers, laundry services and trophy-makers (some of the investments cur-

rently in Polish SEZs) are not the types of firms that should be receiving public aid.

He also said that the decision to extend the zones’ lifetime should only be made after a careful analysis of their influence on regional development, reducing unemployment and attracting new investments.

But what is likely the key element here is the tax revenue of which the Finance Ministry is deprived as a result of the SEZs tax breaks.

Deputy Finance Minister Maciej Grabowski told reporters recently that since 1998, they have cost the state some z∏.10 billion in tax revenue.

Economists divided Experts that spoke with WBJ were at both ends of the spectrum.

Marek Dietl, an economic analyst at the Sobieski Institute, a think tank, said that he opposed SEZs on the grounds that they were a “disruption” of economic competitiveness.

“The existence of economic zones is a disruption of economic competition, because of the fact that companies are located in a particular place,” he said. “They operate on preferential terms. However, so far there is no other way to encourage investments in the poorer and less developed regions of Poland.”

However Stanis∏aw Szultka, managing director of the Gdaƒsk Institute for Market Economics, was strongly in favor of keeping SEZs. “Special economic zones as investment areas, prepared for professional services, certainly should continue to function,” he said. “What is more, they should expand their activity and get more involved in the integration of foreign in-

Economists sound off on SEZs Marek Dietl Sobieski Institute The existence of economic zones is a disruption of economic competition, because of the fact that companies are located in a particular place. They operate on preferential terms. However so far there is no other way to encourage investments in the poorer and less developed regions of Poland.

Poland’s problem is the differences in economic development [between east and west]. To bridge the gap between [the more developed] Poland A and [the less developed] Poland B is an important thing. I would suggest that companies locating their investments in the areas of current SEZs were offered better access to funding instead of the maintenance of the existence of SEZs, which are permanently impinging on competitiveness.

Stanis∏aw Szultka Gdaƒsk Institute for Market Economics Special economic zones as investment areas, prepared for professional services, certainly should continue to function. What is more, they should expand their activity and get more involved in the integration of foreign investors into local economies. They should also create cooperative relationships in such an environment.

Such actions root investors in the region, and increase the likelihood that they will remain in that location for a long time, including after the expiration of special benefits.

Over time such companies can expand their business activities with elements generating higher added value.

On the other hand, the SEZs that are simply defined as tax breaks and concessions areas should be less important after 2020, if not disappear completely. ●

COURTESY OF FLICKR/KPRM

The end of SEZs?

Prime Minister Donald Tusk (left) may have to choose between his two deputy prime ministers on SEZs: Janusz Piechociƒski (middle) and Jacek Rostowski (right) vestors into local economies.

They should also create cooperative relationships in such an environment.”

Interestingly, however, he said that tax breaks could be phased out after 2020 in all of the SEZs except those in the poorest regions of Poland.

SEZs which concentrate only on providing tax breaks are “relatively more exposed to the risk that companies will relocate their businesses to cheaper countries, after the expiration of the concessions,” he said.

ference last week that he was working with the finance ministry to create new regulations that would focus the SEZs on innovative investments, and change the rules on tax breaks, potentially making them harder to obtain.

Whatever the conclusion, one thing is clear: Poland

needs investment to maintain economic growth and jobs.

With unemployment at 14 percent and economic growth predicted to come in below 2 percent this year, now is not the time for Poland to start scaring away foreign investors.

Andrew Kureth, Marta Mardosz

SEZs in numbers, 1995-2010 Effects of special economic zones since their inception in Poland

Number of permits given Value of investments

1,354 z∏.73.2 million

Finding compromise?

This may be where the economy and finance ministries will be able find compromise. Mr Piechociƒski said at the con-

New jobs created Work places maintained

167,141 58,148 Source: Ernst & Young

12

INTERVIEW

www.wbj.pl

MARCH 18-24, 2013

Human rights

Battling human rights violations, corruption and injustice

Ewa Boniecka: How would you asses Poland’s cooperation with the Council of Europe?

Hanna Machiƒska: Poland has been, from the very beginning, extremely active in all spheres of the Council of Europe’s activities: the country has already ratified 87 conventions and Polish members of parliament as well as members of local authorities are present at all forums of the Council of Europe.

One of the important areas of Polish participation is the debate on the reform of the European Court of Human Rights and the popular Warsaw seminars on the implementation of the court’s judgments. Poland is active in disseminating knowledge on human rights by organizing training programs for judges, prosecutors and other legal professionals.

Another example of Poland’s participation is the promotion of and education about human rights values through summer academies on human rights and democracy, organized for experts and educational leaders from countries of the Eastern Partnership [an initiative aimed at improving ties between six post-Soviet states and the European Union].

On what areas is the Council of Europe currently focusing its attention?

The Council of Europe’s activities focus on the three pillars: human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The human rights activities are based mainly on the European Convention on Human Rights.

In recent years the Council of Europe has focused on new and challenging human rights issues. Its involvement in the democratic transformation in the Arab Spring countries is particularly noteworthy. The Council has established several important institutions for protecting human rights, such as the European Commissioner for Human Rights (Nils Muiznieks), GRETA (responsible for human trafficking), and ECRI (which monitors racism and discrimination).

In the area of democracy it promotes democratic stan-

dards, of which the most spectacular example is the World Forum for Democracy.

Finally, when it comes to promoting the rule of law, the Council elaborates common standards and policies.

Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland has a strong influence on the Council’s actions.

At the moment he is involved in matters including antipoverty strategy, the process of integrating the Roma, actions against discrimination as well as implementing human rights standards in the area of the freedom of expression.

The Council’s convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence has not yet been ratified in Poland because some politicians oppose it on the grounds that it opens a gateway to a different definition of gender. Could this endanger the convention?

The convention was signed by Poland’s representative in December 2012 and if a state signs it, it has the duty to ratify it as well. During the adoption process, some reservations may arise as to the application of certain provisions. But that cannot, however, jeopardize the entire convention.

In my view the process of ratification should go smoothly in Poland and I cannot imagine the convention not being ratified. Let me add that the convention has already been ratified by Albania, Portugal and Turkey.

In its most recent report, the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) gave a mixed evaluation of Poland. How do you see the findings?

It’s important to remember that the report focuses on preventing corruption among members of parliament, judges and prosecutors and recommends specific measures addressed to those groups that need to be implemented.

In its most recent report, GRECO describes the progress Poland has made in combating corruption. It emphasizes that a solid legal framework has been established for preventing conflicts of interests and ultimately corruption.

Nevertheless, while the report is generally positive, it points to the areas where further changes are necessary: for example that Poland should continue in its efforts to combat corruption and upgrade public officials’ ethical standards.

I think that what Poland should find particularly encouraging is GRECO’s conclusion that further progress in eliminating conflicts of interests and corruption will lead to strengthening public trust towards members of parliament and the judiciary, which – as the report says – still seem wanting.

How all the recommendations for Poland are implemented will be assessed by GRECO in the second half of 2014.

It seems that average Poles are most interested in how to use the Council of Europe’s mechanisms in cases when the Polish judicial system has failed and they want to file their claim with the European Court of Human Rights. How do you see it?

When I was running the Information Office of the Council of Europe in Warsaw there were hundreds of people wanting to lodge complains to the European Court, but they were not familiar with the provisions of the Convention, so these were mostly inadmissible cases.

Now, the understanding of the Convention is better, but people are still unfamiliar with the admissibility criteria. This means that the Court is constantly being flooded with thousands of applications from all over Europe. This prevents the Court from operating efficiently. At the end of 2012, the total number of all cases before the Court amounted to 128,000.

The average number of applications filed with the European judicial body was 0.79 for every 10,000 citizens in 2012, while the average number for Poland was 1.06.

With such a great number of applications, the Court had to change the organization of its work and is now going through a series of reforms.

Fifteen members of families of victims of the Katyn massacre are presenting their case against the Russian Federation to the Court for the second time. How is the case expected to develop?

The case is important both for the applicants and for the general public in Poland. In the first judgment from April 2012 the Court found, under Article 2, that the mass murder of the Polish prisoners by the Soviet secret police was a war crime. However, since no new evidence was discovered after Russia’s ratification of the European Convention on

EAST NEWS

Hanna Machiƒska, head liaison officer to the Council of Europe in Warsaw, sits down with WBJ to talk about the Council’s relationship with Poland

Hanna Machiƒska says that Poland should continue in its efforts to combat corruption and upgrade public officials’ ethical standards Human Rights, Russia’s obligation to investigate the crime could not be reinstated.

Nevertheless, the Court found that there had been a violation of Article 3 in 10 out of those 15 cases. Under Article 3, the authorities were to respond to the plight

of the bereft relatives in a humane and compassionate fashion.

The case was referred to the Grand Chamber, which had to deal with the problem and the compensation issue. The Grand Chamber examined the case on Fe-

bruary 13 this year. Several NGOs, including Russian Memorial, were involved in the case from the beginning, as a third party in these proceedings. Now we are waiting for the judgment of the Grand Chamber. ●

What is the Council of Europe? official languages. German, Italian and Russian are also used as working languages.

Currently, the presidency is held by Andorra, while Thorbjorn Jagland is the secretary general.

The best-known body of the Council of Europe is the European Court of Human Rights, which enforces the European Convention on Human Rights.

The Council of Europe is an international organization that looks to promote cooperation between states in Europe in the fields of human rights, democracy, rule of law, and cultural cooperation. It is not a European Union body, and is indeed completely separate from the EU. Confusingly, however, it shares the EU’s flag and anthem. No country has joined the EU without first joining the Council of Europe.

On its website, the Council says: “the Council of Europe seeks to develop throughout Europe common and democratic principles based on the European Convention on Human Rights and other reference texts on the protection of individuals.”

The Council of Europe has 47 members, with a total population of some 800 million.

Five countries hold observer status (Canada, the Holy See, Japan, Mexico and the United States).

The Council was founded on May 5, 1949 by 10 countries and is based in Strasbourg, France. English and French are the two

The Committee of Ministers is the Council of Europe’s decision-making body.

It is made up of the Foreign Ministers of all member states or their permanent representatives in Strasbourg.

The 47 member states form a deathpenalty-free zone. Abolition of the death penalty is a requirement for membership.

Montenegro was the most recent country to join the Council of Europe. It did so on May 11, 2007.

Members of the Council of Europe: Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom

MARCH 18-24, 2013

www.wbj.pl

13

Advertorial feature

Are we going to pay 500 million more?

On

what can you spend PLN 500 million from public funds during crisis?

Who will benefit from the construction of a Power Plant Jaworzno III a company and fact that the contracting party, a company in which State Treasury holds a 30.06 percent stake chooses a tender offer that is not the most advantageous?

Controlled by the State Treasury, the ordering party does not care about business of its own shareholders, who need to mobilize the additional resources for the project and probably will have to accept lower dividends.

Moreover, all Poles also bear the loss. We all are shareholders of the company because of open pension funds.

At the end of December, open pension funds had more than 16 percent of company shares, currently worth about PLN 1.2 billion. An additional PLN 500 million, which has to be spent on the project, will be taken from our money!

Let’s see how the tendering process to select the general contractor for the new power unit in the Power Plant Jaworzno III looked like. What criteria were taken into account while selecting the best offer?

Let’s start from the beginning. The tender for the project, delivery, installation, start-up and commissioning of the coal-fired power unit was announced in May 2010.

Almost three years passed since that announcement until the selection of “the best” offer.

The following table presents the key parameters of each tender: 1 2 3 4

Consortium CNEEC Rafako and Mostostal Warszawa Hitachi and SNC-Lavalin Alstom

Gross price 4.902 bln PLN

Net block power 840 MW

Net efficiency 46.07%

5.410 bln PLN

843.53 MW

45.91%

5.906 bln PLN

833.91 MW

45.17%

5.965 bln PLN

840 MW

45.42%

The decision of the tender committee is surprising – the committee has chosen the offer more than PLN 0.5 billion more expensive, and the best one was rejected.

The minimum gross electrical power unit is expected to be 800 MW and the maximum 910 MW. The block will be coal-fired, and the net efficiency with appurtenant installations is set at a minimum of 45 percent.

Is the chosen offer really the best? Even a cursory analysis of all the bids submitted in the tender shows that the proposal favorable both in terms of price and specifications could have won.

It is surprising that the ordering party (a company in which the State Treasury a 30.06 percent share) chose another offer, which is more than PLN 0.5 billion more expensive and has worse implementing parameters.

Is it economically reasonable to spend over PLN 500 million from the taxpayers’ pocket? The difference could be spent on other investments. For example, a 12-kilometer bypass near Raszyn will cost PLN 566 million.

SHUTTERSTOCK

The project is supposed to last 59 months, from the award of the contract. The criteria for selecting the winner of the tender are price (74 percent) and technical indicators (26 percent). The planned investment has a valid building permit and final environmental decisions. The current installed capacity of the Power Plant Jaworzno III is 1,535 MWe and 390 MWt thermal power.

Why does a country that counts every penny on highway projects so easily decide to spend more than PLN 500 million which could be used for other purposes? Is the choice of the general contractor an attempt to help its biggest shareholder, which is its biggest shareholder? Last year, the court announced the company’s bankruptcy, which was the result of bad management and decisions that caused debt of PLN 2.7 billion. Shall we all pay to rescue this company?

When you analyze the general contractor of the investment in Jaworzno, it leads to more questions.

Will the money not be transferred to the banks which are the major creditors ofits biggest shareholder?

Does the State Treasury, which controls the ordering party, provide taxpayers’ money to a private entity?

Can foreign investors count on fair treatment by the Polish government?

The aim of the text is to illustrate the situation and to draw public attention to unreasonable choice of a more expensive tender bid. ●

BROUGHT TO YOU BY BILANS ACCOUNTING AND CONSULTING COMPANY LTD.

14

FINANCE & ECONOMICS

www.wbj.pl

Unemployment

MARCH 18-24, 2013

More cuts on the way after

Labor Ministry: unemployment lower inflation figures? at 13% by this summer

Analysts from ManpowerGroup are less optimistic about the Polish labor market.

They don’t see signs of improvement in the next three months.

“Any significant improvement [in the job market] should not be expected in the coming months. In the second quarter, we expect the continuation of the trend from the

When will it come back to earth?

Steep fall

Poland's inflation rate (%), February 2011-February 2013 6 Source: Central Statistical Office

Poland’s inflation rate continued to slow in February, the country’s statistics office reported on Thursday. The headline consumer price index (CPI) inflation rate fell to 1.3 percent in February in annualized terms, down from the 1.7 percent recorded in January.

The inflation rate is now well below the target of 2.5 percent set by the interest-rate setting Monetary Policy Council (RPP), and has now even fallen below the plus or minus 1-percentage-point band of tolerance that the RPP observes.

The figures indicated a further slowing of the Polish economy, and could leave room for further interest rate cuts. However, that may be unlikely, since Marek Belka, head of the RPP and president of the National Bank of Poland, said

5 4 3 2 1 Feb Ma . '11 r Ap . '11 r Ma . '11 y Jun '11 Jul. '11 Au . '11 g Se . '11 p Oc . '11 t No . '11 v De . '11 c Jan . '11 .

Feb '12 .

Ma '12 r.

Ap '12 r.

Ma '12 y Jun '12 .

Jul '12 .

Au '12 g.

Se '12 p.

Oc '12 t.

No '12 v. ' De 12 c.

Jan '12 .

Feb '13 . '1 3

‘Don’t expect improvement’

beginning of the year,” said Iwona Janas, the head of ManpowerGroup in Poland.

According to a Manpower survey released last week, 11 percent of companies plan employment cuts in the second quarter of 2013 and 11 percent plan to increase employment, while 75 percent expect no change. The seasonally adjusted net employment outlook for the Polish labor market reached -2 percent, the lowest level in the survey’s history.

“The uncertain economic situation is forcing employers to look for savings. It is hard to expect employers to raise remunerations, and even pay reductions should be expectAS, AK ed,” said Ms Janas.

earlier this month that the council’s most recent 50 basispoint cut was a “full stop” at the end of its easing cycle.

At the time however, Mr Belka didn’t rule out further cuts, saying the council was now in “wait-and-see” mode, and that it would take into account further economic data. The RPP has cut interest

rates by 1.50 percent since November.

Most economists say the RPP should keep cutting but Jan Winiecki, a member of the RPP, said that the lower inflation rate was due to one-offs, and that Poland’s pending recovery should push readings back towards 1.5-2 percent.

Andrew Kureth

Poland’s unemployment rate (%), January 2011-January 2013 15

13

11

Source: Central Statistical Office

Poland’s unemployment rate may come down to 13 percent in the summer, said Deputy Labor Minister Jacek M´cina, adding that improvement in the labor figures is possible if economic conditions continue to improve and the ministry’s intervention on the labor market brings the expected results.

The Ministry of Labor and Social Policy estimated that the registered unemployment rate was 14.4 percent in February (compared to the official unemployment rate of 14.2 percent in January).

Labor Minister W∏adys∏aw Kosiniak-Kamysz was sanguine about recent macroeconomic figures. “The January data on production and consumption ... give some room for optimism,” he said. “Hiring will intensify,” he added, citing predictions from Polish employment agencies and improving economic conditions in Germany, Poland’s biggest trading partner.

Other factors that could contribute to job creation are

assistance to employers from the Labor Fund and reform of the labor code. On top of that, impetus will come from the government’s Polish Investments special purpose vehicle, as well as guarantees and loans offered by state-owned bank BGK, he added.

Jan Feb. ’11 Ma . ’11 r Ap . ’11 r Ma . ’11 y Jun ’11 Jul. ’11 Au . ’11 g Se . ’11 p Oc . ’11 t No . ’11 v De . ’11 c Jan . ’11 .

Feb ’12 .

Ma ’12 r.

Ap ’12 r.

Ma ’12 y Jun ’12 .

Jul ’12 .

Au ’12 g.

Se ’12 p.

Oc ’12 t.

No ’12 v.

De ’12 c.

Jan ’12 . ’1 3

Polish officials are optimistic about jobless figures. Sector experts less so

NBP: GDP to grow gradually from H2 The National Bank of Poland forecasts that the country’s economy will begin growing at a faster pace in the second half of this year. However, GDP growth will remain below its potential until Q2 of 2014, the central bank said.

The NBP’s analysts said that the situation would improve in 2014-2015, provided that there is an improvement in the economic situation abroad. Growth will, however, be slower than in 20102011, they said.

The NBP’s main projection sees GDP growth at 1.3 percent in 2013, 2.6 percent in 2014 and 3.1 percent in 2015.

It also sees consumer price index inflation at 1.6 percent in 2013 and 2014, and at 1.5 AS percent in 2015.

KSP has bought Warsaw’s Holland Park office building, and wants to refurbish it to “trophy standard” 16

Retail transactions slowed in Poland in 2012, but even so retail was one of Poland’s best-performing sectors

16

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

MIPIM

¸om˝a gets its first modern mall

‘We didn’t come to sell, but to promote’

Ronson Development wants to begin selling apartments in up to eight new residential estates this year. The company’s plan includes Warsaw’s Tamka (64 apartments), Magellan (176 apartments in the first stage), Poznaƒ’s Copernicus (182 apartments in the first stage) and new phases of other investments in Warsaw, Wroc∏aw and Szczecin. In total, the Warsaw Stock Exchangelisted developer could launch sales of approximately 1,000 new apartments. It sold 380 apartments in 2012. ●

In this issue MIPIM coverage . . . . . . . . . .15, 17 Warehouses rising . . . . . . . . . . .15 KSP buys Holland Park . . . . . . .16 Retail slowdown . . . . . . . . . . . .16

A 5,837-sqm plot on Plac Defilad in front of Warsaw’s Palace of Culture and Science, priced at z∏.70 million and 15 other plots, almost equally attractive, within a five-kilometer radius of the city center were displayed at the MIPIM international real estate fair in Cannes, France last week with the aim of attracting investors to Poland’s capital, one of the top European destinations for real estate investors, according to a recent CBRE report.

And Warsaw did manage to draw a lot of attention, just as much as its green and white stand itself, minimalistic in its design. The stand was decorated with artificial moss in line with the city’s theme: the UN Climate Change Conference to be held there in November.

Warsaw was the uncontested star among the 68 Polish stands in the Palais de Festivals in Cannes, which hosts the annual event. With the city’s Mayor Hanna GronkiewiczWaltz present at the venue, it lured representatives of the biggest real estate companies and eclipsed even the captivating Poznaƒ stand with pinkclad blondes swinging to the music played by a DJ.

A glimpse of Warsaw’s potential The visitors were particularly interested in the Plac Defilad plot, which is designated for cultural and service areas. “We expect this plot to be sold this year,” said Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz in an interview with Lokale Immobilia, assuring that the area is not burdened with any claims from former tenants and it is fully owned by the city.

The biggest of the offered locations was a plot comprising 27,000 sqm and known as “Serek Bielaƒski,” near the

Warsaw presented a unique stand at MIPIM for its sale is planned later this year. There was also a 8,454sqm parcel with an historic building on ul. Rakowiecka in

S∏odowiec subway station in the capital’s Bielany district.

The plot is designated for multifamily housing. The tender

Mokotów that could be used for services.

But Bartosz Milczarczyk, Continued on p. 17 ➡

Logistics

2012 record year for warehouse sector Poland has 7,530,000 sqm of warehouses and the figure will rise Last year was the best year ever for Poland’s warehouse investment market. More than 500,000 sqm of warehouse space came on the Polish market in 2012, bringing the country’s total stock to 7,530,000 sqm, according to Cushman & Wakefield. At year-end 2012, around 200,000 sqm of warehouse space was under construction.

Warsaw remains the largest warehouse market in Poland, accounting for 36 percent of total stock. The largest regional markets are Upper Silesia, Poznaƒ, Central Poland and

Wroc∏aw.

The highest vacancy rates were recorded in Lublin (37 percent), Szczecin (36 percent) and Rzeszów (30 percent), in regions with a very limited amount of stock.

The majority of new space that was delivered had already been leased by the time it was handed over. Modern warehouse take-up in 2012 stood at more than 1,500,000 sqm.

Take-up predominantly came from logistics operators (40 percent). The vacancy rate fell to 10.7 percent. Rents remained flat or edged down slightly. The highest headline rents were in Warsaw inner city (€4.5-5.8 per sqm per month), with the lowest in

Central Poland and in the Warsaw suburbs (€2.4-4 per sqm per month).

Improving road infrastructure facilitated the development of the Tri-city, Kraków, Rzeszów, Toruƒ, Szczecin and Lublin regions in particular, said Tom Listowski, partner and head of industrial in Poland as well as CEE corporate relations at Cushman & Wakefield.

“Further improvement in Poland’s transport infrastructure, the rise of e-tailing and the development of new industrial plants in special economic zones should generate demand for modern warehouse space,” he added.

Karolina Kowalska

SHUTTERSTOCK

Ronson to sell 1,000 flats

The most attractive plots in city centers and glass-and-steel skyscrapers were luring investors at MIPIM to Poland

COURTESY OF WARSAW CITY HALL

COURTESY OF ECHO INVESTMENT

The Galeria Veneda shopping center in ¸om˝a, Podlaskie voivodship, opened for business last week. The scheme is the first modern shopping gallery in the city, and comprises nearly 16,000 sqm of GLA. It was developed by Warsaw Stock Exchange-listed Echo Investment. Tenants at Galeria Veneda include Tesco Extra, RTV Euro AGD, Reserved and House.

Visitors of the shopping center have a parking lot with spaces for 600 cars at their disposal.

MARCH 18-24, 2013, LI 18/10

Warsaw remains the largest warehouse market in Poland

Warsaw Business Journal presents Real Estate weekly newsletter • Know about the newest projects before they’re on the market • Keep up to date on the latest tenders and auctions • Learn the latest trends in Poland’s dynamic office, residential and retail sectors • Find out who’s who in Polish real estate To subscribe: e-mail subscribe@wbj.pl or call +48 22 639 85 68, ext. 201 and sign up for free two-week no-obligation trial subscription

16

www.wbj.pl

LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE

MARCH 18-24, 2013

Office

The office property in downtown Warsaw is estimated to be worth some €50 million Kulczyk Silverstein Properties (KSP), a joint venture of Kulczyk Real Estate Holding and Silverstein Properties, has purchased the Holland Park office building from CBRE Global Investors. The scheme’s total office space amounts to 10,416 sqm, including 1,418 sqm of retail space and 108 under-

ground and surface parking spaces.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed, but experts estimate the building is worth some €50 million.

Tenants currently include ING Bank and its affiliates, which occupy 81 percent of the building’s space, as well as Bausch & Lomb, IFIS Finance and W. Kruk.

Piotr Krawczyƒski, a board member at KSP, said that Holland Park will become a flag-

ship asset in the firm’s portfolio.

“Utilizing the prime location of Holland Park, KSP aims to refurbish the building, which will significantly reposition the asset to a trophy standard,” Mr Krawczyƒski said.

“KSP’s goal is the repositioning of the property and setting a benchmark to the highest standards adopted in the CEE market,” he added.

The work will include BREEAM certification for the existing building and a new

extension. Edgar Rosenmayr, a board member at KSP, emphasized that the company pays close attention to the environmental impact of its projects.

“We want each of our buildings to guarantee to our tenants a superior working environment, which is not only prestigious and comfortable, but also functional and sustainable,” he added.

Holland Park was developed

by ING Real Estate Development and completed in 1998.

COURTESY OF CBRE

KSP acquires Holland Park

KSP wants to reposition Holland Park to a “trophy standard” The building is located near the Warsaw Stock Exchange, the Sheraton Warsaw Hotel, and

the Polish parliament and governmental buildings.

Marta Mardosz

Retail slowdown in 2012 Poland’s retail market slowed down in 2012, a new report by Cushman & Wakefield has found.

Still, in line with previous years, retail was one of the best-performing sectors, with a transaction volume of €1.09 billion in 2012.

“Poland’s retail market slowed compared with previous years. With worsening economic conditions, tenants are increasingly seeking ways to lower their occupancy costs,” said Katarzyna Michnikowska, a senior consultant for valuation and advisory at Cushman & Wakefield.

“A number of retail chains have attained their target in terms of market share and are now slowing their expansion.

Many are reconfiguring their store portfolios to favor successful, high-turnover centers.

Poland’s retail supply pipeline with delivery for 2013 is expected to reach 750,000 sqm GLA,” she added.

Retail supply in Poland in 2012 totaled 550,000 sqm of GLA, increasing the country’s total floorspace to 11 million sqm. The biggest retail schemes to open in the first half of the year were Korona Kielce and NoVa Park in Gorzów Wielkopolski, while during the second half the biggest addition was Galeria Rzeszów.

A key event on the retail market was French hypermarket chain Auchan’s acquisition of Real hypermarkets.

Warehouses were the fastest-growing sector, with transaction volume up by more than 180 percent year-on-year to €462 million in 2012.

That made it the busiest year ever for the warehouse sector, and was mainly a result of Prologis’ and Panattoni’s decision to liquidate a significant part of their completed and leased warehouse parks.

Karolina Kowalska

MARCH 18-24, 2013

LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE

www.wbj.pl

17

➡ Continued from p. 15 Warsaw City Hall’s spokes-person assured, the plots presented at MIPIM are but a fraction of Warsaw’s investment opportunities and are also meant to attract investors to other, neighboring areas owned by private investors. “We want to bring money to Warsaw and let it evolve,” Mr Milczarczyk said.

“If an investor chooses a neighboring plot instead of one of ours, that is great! We didn’t come to Cannes to sell, but to promote,” he added.

Warsaw was in the spotlight also thanks to CBRE’s Real Estate Investor Intentions Survey, presented in Cannes, which ranked it fifth, after London, Munich, Berlin and Paris, among the top destinations for real estate investors in 2013.

According to the report, Warsaw’s high rank is underpinned by Poland’s relatively favorable economic performance and its positive outlook.

Poland is considered far more promising than other markets in the CEE region. It even managed to exceed France, Spain and Nordic countries in investment attractiveness.

How to sell a plot?

Kraków, though lower in the rankings, lured investors with

one-of-a-kind plots in its old town and close to its pearl, the Wawel Castle. These included a 478-sqm parcel, with a building registered on the city curator’s list of historic artifacts, which is situated in Ma∏y Rynek, next to St. Mary’s Basilica. The plot, originally valued at z∏.13 million, can be purchased in a tender held by the Municipality of Kraków.

The city was also on the lookout for a builder of a hall for its sport club KS Cracovia, to be erected on a 1.4-ha plot in Al. Focha in the city center.

Kraków offered plots together with building designs, as the city officials believe it is better to present a potential investor with a project he could visualize rather than touting the plot itself.

Poland’s first-timers at MIPIM had to try harder to get as much attention as the bigger and more experienced participants. One way of getting attention is by establishing connections prior to the fair. That was the strategy of Silesian city Jastrz´bie Zdrój, located on the Polish-Czech border. The city was once a health resort, but by the 1960s, coal mines dominated its landscape. The city representatives, in Cannes for the first

COURTESY OF WARSAW CITY HALL

‘We didn’t come to sell, but to promote’

The plot at Pl. Defilad was one of the highlights at MIPIM time, had contacted potential developers and investors before the fair, thus attracting a sizable crowd looking to discuss details of the offers.

Chorzów and Tychy, cities located in Silesia, as well as

Suwa∏ki, in the northeastern voivodship of Podlasie, were also present at MIPIM for the first time. Thanks to EU subsidies for regional promotion, they learned that touting a bare land plot could be harder

than promoting one with a design ready. Nevertheless, officials said they were satisfied with the outcome.

Anybody who is anybody According to experienced

attendees, MIPIM has always been more of a public relations event, during which one doesn’t close as many deals as during Expo Real in Munich. But MIPIM is the go-to event for anybody who is anybody in the real estate world. Deals are usually closed not during MIPIM itself but shortly after the fair in Cannes.

Suwa∏ki officials have managed to get a lot of attention thanks to Suwa∏ki Special Economic Zone, which entitles land owners to benefit from public subsidies in the form of tax exemptions for new investments and creating jobs. City representatives also touted science and technology parks that are meant to support business initiatives oriented at new technologies.

As one of the few European countries relatively unscathed by the Great Recession, Poland was far more visible in the Palais de Festivals this year than former European real estate “giants,” such as Spain and Italy. Their stands attracted fewer investors than did those of some Asian countries, which also came to Cannes hoping to catch European investors’ eyes.

Karolina Kowalska

AIM Poland Office

•

phone: +48 500 075 046 • email: barbara.owerczuk@aimcongress.com

THE LIST

MARCH 18-24, 2013

www.wbj.pl

19

Financial Services

Pension Funds Ranked by total net asstes (as of February 28, 2013)

www.bookoflists.pl

Przewodnik po polskim biznesie i gospodarce

Rank

A guide to Polish business and industry

Company name Address Tel./Fax E-mail Website

1

ING Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne SA ING Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny ul. Topiel 12, 00-342 Warsaw 801-203-040/22 522-1111 info@ing.pl www.ing.pl

63,975.9 3,044,030

528.4

Aviva Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne Aviva BZ WBK SA Aviva Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny Aviva BZ WBK ul. Domaniewska 44, 02-672 Warsaw 801-888-444/22 557-4039 bok_ofe@aviva.pl www.aviva.pl

60,506.0 2,677,378

376.3

Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne PZU SA Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny PZU "Z∏ota Jesieƒ" Al. Jana Paw∏a II 24, 00-133 Warsaw 801-102-102/22 582-2905 poczta@ptepzu.pl www.pzu.pl

36,158.8 2,229,417

277.2

Amplico Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne SA Amplico Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny ul. Przemys∏owa 26, 00-450 Warsaw 22 523-5555/22 622-1666 pteinfo@metlifeamplico.pl www.metlifeamplico.pl

21,392.6 1,493,668

342.2

AXA Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne SA AXA Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny ul. Ch∏odna 51, 00-867 Warsaw 801-200-200/22 555-0500 emerytury@axa-polska.pl www.axaofe.pl

16,809.2 1,164,355

115.7

6

Generali Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne SA Generali Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny ul. Post´pu 15B, 02-676 Warsaw 801-343-343/22 543-0899 centrumklienta@generali.pl www.generali.pl

13,520.1 1,010,638

243.8

Jan. 29, 1999 May 20, 1999

Rafa∏ Markiewicz; Marcin Wójcik; Tomasz Bilecki; Micha∏ Ferenc

Generali TU - 100% None

7

NORDEA Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne SA Nordea Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny Al. Jana Paw∏a II 27, 00-867 Warsaw 801-306-306/22 541-0001 info@nordeapolska.pl www.nordeapolska.pl

12,005.9 890,475

54.0

Feb. 2, 1999 May 20, 1999

Pawe∏ Wilkowiecki

None Nordea Life Holding - 100%

Piotr Królikowski; Pawe∏ Wilkowiecki, Agata Kulas, Maciej Kloze

AEGON Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne SA Aegon Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny ul. Wo∏oska 5, 02-675 Warsaw 801-300-900/22 847-4640 pte@aegon.pl www.aegon.pl

11,482.7 944,288

565.4

Feb. 5, 1999 May 20, 1999

Sergiusz Fràckowiak

None AEGON Woningen Nova - 100%

Rafa∏ Markiewicz(1); Dorota Dziugie∏∏, Marcin HadyÊ

PKO BP BANKOWY Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne SA PKO BP Bankowy Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny ul. Pu∏awska 15, 02-515 Warsaw 801-101-010/22 580-2380 bok@bankowy.pl www.pkopte.pl

9,424.6 658,539

240.4

Jan. 26, 1999 May 20, 1999

Tomasz Rak; Wojciech Labryga

PKO BP - 100% None

Ewa Ma∏yszko; Marzena Koczut, Wojciech Rostworowski

Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne Allianz Polska SA Allianz Polska Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny ul. Rodziny Hiszpaƒskich 1, 02-685 Warsaw 10 801-102-030/22 567-4649 info@allianz.pl www.allianz.pl

8,192.4 555,807

193.6

May 4, 1999 Aug. 11, 1999

Rafa∏ Trzop; Grzegorz Zubrzycki

TUiR Allianz Polska - 58.3% Allianz - 41.7%

Agnieszka Nogajczyk-Simeonow; Grzegorz Zubrzycki; Jerzy Nowak

Pocztylion - Arka Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne SA Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny Pocztylion Pl. Pi∏sudskiego 3, 00-078 Warsaw 11 801-101-801/22 529-0095 pocztylion@pocztylion.pl www.pocztylion-arka.pl

5,070.2 595,946

47.0

Feb. 5, 1999 May 20, 1999

Andrzej Bàk

Pekao Pioneer Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne SA Pekao Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny ul. Domaniewska 41A, 02-672 Warsaw 12 801-222-022/22 874-4609 poczta@pekaopte.pl www.pekaopte.pl

4,029.7 342,825

53.6

Apr. 19, 1999 Jul. 19, 1999

Kamil Kosiƒski; Wojciech CieÊlak

Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne WARTA SA Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny WARTA ul. Chmielna 85/87, 00-805 Warsaw 13 801-366-366/22 582-8950 info@ofewarta.pl www.ptewarta.pl

3,590.0 311,442

37.1

Jan. 29, 1999 May 20, 1999

Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne Polsat SA Otwarty Fundusz Emerytalny Polsat Al. Stanów Zjednoczonych 61A, 04-028 Warsaw 14 801-080-040/22 516-2417 info@ptepolsat.com.pl www.ptepolsat.com.pl

2,375.2 300,785

105.0

Feb. 24, 1999 May 20, 1999

2

3

4

5

8

9

Total net assets (z∏. mln) / Equity Number of participants (as of December 31, (as of February 28, 2011) (z∏. mln) 2013)

Notes: Data for The List was provided by Analizy Online SA, ul. Hrubieszowska 6A, 01-209 Warsaw, tel./fax +48 22 431-8293, info@analizy.pl, www.analizy.pl Footnote: (1) Permission of Polish Financial Supervision Authority Required.

Date fund license obtained / Activity start date

Fund Manager

Ownership: Polish / Foreign

Top local executive / Title

Jan. 26, 1999 May 20, 1999

Piotr Bieƒ; Ewa Radkowska-Âwi´toƒ; Kamil Sobolewski

ING Bank Âlàski -20% ING Continental Europe Holdings - 80%

Grzegorz Ch∏opek; Ewa Radkowska-Âwi´toƒ; Józef Proƒ

Jan. 26, 1999 May 20, 1999

Pawe∏ Klimkowski; Marcin ˚ó∏tek

Aviva Towarzystwo Ubezpieczeƒ na ˚ycie - 51.1%; BZ WBK - 10% Aviva International Insurance - 38.9%

Jan. 26, 1999 May 20, 1999

Andrzej So∏dek; Marek Sojka; Arkadiusz Julke; Marek Jezierski

PZU ˚ycie - 100% None

Andrzej So∏dek; Marek Sojka; Hubert Drà˝kiewicz

Jan. 26, 1999 May 20, 1999

Krzysztof Madej; Rafa∏ Mikusiƒski; Tomasz Stankiewicz

Amplico Life - 50% Alico - 50%

Rafa∏ Mikusiƒski; Marek Lisowski, Gabriel Borg, Tomasz Stankiewicz

Jan. 29, 1999 May 20, 1999

Robert Garnczarek; Adam Kurowski; Konrad Maniak

None Societe Beaujon - 100%

Robert Garnczarek; Pawe∏ Michalik, Jaros∏aw Hermann

Poczta Polska - 33.3%; Konferencja Episkopatu Polski - 4%; BNP Paribas Assurance - 33.3% Invesco Holding Company - 29.3%

President; Vice President; Board Member

Pawe∏ Pytel; Marcin ˚ó∏tek, Pawe∏ Klimkowski President; Board Members

President; Vice President; Board Member

President; Board Members

President; Board Members

Piotr Pindel; Jacek Smolarek Board Members

President; Board Members

President; Board Members

President; Vice Presidents

President; Vice President; Board Member

Tomasz Frontczak; Adam Gola, Mariusz Wnuk President; Board Members

Bank Pekao - 65% Pioneer Global Asset Management - 35%

Tomasz J. Baƒkowski; S∏awomir M. Kolarz, Marek Sakowski

Tadeusz Gacyk; Grzegorz Ja∏tuszyk; Ludomir Zalewski; Bartosz Stryjewski; Tomasz Markowski; Jakub ¸awik

None KBC Verzekeringen - 100%

Marek Jandziƒski; Tadeusz Gacyk; Konrad Biedul

Robert Woêny

PAI Media - 84%; Invest-Bank - 14%; Totalizator Sportowy - 2% None

President; Vice Presidents

President; Vice President; Board Member

Anna Horsecka; Katarzyna Jakóbiƒska, El˝bieta Ziarkowska President; Vice Presidents

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. Monika Brysiak, ul. Elblàska 15/17, 01-747 Warsaw, via fax to (+48) 22 639-8569, or via e-mail to wbjbol@wbj.pl. Copyright 2012, 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.

20

MARKETS

www.wbj.pl

MARCH 18-24, 2013

Stocks report

world stock indices DJIA

NASDAQ

S&P500

3,258.93 (March 14 close)

14,539.14(March 14 close)

0.83% (for the week)

1.46% (for the week)

FTSE100

1,563.23 (March 14 close)

DAX

6,514.80(March 14 close)

1.23% (for the week)

1.17% (for the week)

Polish equities struggle

NIKKEI225 8,058.37 (March 14 close)

12,381.19(March 14 close)

1.49% (for the week)

3.45% (for the week)

CHANGE: 8.40%

CHANGE: 4.71%

CHANGE: 6.89%

CHANGE: 8.09%

CHANGE: 3.59%

CHANGE: 15.84%

(year to March 14)

(year to March 14)

(year to March 14)

(year to March 14)

(year to March 14)

(year to March 14)

52-week high: 14,539.29

52-week high: 3,258.93

52-week high: 1,563.32

52-week high: 6,534.00

52-week high: 8,060.26

52-week high: 12,461.97

52-week low: 12,035.09

52-week low: 2,726.68

52-week low: 1,266.74

52-week low: 5,229.80

52-week low: 5,914.43

52-week low: 8,238.96

Andrew Nawrocki WBJ market analyst Polish stocks struggled to impress last week, especially on the back of record highs being reached across the Atlantic. Monday started off poorly, with dismal macroeconomic data being released in both France and Italy, showing falls in industrial production and growth, respectively. The wider-market WIG index lost 0.3 percent, while the blue-chip WIG20 index fell nearly half a percent.

Tuesday’s session was uneventful, with little macroeconomic news being released. All four major indices in Poland – the WIG, WIG20, medium-cap mWIG40 and small-cap sWIG80 – managed to close slightly higher, a rare occurrence in recent weeks.

Wednesday started off with small falls throughout

Major indices WIG

47,223.68 (March 14 close)

WIG20

2,498.84 (March 14 close)

14.03

13.03

12.03

11.03

08.03

07.03

06.03

05.03

04.03

01.03

28.02

27.02

26.02

14.03

13.03

12.03

11.03

08.03

07.03

06.03

05.03

04.03

2,400

01.03

45,000

27.02

2,420

28.02

45,600

26.02

2,440

25.02

46,200

22.02

2,460

21.02

46,800

20.02

2,480

19.02

47,400

18.02

2,500

15.02

48,000

25.02

52-week low: 2,035.80

22.02

Change year to March 14: -4.85%

21.02

52-week low: 36,653.28

20.02

52-week high: 2,628.36

Change year to March 14: -1.84%

19.02

Change for the week: 0.98%

18.02

52-week high: 48,222.72

15.02

Change for the week: 1.02%

Top 5 HBPOLSKA DREWEX TFONE ABMSOLID JHMDEV

Closing 0.02 0.53 2.90 0.62 0.46

% change (week) 52-week high 100.00 1.08 96.30 0.84 75.76 3.07 72.22 4.75 58.62 0.98

52-week low 0.01 0.19 1.13 0.10 0.21

Top 5 GTC SYNTHOS PGE PGNIG HANDLOWY

Closing 8.78 6.73 17.71 5.99 98.40

% change (week) 9.07 5.82 5.73 4.36 4.18

52-week high 10.25 6.79 19.54 6.10 102.10

52-week low 5.13 4.92 15.11 3.63 64.20

Bottom 5 IDEON REGNON BOMI BIOTON ADVADIS GANT

Closing 0.07 0.02 0.04 0.05 0.03 1.77

% change (week) -41.67 -33.33 -33.33 -28.57 -25.00 -23.38

52-week low 0.06 0.02 0.04 0.05 0.02 1.55

Bottom 5 TPSA PZU PKNORLEN TVN BRE

Closing 6.86 416.50 55.10 9.40 345.50

% change (week) -4.06 -3.14 -1.61 -1.05 -0.69

52-week high 17.34 442.00 57.40 10.99 356.90

52-week low 6.71 272.07 31.44 5.90 255.70

52-week high 0.21 0.14 2.16 0.11 0.09 9.98

Currency report

Inflation falls again

Other indices sWIG80

11,231.22 (March 14 close)

WIG-Banki

6,548.90 (March 14 close)

14.03

13.03

12.03

11.03

08.03

07.03

06.03

05.03

04.03

01.03

28.02

27.02

26.02

14.03

13.03

12.03

11.03

08.03

07.03

06.03

05.03

04.03

01.03

6,300

28.02

32.0

27.02

6,360

26.02

32.4

25.02

6,420

22.02

32.8

21.02

6,480

20.02

33.2

19.02

6,540

18.02

33.6

15.02

6,600

25.02

52-week low: 5,163.30

22.02

Change year to March 14: -2.59%

21.02

52-week low: 32.13

20.02

52-week high: 6,723.16

Change year to March 14: -1.75%

19.02

Change for the week: 1.69%

18.02

52-week high: 43.43

15.02

Change for the week: -0.82%

34.0

Adam Narczewski X-Trade Brokers DM SA

14.03

13.03

12.03

11.03

08.03

07.03

06.03

05.03

04.03

01.03

52-week low: 8,984.43

28.02

25.02

22.02

14.03

13.03

12.03

11.03

08.03

07.03

32.64 (March 14 close)

52-week high: 11,245.80

SOURCE: WSE

NewConnect

06.03

05.03

04.03

10,800

01.03

2,500

28.02

10,900

27.02

2,540

26.02

11,000

25.02

2,580

22.02

11,100

21.02

2,620

20.02

11,200

19.02

2,660

18.02

11,300

15.02

2,700

21.02

Change year to March 14: 6.65%

20.02

52-week low: 2,147.52

19.02

Change year to March 14: 4.64%

18.02

Change for the week: 1.71%

15.02

52-week high: 2,689.51

27.02

2,687.81 (March 14 close)

Change for the week: 1.28%

26.02

mWIG40

Europe, with major indices across the continent shedding slightly less than half a percent. Both the WIG and WIG20 lost about onethird of a percent, with only the sWIG80 managing to close higher, up 0.39 percent.

European equities finally managed to pull up on Thursday, taking whiff of the improved economic situation in the US. The WIG20 gained 1 percent, while the WIG saw a 0.72 gain.

On Friday, bad news from the US pushed stocks down. The University of Michigan’s economic sentiment index dropped to its lowest point in a year, to 71.8 from 77.6 in February.

The WIG ended the day down 0.21 percent while the WIG20 lost half a percent.●

After the previous, exciting week on the currency markets, investors got a breather last week. Volatility was lower for both major and emerging-markets currencies.

The EUR/USD continued to decline, reaching levels just above $1.29, its lowest since May of last year. By the end of the week a rebound brought the major currency pair close to $1.31.

On the local market, the main focus was the decrease of consumer price index inflation to 1.3 percent in February. This reading is below the lower bound of the central bank’s target (inflation of 2.5 percent, plus or minus 1 percent). It seemed that after the last 50bp interest rate cut, the Polish Monetary Policy Council might take a break

in April to observe the developing situation and then lower them again in May. However, in light of such low inflation, it seems reasonable to cut interest rates one more time, the sooner the better. That’s what the markets now expect, as could be seen in the trading, as the z∏oty weakened.

The EUR/PLN climbed from z∏.4.13 to z∏.4.15 while the CHF/PLN advanced from z∏.3.34 all the way to z∏.3.37.

Only the USD/PLN behaved differently, which can be attributed to dollar weakness in the second part of the week. Still, the USD/PLN climbed all the way to z∏.3.21 (its highest since November of last year) only to finish the week lower, at z∏.3.17. ●

currency rates 3.3217

3.3260

3.3202

12.03

13.03

14.03

15.03

3.3119 11.03

SOURCE: NBP

3.3172 08.03

0.1040

0.1038 15.03

3.0

3.3120

PLN-100JPY

3.5

14.03

0.1037 13.03

0.1037 12.03

11.03

0.1032 08.03

3.3539

3.3770 15.03

0.101

0.1035

PLN-RUB

0.105

14.03

3.3663 13.03

3.3643 12.03

11.03

3.3583 08.03

4.7795

4.8260 15.03

3.3

3.3475

PLN-CHF

3.5

14.03

4.7688 13.03

4.7364 12.03

4.7482 11.03

4.7

08.03

4.7618

3.1868 15.03

3.2000

PLN-GBP

14.03

3.1863 13.03

3.1690

3.1887 12.03

11.03

3.1

08.03

4.1595 15.03

4.1448

3.2

3.1828

PLN-USD

3.3

14.03

4.1484 13.03

4.1500 12.03

4.1497 08.03

4.1

11.03 4.1390

PLN-EUR

4.2

SPORTS

MARCH 18-24, 2013

www.wbj.pl

21

Tennis

The Polish tennis stars were both defeated in the last 16 at Indian Wells

COURTESY OF AGNIESZKA RADWA¡SKA

Urszula and Agnieszka Radwaƒska were both knocked out of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, California in the same stage last week.

Urszula, who is currently

ranked 37th in the WTA rankings, had the toughest match as she faced top seed and defending champion Victoria Azarenka. The Belarusian was in complete control for most of the match, making 80 percent of her first serves in a fantastic display, allowing her to win comfortably, 6-4, 6-1.

Urszula’s defeat was some-

Agnieszka Radwaƒska

what expected, given the quality of her opponent. But her sister, who was seeded third, was expected to handily dispatch with Maria Kirilenko, ranked 15th in the WTA rankings.

The 24-year-old, who made the Wimbledon final last year, has been in mixed form so far this year and she came out of the blocks slowly in this matchup, losing six games in a row after winning the opening game. Ms Radwaƒska rallied in the second set, securing the only break to win 6-4 and level the match at 1-1. But her 26-year-old opponent proved too strong in the final set, winning 7-5 to secure a major upset and leave Ms Radwaƒska contemplating another defeat.

“Every time we play against each other it’s so difficult. You know every time it seems like deja vu, the score is the same, everything the same,” Ms Kirilenko told reporters after the match.

“Just today I was a little bit more lucky. I mean I lost to her for like the last four times I think. So it was kind of a similar match, like previous ones. I’m happy that I won.”

David Ingham

DAILY EXECUTIVE DIGEST Poland A.M. gives you the biggest Polish stories of the day.

Have the most valuable news delivered to your inbox each weekday morning.

S i g n u p f o r a 2 - w e e k f r e e - t r i a l ! w w w. p o l a n d a m . p l G e r m a n v e r s i o n : w w w. p o l e n a m m o r g e n . p l

COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Radwaƒska sisters crash out

A picture of the future?

Soccer

Âlàsk Wroc∏aw to go bankrupt?

The 2012 Ekstraklasa champions are coowned by Poland’s second-richest man Âlàsk Wroc∏aw, one of Polish soccer’s biggest clubs, could go into administration in the next few weeks if new funds are not found to save the ailing giant.

The 2011/2012 Ekstraklasa champions have received no money from their billionaire co-owner Zygmunt Solorz-˚ak since the start of 2012, a move which has left the club’s finances in a perilous state.

Mr Solorz-˚ak, who has a personal fortune of over z∏.10 billion according to the latest Forbes rich list, owns a 51 percent stake in the Lower Silesian

giants (the remaining shares are owned by the city of Wroc∏aw), but according to an agreement signed when he bought the club, Mr Solorz˚ak claims that he was only supposed to fund Âlàsk until the end of 2011, after which time the club was expected to be self-sufficient.

The club’s finances were expected to be secured by a shopping mall that Mr Solorz˚ak had intended to build next to the city’s new state-of-the-art Municipal Stadium, which was built for last summer’s European soccer championships and where the team plays its home games. However the proposed shopping-center project never got off the ground and

since then Mr Solorz-˚ak has shown no interest in spending any money on the team.

Last year Âlàsk Wroc∏aw survived as the result of a z∏.12 million loan form the local authorities, but this season the club owes some z∏.4 million in wages to its players, according to Polish weekly Wprost, a debt that it looks increasingly unlikely to be able to pay. And the club’s off-field problems seem to have negatively affected their on-field performance this year, with Âlàsk Wroc∏aw currently in the middle of the league table, leaving them a lot to do if they are to secure backto-back titles come the end of the season.

David Ingham

22

LIFESTYLE

www.wbj.pl

MARCH 18-24, 2013

Restaurants

Concert

Poland gets first Michelin star

Simply Mick

Head chef and owner Wojciech Modest Amaro

Warsaw’s Atelier Amaro restaurant was awarded for its culinary excellence Poland finally has a place at the table when it comes to world-renown cuisine after the Atelier Amaro restaurant was awarded a Michelin star last week. The restaurant, which is the brainchild of chef Wojciech Modest Amaro, has been highly praised since it opened last year. Described by Mr Amaro himself as a place where “science meets nature,” the dishes on offer are made from locally sourced, natural produce, pre-

pared using the latest molecular cooking techniques.

Having worked as head chef at nearby restaurant Amber Room, Amaro spent 18 months prior to opening his Michelin-starred eatery to travel across Poland for the best ingredients and flavors.

He also visited winners of the World’s Best Restaurant award, Copenhagen’s Noma and the now-closed El Bulli in Catalonia to refine his techniques there.

Upon his return to Poland Atelier Amaro was opened, offering connoisseurs a menu consisting of either three, five or

eight “moments,” priced from z∏.145 to z∏.280. And following recognition in 2012 with the award of Poland’s first-ever Michelin Rising Star award, this year they went one better, achieving the country’s first star.

The Michelin guide announced last week that, “For the first time, a star has been awarded to a restaurant in Warsaw (Poland) – Atelier Amaro – where Michelin inspectors were enchanted by the chef’s preparation of local products, his innovative cooking style and original combinations of ingredients.”

David Ingham

Mick Hucknall originally found fame with English pop band Simply Red, who were massively successful during the 1980s and 90s, selling more than 50 million albums and scoring two number one singles on the US Billboard charts. Formed by Mr Hucknall in 1985 in Manchester, the band achieved super stardom with hits including “Money’s Too Tight (To Mention),” “Holding Back the

COURTESY OF MICKHUCKNALL.COM

COURTESY OF ATELIER AMARO

Mick Hucknall March 26 Sala Kongresowa Pl. Defilad 1 Warsaw

Mick Hucknall

Years,” “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” and “Stars.”

Since 2008 the band’s former lead singer has been going it alone, recording his first solo album that year, a tribute to blues musician Bobby “Blue” Bland. He has since performed with the Faces, taking Rod Stewart’s place when performing “Stay with Me” with the band at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in April last year.

The singer-songwriter is currently on tour promoting his second solo studio release “American Soul,” a record that

comprises reinterpretations of classic older songs. Tracks on the record include Etta James’ hit “I’d Rather Go Blind” and Otis Redding’s “That’s How Strong My Love Is” with every song on the release being one of Mr Hucknall’s favorite tracks.

Fans expecting to hear some of their favorite Simply Red songs should prepare to be disappointed. According to reviews of his recent London shows, the set list is strictly limited to songs from his solo career.

David Ingham

LAST WORD

MARCH 18-24, 2013

www.wbj.pl

23

Tech Eye

sumed a vast quantity of movies, books and magazines from the paleolithic era early to mid-20th century.

But whether awesome or horrible, the past’s future is funny to modern eyes.

These retro-futures are filled with nuclear-powered vacuum cleaners, roofed cities, “aerial cars” and flying locomotives. Force fields are everywhere, mind control is a daily menace and X-ray vision

means it’s never safe to wear dirty undies. The future is hilarious.

Ludicrous.

Or is it? Some crazy stuff is happening, right now. Like object replication, an idea popularized by Star Trek. The promise of this futuristic technology has been partly realized by 3D printing, but it still requires complex (and tedious) modeling.

MakerBot, a leader in the desktop 3D printing market, aims to reduce this complexity with its Digitizer 3D scanner (MakerBot.com).

This is a work-in-progress – a prototype was just unveiled – but it’s exciting. The Digitizer automatically scans and models an item in 3D, significantly cutting the time and effort needed to print. MakerBot hasn’t talked pricing, but we expect the first production model to cost upwards of $2,000-3,000.

The prototype can only scan smallish objects, but who knows what the future holds. In a decade or so, office jokesters could be making 3D replicas of their buttocks, instead of photocopies.

Google, meanwhile, is busy fomenting its own tech-

Google Glass nological revolution. Its Google Glass is part heads-up display, part reality augmentor and part camera (Google.com/glass). It’s a wearable computer and a thousand ethical dilemmas waiting to happen. And it’s probably going to hit the market this year.

Think of the applications: to drive and look at a map at the same time, without increased risk of

pedestrian-smooshing. To say, with a straight face, “Yes Darling, let’s watch that romantic comedy,” but actually watch a kung-fu movie. To record your skeevy boss perving at the new junior accountant’s bosom and then blackmail him with the footage.

If Google gets it right – and there’s a lot of positive buzz suggesting it has – then Glass could be a game-changer on par with uChek e-readers, mp3 players and coffee makers. As with MakerBot’s Digitizer, no price info is available, but $1,000+ is probably a good guess.

And here’s one more example of how the fantastical future is becoming the COURTESY OF BIOSENSE TECHNOLOGIES

The Digitizer

COURTESY OF MAKERBOT

The future is awesome and filled with fantastical, life-improving inventions. Except when it’s horrible and filled with evil, life-extinguishing aliens/mutants/robots. And even then it’s still kind of awesome.

That’s the impression we’ve gotten, anyway, having recently con-

COURTESY OF GOOGLE

Holy crap, the future is now fantastical now: the personalization of medicine. Not only are new medical gadgets appearing, but smart, consumer-health-minded folks are thinking up novel uses for existing technologies, like smartphones.

Biosense Technologies, an Indiabased biotech start-up, is a case in point. It is very close to selling a personal urinalysis tool called uChek (uChek.in).

Now, before anyone starts worrying, uChek doesn’t involve peeing on a smartphone. You use a cup. Preferably a clean cup belonging to someone you don’t like. You swish a dipstick about, wait a few seconds, pull it out and take a picture of it on a color mat. An app (iOS and Android) analyzes the color and clarity, and evaluates possible medical issues. Then, if necessary, you go see a real doctor.

The app will cost 99 cents, while a kit comprising five dipsticks and a color mat will run about $20. Also, remember to clean the camera lens first, else you may get a false diagnosis of smudgy bladder.

The future is now, friends. It’s awesome, but also has you taking pictures of urine, which is kind of horrible. Who among our ancestors could have foreseen it? ●

Ever used photocopied a buttock at work? Let us know: techeye.wbj@gmail.com

Museums, galleries and venues in Warsaw Centre for Contemporary Art at Ujazdowski Castle ul. Jazdów 2 www.csw.art.pl Czarna Gallery ul. Marsza∏kowska 4 www.czarnagaleria.art.pl

Katarzyna Napiórkowska Art Gallery ul. Âwi´tokrzyska 32, ul. Krakowskie PrzedmieÊcie 42/44 and Old Town Square 19/21 www.napiorkowska.pl

Fibak Gallery ul. Krakowskie PrzedmieÊcie 5 www.galeriafibak.pl

Królikarnia National Gallery ul. Pu∏awska 113a www.krolikarnia.mnw.art.

Galeria 022, DAP, Lufcik pl ul. Mazowiecka 11a www.owzpap.pl Le Guern Gallery ul. Widok 8 Galeria 65 www.leguern.pl ul. Bema 65 www.galeria65.com Museum of Galeria Appendix 2 Independence ul. Bia∏ostocka 9 Aleja SolidarnoÊci 62 www.appendix2.com www.muzeumniepodleglo sci.art.pl Galeria Asymetria ul. Nowogrodzka 18a National Museum in www.asymetria.eu Warsaw Al. Jerozolimskie 3 Galeria Foksal ul. Foksal 1-4 www.mnw.art.pl www.galeriafoksal.pl Galeria Milano Rondo Waszyngtona 2A www.milano.arts.pl Galeria Schody ul. Nowy Âwiat 39 www.galeriaschody.pl Galeria XX1 Al. Jana Paw∏a II 36 www.galeriaxx1.pl Galeria Zoya ul. Kopernika 32 m.8 www.zoya.art.pl Green Gallery ul. Krzywe Ko∏o 2/4 www.greengallery.pl

Polish National Opera at Teatr Wielki Pl. Teatralny 1 www.teatrwielki.pl

Simonis Gallery ul. Burakowska 9 www.simonisgallery.com State Archaeological Museum in Warsaw ul. D∏uga 52 www.pma.pl State Ethnographic Museum ul. Kredytowa 1 www.ethnomuseum.pl Historical Museum of Warsaw Old Town Square 28-42 www.mhw.pl History Meeting House of Warsaw ul. Karowa 20 www.dsh.waw.pl Warsaw Philharmonic ul. Jasna 5 www.filharmonia.pl Warsaw Rising Museum ul. Grzybowska 79 www.1944.pl

Wilanów Palace Pracownia Galeria ul. Emilii Plater 14 Museum and Wilanów www.pracowniagaleria.pl Poster Museum ul. St Kostki Potockiego Rempex Art and 10/16 Auction House www.wilanow-palac.pl ul. Karowa 31 www.postermuseum.pl www.rempex.com.pl Royal Castle Pl. Zamkowy 4 www.zamekkrolewski.com.pl

Zachęta National Art Gallery Pl. Ma∏achowskiego 3 www.zacheta.art.pl