VOLUME 18, NUMBER 13 • APRIL 2-8, 2012 . z∏.12.50 (VAT 8% included) . ISSN 1233 7889 INDEX-RUCH-332-127

African gas bonanzaJan Kulczyk stands to benefit from the discovery

of massive gas reserves in Tanzania

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Since 1994 . Poland’s only business weekly in English

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Made in PolandA special report on Polish exports

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CIA ‘black sites’Poland charges a former intelligence chief

over allowing the CIA to operate a secret

detention center on its soil 3, 10

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Stakes in 300 state-ownedcompanies will be up forgrabs in 2012-2013

Coalition partners PO andPSL finally strike a dealon pension reform

Foreign Minister Sikorskilays out Poland’sforeign policy strategy

News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-4

Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-6

Fashion Industry in Focus . . . . . . .7

Interview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8-9

Opinion & Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Made in Poland supplement .11-14

Lokale Immobilia . . . . . . . . . . .15-17

The List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Lifestyle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

Last Word . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

REAL ESTATELokale Immobilia

• Skanska homes

• Poznaƒ warehouses

• Olivia Business Centre

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Interview:Ireneusz KrzemiƒskiThe sociology professor

digs into the anxieties

of Polish society

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Fashion in focus:Ewa Minge

The designer talks to WBJ

about her new business

plans

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APRIL 2-8, 2012NEWS2 www.wbj.pl

Smolensk

anniversary

dispute

Poland’s main opposition

party, Law and Justice

(PiS), has accused

Warsaw authorities of

obstructing preparations

for the second

anniversary of the April

10, 2010 Smolensk

airplane crash, reported

Rzeczpospolita. Activists

from PiS have submitted

an application for a day-

long peaceful

demonstration involving

approximately 20,000

people. The city council

has asked PiS to take

care of security and

traffic control. PiS

reportedly interprets

these requirements as

“sabotage.”

Poland not

ready for Euro

2012Three months before the

Euro 2012 soccer

championship kicks off in

Poland, barely 64% of

investments geared

towards the event have

been finished or realized

according to plan,

indicates data from

PL.2012, which oversees

preparations for the

tournament. The value of

investments that were

supposed to be ready

before Euro 2012

amounts to z∏.94.1 billion.

It is already known that

investments worth an

estimated z∏.13 billion

will not be finished on

time.

Palikot and

Miller won’t

cooperate There is growing

reluctance between

Palikot’s Movement and

the Democratic Left

Alliance (SLD) to

cooperate with one

another, reported

Rzeczpospolita. The

parties have now given

up plans of any common

endeavors, according to

the daily.

Food export

slowdown

Poland will export about

€15.5 billion worth of

food products this year,

according to Wies∏aw

¸opaciuk of the Institute

of Agricultural and Food

Economics. This would

represent a 2.4%

increase on 2011, much

lower than last year’s

12% annualized growth

rate, reported

Rzeczpospolita. ●

Akrikhin ......................12

Ammono ....................12

AOS ............................15

Apricot

Capital Group ............15

Asseco Poland ..........12

Atlas Estates ..............16

Bayer ..........................15

BG Group......................5

Budimex ....................15

Bumar ........................11

BZ WBK....................5, 6

CD Projekt..................12

Chimpharm ................12

Citigroup ......................6

Colliers ......................17

Comarch ....................12

DAX Cosmetics ..........14

Deutsche Bank ..........16

Disney Mobile ............23

Dom Development ....16

Dr. Irena Eris ..............14

Enea ............................5

Energa ..........................5

Energa Group ............15

Esotiq & Henderson ....7

Eva Minge Design ........7

FSO ............................13

GFKM..........................15

Global Insight ............11

Goyello........................15

Home Broker ............16

IMS Health ................12

Inglot ..........................14

Jones

Lang LaSalle ........15, 17

JSW ..............................5

KGHM ..........................6

Kulczyk Investments....5

Libra Project ..............15

LPP ..............................7

Master

Management Group ..15

Meritum Bank............15

MultiBank ..................16

Nasza Klasa ................4

Noodlecake Studios ..23

Nordea Bank..............16

Oceanic ......................14

Open Finance ............16

Ophir Energy ................5

Peter

Nielsen & Partners ....6

PGE ..........................5, 6

PKN Orlen ....................6

PKO BP ............5, 15, 16

Polbank ......................16

Polfa Warszawa ........12

Polish Investments

Real Estate Holding ..16

Polkomtel ....................6

Polpharma ................12

PwC ............................15

PZL Mielec ................14

PZU ..............................5

Redan ..........................7

Rovio ..........................23

SII................................15

Sikorsky Aircraft ........14

Skanska Residential

Development Poland 16

Soraya ........................14

The Hackett Group ......3

TopGaN ......................12

TPS ............................15

Volkswagen ................13

Wittchen ......................7

WSE ..........................5, 6

X-Trade Brokers ........20

ZEW Niedzica ..............5

Ziaja ............................14

Addressing parliament earlylast Thursday, Foreign Minis-ter Rados∏aw Sikorski outlinedPoland’s foreign policy priori-ties for the years 2012-2016,pointing to Germany and theUS as the country’s mostimportant allies.

“Our most important part-ner in Europe, due to tradelevels as well as an increasinglysimilar economic culture andpolitical concept, is Germany,”Mr Sikorski said.

He added that even thoughPoland’s western neighbor wasthe strongest country in theEU, it needed more than onepartner to allow it to realize itsaims. “If you involve us in thedecision-making process, youcan count on Poland’s sup-port,” Mr Sikorski said.

Regarding the US, the FMsaid Poland “is ready to realizethe Polish-US agreement tobuild a missile-defense shield,although we know that theAmericans could change their

plans.” He added that Polandwould welcome “with openarms” the first permanent USmilitary unit scheduled to bedeployed on Polish soil as partof the defense-shield program.

He reminded parliament,however, that Poland expectedthe fulfillment of the promisemade by President BarackObama to lift visa require-ments for its citizens.

Regarding Poland’s rela-tions with countries locatedimmediately to its east, MrSikorski said they are “muchworse than we would like butsignificantly better than theyhave been in the past and bet-ter than they could be.”

He said Poland would con-tinue to strive for “reconcilia-tion” with Russia, adding,however, that the Polish gov-ernment is “trying to securethe return of our property, thewreckage of the Tu-154 planein which our leaders and ourfriends died [in Smolensk, on

April 10, 2010].”Regarding Ukraine, Mr

Sikorski said it would remainPoland’s most important“non-Atlantic” strategic part-ner. He said Poland was“ready to support [Ukraine] ifit definitively chooses a Euro-pean destiny.”

Mr Sikorski also talkedabout Poland’s standing in theworld, pointing to a recentOrganisation for EconomicCo-operation and Develop-ment report which shows thatPoland has recorded thefastest average economicgrowth out of all countries inthe organization since 2007(see story, p. 6.).

“Today we are associatedwith economic growth, moder-nity and effective manage-ment, we have become a part-ner who it is worth wooing,”he said. “Modern Poland is thebest [Poland] we have everhad.”

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€15.5 billion is the forecast value of Polish food exports in 2012.

65%of Poles think that Poland will profit financially from

the Euro 2012 soccer championship.

€0.4 billion was the amount of money Polish companies invested

in Germany during 2011.

6this Poland’s position in a Bloomberg ranking of themost promising emerging markets in the world.

“A good terrorist is a dead terrorist”Former PM Leszek Miller responds when asked by Polish Radio what hethought of the allegations that, under his leadership, suspected terrorists weretortured in Poland by the CIA. Mr Miller has denied that he had any knowledgeof the CIA detaining and torturing terrorism suspects in Poland.

Quote of the Week

European mastersAs Poland gears up for this summer’s UEFAEuropean Football Championship, WBJ.pl takesa look at some classic moments from the com-petition’s history.

On WBJ.pl

Numbers in the News

Company index

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April

DATELINE

Polish foreign policy

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Figures in focus

Waste disposalPercentage of municipal waste that was landfilled in 2010,selected EU27 countries

Source: Eurostat

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APRIL 2-8, 2012 NEWS www.wbj.pl 3

Mobile users

to pay less The European

Commission, MEPs and

EU governments have

agreed to reform mobile

roaming fees, paving the

way for users of mobile

devices to pay less for

calls, texts and mobile

internet services when

traveling abroad.

According to the deal the

cost of a one-minute call

would be capped at €0.29

as of July 2012 and €0.19

as of July 2014, down

from €0.35 under current

legislation. Meanwhile, an

SMS would cost no more

than €0.09 as of July 2012

and €0.06 as of 2014,

down from €0.11 under

the current legislation.

Polish

business

centers shineAccording to international

consultancy firm The

Hackett Group, Poland is

the world’s third-most

attractive country for

finance, accounting and

consulting-service

centers, reported

Rzeczpospolita. Poland

was the number-one-

ranked country in Europe,

with only economic

powerhouses China and

India rated better

globally.

Banks earned

record profits

in 2011According to calculations

by the Financial

Supervision Authority,

Polish banks ended 2011

with a combined net

profit of z∏.15.7 billion, a

jump of more than a third

year-on-year, reported

Bankier. “The results last

year were the best in the

history of the Polish

banking sector,”

Krzysztof

Pietraszkiewicz,

president of the Polish

Bank Association, was

quoted as saying by the

Newseria.pl news

agency.

New PPP road

project

Nine companies have

expressed an interest in

building a nine-kilometer

stretch of highway in

southern Poland as part

of a public-private

partnership, reported

Puls Biznesu. The

segment would connect

Tucznawa with the

neighboring Euroterminal

logistics terminal in

S∏awków and an airport in

Pyrzowice. ●

CIA ‘black site’ allegations

Former Polish intelligence chiefcharged in CIA ‘torture’ case The issue of allegedCIA “black sites” inPoland has resurfaced

Zbigniew Siemiàtkowski, headof Poland’s intelligence service(the AW) from 2002 to 2004,has been charged by the PolishProsecutor’s Office withbreaking international law inconnection with an investiga-tion into alleged CIA “blacksites.” Some of these secretdetention facilities, where CIAsuspects in the “global war onterror” were allegedly keptand, in some cases, subjectedto torture, were reportedlybased in Poland.

Specifically, Mr Siemià-tkowski is being charged withallowing prisoners to be ille-gally deprived of their libertyand with allowing “physicalpunishment” to be usedagainst them. He will face thecharges in a domestic criminalcourt.

Mr Siemiàtkowski, howev-er, told television station TVPInfo that he had “refused toanswer the prosecutor’s ques-tions and will continue to do soat every stage of the proceed-ings, including in court,” citingissues of national security.

‘Black sites’The charges relate to an inves-tigation, launched in 2008, into

whether Poland hosted CIAdetention centers for suspect-ed terrorists during the earlyyears of the “war on terror.” Amilitary base in Stare Kiejkuty,northeastern Poland, wasallegedly used as one of the so-called CIA “black sites”between December 2002 andSeptember 2003.

In January this year, Polishprosecutors granted terrorism

suspect Abu Zubaydah “victimstatus” in an investigationafter he claimed to be a victimof secret detention and torturewhile in Poland.

There are suggestions thatthe current leader of the Demo-cratic Left Alliance, LeszekMiller, who was prime ministerduring the period when theblack sites were allegedly in use,could be charged in connection

with the sites before Poland’sState Tribunal. However, thishad not been confirmed as WBJwent to press.

Mr Miller reacted to thespeculation by saying thatthose responsible for the“leaks” of information were“committing treason.” “Thiswill not end until the prosecu-tor running to the media [withinformation] is punished,” the

former PM told journalists. Mr Miller has denied that

he had any knowledge of theCIA detaining and torturingprisoners in Poland.

A democratic countryMeanwhile, Prime MinisterDonald Tusk reacted by sayingthat “there is no doubt Polandis a democratic country. This isa painful but very clear proofthat no politician, even if handin hand with the biggest super-power in the world, can dosomething that will never seethe light of the day.”

“This is not the 19th centu-ry and not some Bantu state.Rulers have to know how totake care of the dignity of thePolish state and so do onlywhat is in accordance withtheir conscience and the law,”he added.

However, he also said thatif he had been the prosecutor,he “would not have formulat-ed the charges,” and thatPoland was “in a sense thepolitical victim of the indiscre-tion of some people in the USadministration several yearsago.”

Those investigating thecase “must rise to the higheststandards of concern for stateinterest” and show the“utmost discretion,” he added.

Remi Adekoya

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Zbigniew Siemiàtkowski headed Poland’s intelligence service between 2002 and 2004

Pension reform

Ruling coalition comes to an agreementAfter weeks of politicalwrangling andmoments of near-crisis, the leaders ofPO and PSL haveannounced a deal

Prime Minister Donald Tuskand Deputy PM WaldemarPawlak have agreed toincrease the retirement age inPoland to 67 for both menand women, with the possibil-ity of earlier retirement and apartial pension under certainconditions.

The agreement was an-nounced at a press conferencelast Thursday, after weeks ofproposals and counter-propos-als between coalition partnersthe Polish People’s Party(PSL) and Civic Platform(PO) had fueled speculationthat PO leader Donald Tuskmight be forced to seek sup-port for his flagship reformelsewhere. Many politicalobservers wondered whetherthe government could survivethe internal discord.

The changesIn a November2011 address toparliament, theprime ministerannounced that heplanned to in-crease the retire-ment age in Po-land to 67 for bothsexes. Under cur-rent law, Polishmen can retire at65 and women at60.

PSL, the juniorcoalition partner,reacted skepticallyto the idea, laterpushing for thepossibility of earli-er retirement forselected groups.In the end, the coalition gov-ernment agreed to fix theretirement age at 67, to beintroduced by the year 2020for men and by 2040 forwomen.

They also agreed that incertain cases men will beable to retire at 65 and

women at 62. However, thiswill only be applicable tomen who have worked for 40years and to women whohave worked for 35 years.Both men and women willhave to have paid into thepension pot while theyworked. In that case, the par-

tial pension will be financedusing 50 percent of the capi-tal a person has accumulatedthrough the course of his orher working life.

“If you decide to take thepartial pension earlier thenthat means you have decidedon a lower pension after 67

because you havefinanced yourearlier retire-ment from yourown accumulat-ed pension capi-tal,” Mr Tusksaid last Thurs-day at a jointpress conferencewith Mr Pawlak.

The primeminister has saidhe will “suggestparty discipline”when the vote isheld to pass thereform bill. ThePO-PSL coali-tion currentlyhas 234 MPs,giving it a major-ity of just three

MPs in the Sejm, Poland’slower house of parliament. Itis possible, however, that thethird-largest party in parlia-ment, Palikot’s Movement,could support the move,since it had suggested earlierthat it might be willing to.

Remi Adekoya

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PM Tusk (right) and Deputy PM Pawlak have taken a long time to reach an

agreement

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APRIL 2-8, 2012NEWS4 www.wbj.pl

Zbigniew Ziobro, theformer deputy head ofthe Law and Justice(PiS) party and one-time justice minister, an-nounced the officiallaunch of his new politi-cal party, Zbigniew Zio-bro’s Solidarity Poland(Solidarna Polska Zbig-niewa Ziobro), in lateMarch.

“Today we start ourmarch to the victory ofthe Polish right. We wantto represent ordinarypeople and be a partythat is credible, thatkeeps its word,” said MrZiobro at the inauguralcongress, adding that his partywould focus on achieving“social justice” in Poland.

Mr Ziobro, who wasexpelled from PiS in Novem-ber 2011, reminded listenersthat he was the campaign headof PiS co-founder LechKaczyƒski’s successful presi-dential campaign in 2005. Headded that Ludwik Dorn, whowas in charge of PiS’s one andonly parliamentary victory todate, also in 2005, is part ofSolidarity Poland today.

“They didn’t believe in ourvictory then,” Mr Ziobro said,adding that his party aims to

remove the ruling Civic Plat-form party and its “terriblegovernment.”

Solidarity Poland currentlyhas a parliamentary caucuswhich boasts 20 MPs, largelyex-PiS members. The newparty is expected to positionitself to the right of PiS, whichis already considered veryconservative in Poland.

A Homo-Homini opinionpoll taken after SolidarityPoland’s congress had themwith 6 percent support, whichis above the threshold neededto get into parliament.

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New conservativeparty in Poland

Banks

targeting

micro-firms

Small businesses

employing fewer than 10

workers, of which there

were an estimated 1.4

million in Poland in 2010,

are borrowing increasing

amounts from banks. In

2011, loans to small

businesses amounted to

zl.44.2 billion. By 2015,

that number is expected to

increase to zl.54.6 billion,

reported Puls Biznesu.

Nasza Klasa

profits rise

Though Facebook has

overtaken Polish social

network Nasza Klasa in

terms of number of users

in Poland, Nasza Klasa is

still enjoying rising

earnings, Rzeczpospolita

reported. Last year, Nasza

Klasa’s revenues

increased by 15% to

z∏.75.3 million, and its net

profit rose by 4% to z∏.17.3

million. Some 47% of the

website’s revenue comes

from games and other

paid products. Nasza

Klasa has also introduced

new sales channels, and a

tool for providing a market

analysis of the portal’s

members. ●

The government hasbeen trying to enactsome unpopularreforms in recentmonths, leading to adrop in popularity

Sixty-seven percent of Polesnow disapprove of the way theCivic Platform-Polish People’sParty (PO-PSL) coalition isruling Poland, indicates a sur-vey conducted by pollsterCBOS. Only 25 percent thinkit is doing a good job, accord-ing to the poll, which was con-ducted in late March.

Moreover, 45 percentdescribe themselves as oppo-nents of Prime Minister Don-ald Tusk’s government whileonly 31 percent say they sup-port it. This is the lowest levelof support for the PO-PSLcoalition since it started rulingin 2007.

Mr Tusk himself is not far-ing much better, with 57 per-cent of surveyed Poles sayingthey are unhappy that he isheading the government. Only33 percent say they are happywith that fact.

Respondents to the surveyare also critical of the govern-ment’s economic policies, with

only 25 percent saying thecoalition’s plans will improvethe country’s economic situa-tion and 65 percent saying theywill not.

The ruling coalition, and inparticular its senior partner,PO, and leader, Donald Tusk,have seen their popularityplummet in recent months,partly due to an unpopularreform program.

“PO had problems at thebeginning of the year due tothe Anti-Counterfeiting TradeAgreement protests and theprescription-drug reform andright now ... problems are con-

tinuing, with the strong oppo-sition to raising the retirementage to 67 for both men andwomen,” said Sergiusz Trzeci-ak, a political analyst at Col-legium Civitas.

“It is likely that PO’s sup-port will drop even lower, tothe level of 20-25 percent inthe next few weeks. That willcause many PO MPs, who feelfrustrated at their marginaliza-tion in their party, to start tochallenge the ruling party’sleadership, which would fur-ther weaken Mr Tusk and hisparty,” he added.

Remi Adekoya

Polls

Support slumps for ruling PO-PSL coalition

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survey indicates

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Zbigniew Ziobro is the leader of

Solidarity Poland

Poland will present the firstdraft of a new tax on shale gasproduction in April, DeputyEnvironment Minister PiotrWozniak announced last week.

Changes to the law govern-ing hydrocarbon extraction are“necessary to improve condi-tions for investment and toreduce the risk borne by thestate associated with long-termmining activities on a significantscale in the country,” Mr Woz-niak said in a statement. Thelevy “will not be high, because ittakes into account the capitalintensive nature and investmentrisks of the extraction of hydro-

carbons,” he added.Mr Wosniak also said rev-

enues from the future tax willbe payable to the Treasury andto authorities of areas whereproduction takes place.

Deputy Finance MinisterMaciej Grabowski told the Pol-ish Press Agency that the newtax will not come into effectuntil industrial-scale productionof shale gas begins. The govern-ment hopes to launch annualshale gas production of 0.5 to 1billion cubic meters at the turnof 2014/2015.

Some analysts warn thatPolish officials should be espe-

cially careful not to weakentheir negotiating position whenit comes to potential taxes androyalties on natural resources.

“On the one side the gov-ernment is talking aboutspending cuts and raising theretirement age, and at thesame time, it quite happily cre-ates a background for losingbillions of dollars of potentialtax revenue,” said GrzegorzPytel, an energy expert.

“The government is dam-aging Polish long-term finan-cial interest enormously,” headded.

Alice Trudelle

Government set to revealplans for shale gas tax

Analysts say thegovernment could earnmore by selling tostrategic investors

Stakes in a total of 300 state-owned companies stand to besold off under the Polish gov-ernment’s privatization plan for2012-2013. The plan also envi-sions the flotation of stakes in anumber of power companies, astrategy which analysts saycould lead to the Treasury earn-ing less than if it sold to strate-gic investors.

The Treasury, which over-sees state assets, hopes to sellstakes in utilities Energa, Eneaand hydropower firm ZEWNiedzica through the WarsawStock Exchange, it said in its2012-13 privatization plan,released last week. It also plansto sell shares in the country’s

largest utility, PGE. “Selling these companies

through the WSE is not a strat-egy that maximizes the poten-tial earnings they could bringthe state,” said Pawe∏ Puchalski,an analyst at DM BZ WBK. MrPuchalski suggested that strate-gic investors would pay morefor the companies than buyerson the bourse.

While the Treasury, whichhopes to make around z∏.15 bil-lion from the asset-sale pro-gram, said it would prefer to sellthe energy companies via thestock exchange, it has not ruledout the possibility of selling tostrategic investors.

“In my opinion, at least oneof the energy companies is like-ly to be sold to a strategicinvestor,” said Mr Puchalski.

Some analysts have said theplan could lead to an oversup-

ply of energy companies on thebourse, especially given the cur-rent, unstable investment envi-ronment.

“The plan is for the next twoyears, so the Treasury willspread the sale of energy assetsout into next year – I would def-initely not expect z∏.15 billionwithin 2012’s IPOs / SPOs with-in the utility segment,” said MrPuchalski.

The Treasury also hopes tosell stakes in coal-miner JSW,bank PKO BP and insurerPZU. Final decisions will bemade based on prevailing mar-ket conditions. The IPO ofBumar, a producer of militaryequipment, is also planned fornext year. However, this mightbe difficult, since the firm isheavily unionized and is under-going a complicated restructur-ing process. Gareth Price

Privatization

Treasury plans sale ofenergy stakes on WSE

APRIL 2-8, 2012 BUSINESS www.wbj.pl 5

Ophir, an oil and gas explo-ration company in which Pol-ish billionaire Jan Kulczykholds a 10.2 percent stake, saidlast week that results from itsJodari-1 exploration well offthe coast of Tanzania indicatedgross recoverable gas ofaround 3.4 trillion cubic feet.

The findings from the well,which Ophir owns jointly withBG Group, coupled withresults from all four wells thetwo firms have drilled in Tanza-nia, brings the total amount ofrecoverable gas to around 7 tcf(over 2 trillion cubic meters).That’s more than the totalamount of shale gas the PolishGeological Institute (PIG)expects to lie beneath Poland.

In a recently-published

report, PIG said that Poland’sshale gas reserves amount tobetween 0.35 trillion and 0.77trillion cubic meters. Thelower limit is, however, about10 times less than the 5.3 tcmestimated by the US EnergyInformation Administration inApril 2011.

Through his investmentvehicle Kulczyk Investments,Jan Kulczyk purchased a 13percent stake in Ophir in 2006for around z∏.400 million, PulsBiznesu wrote. Companyspokesperson Justyna Kobosdeclined to confirm the valueof the original investment, butsaid Mr Kulczyk now holds a10.2 percent stake.

Based on Ophir’s stockprice, which leaped on last

week’s news from Tanzania,the Polish tycoon’s stake wasworth around z∏.1.2 billion asWBJ went to press.

And the future looks set toget even brighter for the com-pany.

“The result from Jodari-1,at 3.4 tcf recoverable, hasmaterially exceeded pre-drillestimates and represents thelargest discovery in Ophir’shistory,” Nick Cooper, CEOof Ophir Energy, said in astatement. The discovery is “amajor step closer to the secondLNG train,” he said in refer-ence to the possibility that thecompany could build a two-train liquefied natural gasplant which would export toglobal markets.

Aside from his stake inOphir, Jan Kulczyk also ownsa stake in Oil Mining License42, a large oil concession inNigeria. Gareth Price

Gas

Kulczyk to tap massivegas reserves in Africa?

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The Polish billionaire holds a stake in Ophir,which discovered gas reserves in Tanzania thatare potentially much larger than Poland’s shalegas resources

Ophir has discovered major recoverable

gas reserves off the coast of Tanzania

APRIL 2-8, 2012BUSINESS6 www.wbj.pl

Record WSE

profit in Q4The combined profit of

Warsaw Stock

Exchange-listed

companies from 12 key

sectors amounted to a

record z∏.12.9 billion in

Q4 2011. A year earlier,

that figure was z∏.3.7

billion lower, reported

Parkiet. However, these

impressive results were

influenced to a

considerable degree by

one-off events, such as

the sale of Polkomtel

shares by KGHM, PGE

and PKN Orlen, for

some z∏.6 billion.

Gold market

booming

The gold market for

individual investors in

Poland saw major growth

last year, reported

Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.

In 2011, 30,000-40,000

investors bought three

metric tons of gold

billets and coins. This

figure was a 100% higher

than a year earlier,

according to experts

from the Mint of

Wroc∏aw. In 2012, sales

are expected to grow by

87% to around 5.6 metric

tons. “More people

recognize that [gold]

prices are rising steadily,

regardless of what

happens in the real

economy.” said the

mint’s president, Mariusz

Malec ●

Contact: Miros∏aw Stefanik

ms@pnplaw.pl

Legal News

BROUGHT TO YOU BY PETER NIELSEN & PARTNERS LAW OFFICE

Special economic zonesexpandingSpecial economic zones (SEZs) are stillhighly popular among investors. To meetPolish SEZs’ recent need for land, the Coun-cil of Ministers adopted decrees concerningSEZs.

Land located in Koszalin, Wa∏cz, S∏upskand Ustka has been included in the S∏up-sk SEZ, whereas the Warmia and MazurySEZ has been expanded to include land inOlsztyn, Elblàg and Nidzica. The Ministryof Economy estimates that the inclusionof these areas will result in the creation ofaround 1,600 new workplaces in compa-nies operating in the zones and about 400workplaces in the zones’ neighboringareas.

Amendment to a tax treatywith CyprusOn March 22, 2012, representatives ofPoland and Cyprus signed a protocolamending the Polish-Cypriot Double Taxa-tion Avoidance Agreement.

The most important change to theagreement is the removal of the so-called“tax sparing” clause. This clause enabled

investors to benefit from a tax advantagerelated to tax that had not actually beenpaid in the country where the income inquestion was earned.

Since this method has led to the abuseof law, the Ministry of Finance has beencommitted to removing the tax sparingclause from the treaty signed by Poland.

Moreover, the protocol introduceschanges governing how the incomes ofmanagement board members are taxed.Under the change, incomes of manage-ment board members will only be taxed inthe country of residence of the member inquestion.

New Renewable Energy Depart-ment at Economy MinistryFollowing a motion put forward by DeputyPrime Minister Waldemar Pawlak, aRenewable Energy Department has beencreated in the Ministry of Economy. Thus,renewable energy has become an inde-pendent sector when it comes to govern-ment administration. The first task of thenew department is to continue working onthe draft law on renewable energysources. ●

Copper

KGHM forecasts lowernet profit for 2012 The company’s 2012profit predictions aremuch lower than thez∏.4.3 billion forecastby most analysts

The supervisory board of Pol-ish copper miner KGHMannounced last week that thecompany’s net profit for thisyear is expected to amount toz∏.3.8 billion. This is comparedto a net profit of z∏.11.08 bil-lion in 2011, when the compa-ny sold its 24 percent stake intelecom Polkomtel for a pre-tax profit of z∏.2.31 billion.

Analysts had expectedKGHM’s net profit to amountto z∏.4.3 billion for this year,with only two of 11 financialinstitutions polled by Polishdaily Parkiet predicting a netprofit of below z∏.4 billion.

According to KGHM’smanagement board, profitswill be significantly lower thanlast year due to a new tax oncopper and silver extractionwhich comes into force inMay, and also due to an unfa-vorable macroeconomic situa-tion. In addition, the firm also

does not expect any majorone-off financial gains, such asthe one it got from the sale ofPolkomtel in 2011.

“The substantial decreasein profit versus 2011 is mainlydue to: recognition in theresult for 2011 of the sales oftelecom assets, a change in thevaluation of exchange differ-ences, effects of the introduc-tion of the minerals extractiontax and the deterioration ofmacroeconomic conditions,”KGHM wrote in a statement.

The company did confirm,however, that it would bemonitoring its numbers andwould publish an updatedforecast if the actual figuresdeviate significantly fromthose it has so far predicted.

David Ingham

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

3.8*

11.08

4.6

2.32.8

3.8

*forecast

Back to earthKGHM’s annual net profit 2007-2012 (z∏. billions)

So

urc

e:

KG

HM

Macroeconomics

February unemploymentat five-year highRetail sales growth isstill strong, but thesituation on the labormarket could soonchange that

Registered unemployment inPoland crept up to 13.5 per-cent in February, a rise of 0.3percentage points over theprevious month, according toCentral Statistical Office data.

The reading was the highestsince 2007, with more than2.16 million Poles registeringas jobless.

Despite the weakeninglabor market, retail sales camein higher than expected, grow-ing 13.7 percent y/y in Febru-ary, slightly less than in January(14.3 percent y/y). The marketconsensus had predictedgrowth of around 9.8 percent.

Factors that contributed to

the strong result includedgrowth in sales at generalstores, including supermar-kets, and acceleration of fuelsales, according to a CitigroupGlobal Markets report.

Nevertheless, high unem-ployment is expected to takeits toll on consumer spendingin the next few months.

“The situation on the labormarket in coming months willnot support an increase inhouseholds’ spending,” BankZachodni WBK analysts wrotein a research note. Citigroup,meanwhile, expects that fur-ther weakening of the labormarket will negatively affectretail sales growth and privateconsumption in the next fewquarters.

However, in the earlystages of the summer retailsales could rebound, albeittemporarily.

“We may see still relativelyhigh growth in retail sales,especially June, which will besupported by the Euro 2012[soccer] championships,” Citi-group wrote.

Gareth Price

11.0

11.6

12.2

12.8

13.4

14.0

Feb. '1

2Jan

. '12

Dec. '11

Nov. '11

Oct. '11

Sep. '1

1

Aug. '1

1Jul.

'11Jun

. '11

May '11

Apr. '1

1Mar.

'11Feb

. '11

Jan. '1

1

Another peakUnemployment rate in Poland, February 2011 to February 2012 (%)

Source: Central Statistical Office

Economic growth

OECD praises Polandbut sees GDP slowdownThe Polish economywas the fastest-growing among the 34-country groupthroughout the crisis

Poland’s economy has been thebest performer within theOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development(OECD) during the global eco-nomic crisis, according to theOECD’s “Economic Survey ofPoland 2012,” unveiled in War-saw last week.

Since 2007, Polish cumula-tive real GDP growth was high-er than that of all other coun-tries in the 34-country OECD.Moreover, Poland’s economymade impressive steps towardreducing the income gap withits European Union partners,the report noted.

“Poland’s strong economicperformance in recent years isproof that appropriate macro-economic policy combined withprudent regulation pays off,”OECD secretary general AngelGurría said while presentingthe report in Warsaw withDeputy Prime Minister Walde-mar Pawlak.

Mr Gurría added that it wasnow time for Poland to “pro-mote innovative and greensources of growth and imple-ment structural and social

reforms,” so the country contin-ues to catch-up with the rest ofEurope and consolidates finan-cial markets’ confidence in itseconomy.

The picture presented bythe OECD for Poland lookeddistinctly less bright for 2012,however. With Poland’splanned fiscal retrenchmentand the European economycontinuing to grind to a halt,real GDP growth is projected toslow from 4.3 percent in 2011 to2.75-3 percent in 2012.

Moreover, in order toensure Poland achieves a simi-lar level of GDP growth in2013, the Polish governmentwill need to make furtherreforms, including reformingthe social security system forfarmers and improving the pub-lic healthcare system and pub-lic-sector efficiency over thelong term.

And despite the positiveassessment of Poland’s ability toweather what the financial crisishas thrown at it so far, the coun-try is not immune from the riskof contagion from its Europeantrading partners, warned MrGurría.

Quoting Polish writerStanis∏aw Jerzy Lec, he saidthat Polish success left no roomfor complacency because, “Onevery summit you are on thebrink of an abyss.” DI

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KGHM expects to make a z∏.3.8 billion profit in 2012

APRIL 2-8, 2012 FASHION INDUSTRY IN FOCUS www.wbj.pl 7

Fashion and business

Esotiq & Henderson to take over Eva Minge DesignThe companies plan tobuild a fashion housein Poland and launchsalons offeringdesigner clothing,furniture and jewelry

Esotiq & Henderson, a Pol-ish lingerie company listedon the Warsaw StockExchange’s alternative mar-ket, NewConnect, is takingover a 51 percent stake inEva Minge Design, a fashion

house owned by Polishdesigner Ewa Minge. Togeth-er, they will expand the rangeof clothing collectionsdesigned by Ms Minge, andalso promote a number ofother brands, operating insectors including clothingand interior furnishing.

“The aim of the project isto build a house of fashion aswell as salons which will offerclothes, home furnishingsand jewelry, designed mainlyby Ewa Minge,” AdamSkrzypek, chairman of Esotiq& Henderson, said in a state-ment.

He added that, independ-ently, Esotiq & Hendersonwill develop a chain of itsown salons.

Eva Minge Design is plan-ning to build 15 salons offer-ing upmarket women’s cloth-ing collections and 15 salonsdealing with interior furnish-ings. It also plans to enter thejewelry segment.

“With our new partners,who are successfully develop-ing the Esotiq & Hendersoncompany … we aim to build agroup of luxury goods with-out restricting ourselves onlyto the fashion market,” EwaMinge told WBJ.

The company will alsoexpand globally by promot-

ing other fashion brands. “Eva Minge Design house

of fashion is planning tobuild a portfolio of strongbrands, which will use thehouse of fashion’s system ofdistribution and production,as well as its financial andaccounting background sothat they can develop on alarger, European scale andultimately worldwide,” thecompany wrote in a state-ment.

Polish markettough on fashion“The Polish market is incredi-bly chaotic, and in the fashionsector, it is very unprepared forcompetition with world fashion

leaders … Even if the marketreacts spontaneously to newlyemerging products, manufac-turers are usually not consis-tent in building brands whichwill bring long-term clients,”said Ms Minge.

The designer added thatthe company is planning todesign products that appeal toa wide range of customers.Ultimately, the aim of the proj-ect is to create a multi-genera-tional brand.

Ms Minge said thatalthough Poles’ purchasingpower is much lower thanthat of customers in Westerncountries, demand for luxuryproducts is growing inPoland.

“We do have an expandinggroup of buyers who are will-ing to spend a little extramoney on buying a ... top-shelf product,” Ms Mingeadded.

Izabela Depczyk

Polish clothiers’ international success

Polish clothiers are not only expanding into thehigher-end segment of the market, but are alsoincreasingly looking for opportunities abroad.

According to Katarzyna Twardzik, retailanalyst at market research firm PMR, PolishLPP, which owns brands such as Reserved,Mohito, Cropp and House, has the strongestpresence abroad. LPP’s clothes are sold inBulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hun-gary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Russia andUkraine. Overall, there are 102 Reservedstores, 71 Cropp stores and 36 House storesin locations outside of Poland.

Redan, a major Polish clothier which ownsbrands including Top Secret, Top Secret &Friends and Troll, is another Polish firm thathas established a presence in Eastern Europe,mainly in Ukraine and Russia.

A classic example of Polish success in theclothing sector is Wittchen, a luxury leathergoods maker established in 1990. The firm’sexports are concentrated in Eastern Europe,with a total of 36 Wittchen shops outside ofPoland, mainly in Belarus, the Czech Repub-lic, Lithuania, Russia and Ukraine.

Remi Adekoya

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Designer Ewa Minge aims to create and export a new

group of luxury goods

“Despite Poles’ low purchasing power,demand for luxury products

is growing in Poland”

APRIL 2-8, 20128 www.wbj.pl INTERVIEW

Kaczyƒski:

Smolensk not

an accident

Jaros∏aw Kaczyƒski, the

Law and Justice party

leader and twin brother of

former President Lech

Kaczyƒski, has appealed

to the EU to investigate

the April 10, 2010

Smolensk airplane

tragedy. He has suggested

that foul play helped

cause the incident, which

claimed the lives of 96

people, including that of

his twin. He even implied

that the Polish

government could have

been involved in helping to

kill his brother. “If there

were explosions, if this

catastrophe is starting to

look more and more like

an assassination, then we

have a new era in

politics,” he said.

German

president

visits Poland Joachim Gauck visited

Poland last week for his

first foreign trip as

president of Germany. The

fact that Mr Gauck chose

Poland shows the strong

alliance between the two

nations, said Jaromir

Soko∏owski, a minister in

the Chancellery of the

Polish President, TVN24

reported. Mr Gauck met

with Polish President

Bronis∏aw Komorowski

last Monday, and with PM

Donald Tusk the following

day.

Komorowski

most trusted

A recent survey by CBOS

indicates that President

Bronis∏aw Komorowski,

with a 68% trust rating,

is the most trusted

politician in Poland,

reported Dziennik Gazeta

Prawna. PM Donald

Tusk’s trust rating stood

at 36%. ●

Social mood

An anxious society

Ewa Boniecka: How do youassess the present social moodin Poland?Ireneusz Krzemiƒski: I woulddescribe it as a mood of socialanxiety. The symptoms of sucha mood were already exposedby the findings of pollsterCBOS at the end of last year,and we have entered this yearwith even stronger feelings ofsocial uneasiness and anxiety.This led to the strengthening ofthe movement which protestedagainst the government’s med-ical prescriptions list [for reim-bursement] and the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agree-ment (ACTA). I have no doubtthat the mood was also fueledby the bad start made by PrimeMinister Donald Tusk’s secondgovernment. The government

did not recognize the power ofthe social protests and had for-gotten about the necessity ofbuilding a strategy for commu-nicating with the people, espe-cially when they are protesting.This shows a general lack ofpreparation and it resulted in asituation where the mood ofanger and anxiety among peo-ple was strongly activated.

What worries me evenmore, not only as a scholar butas a citizen, is the general mis-trust of Poles towards the state,and of course towards the gov-ernment, the prime ministerand politics. It is very disturb-ing, looking beyond the cur-rent mood of frustration,because it concerns a funda-mental value – the identifica-tion with one’s own state, with

one’s own country. What issurprising is that two years ago,all research showed that socialsatisfaction and people’sassessment of the state wasgood, despite the financial cri-sis that surrounded us. Andnow, suddenly, that positiveidentification with the stateand the pride in the results ofbuilding an independent, dem-ocratic Poland appear to bemuch weaker.

What are the reasons for thatsocial anxiety and mistrusttowards the state?There are a few reasons, andnot all of them simple. I wouldpoint to two things. First is thedisillusionment towards Don-ald Tusk’s government due toits bad start to its second term.Many people expected a showof energy and moves towardsefficiently tackling problems intheir lives, and became angry atthe aloofness of the govern-ment’s ministers towards them.The second and more pro-

found reason for Poles’ mis-trust towards the state is thefeeling that state institutionsare functioning badly. Peoplefeel that the administration’sorgans, the state’s various func-tionaries and clerks are not act-ing for the public good and donot serve citizens effectively,and, instead, act against them.

Poles have named hun-dreds of examples of that: theobligation to fill in dozens ofpapers [in order] to be admit-ted by doctors; bureaucraticbarriers everywhere, the arro-gance and nonchalance ofbureaucrats, ineffective railwayservices, and so on. It is not anentirely new perception; it hasbeen present for years, butsuddenly people have hadenough of it.

They do not want to betreated like unwanted inquir-ers … or to live in an atmos-phere in which they feel that“this state is not ours.” I ampresenting an exaggerated pic-ture here, but I believe that the

common perception is thatthere has been an accumula-tion of many problems thatstarted during the terms of var-ious governments in the past.The consequences of this neg-lect are now starting to appear.Of course, blaming DonaldTusk’s government for all theseproblems, which the opposi-tion is doing, is not logical orright. But the government, byignoring the social mood andshowing complacency, is nothelping to restore trust in rul-ing politicians and the state.

In my opinion, what is lack-ing, but which is badly needed,is an open and matter-of-factdiscussion with society aboutall our serious problems. Inother words, the government,the prime minister and minis-ters should talk much morewith people and inform themmuch earlier and with greaterclarity about the decisions theyplan to make.

Do you think that this mood ofsocial anxiety can be over-come?I think that there are someparadoxes in the Polish situa-tion, because in comparison tosome other members of theEU our economy is in quitegood shape and, according tostatistics, the situation of thepoorer groups of society hasimproved in the last four years.And in the previous term, thegovernment reformed the partof the retirement system thatdeals with private pensionfunds (OFEs), and is now con-sidering equaling the retire-ment age for men and womenand prolonging it gradually.

Yet the government’s falsestart to the beginning of thepresent term has put it in anextremely difficult position. Sonow, when putting forwardproposals for serious reform, itfirst has to restore people’sconfidence. You cannot carryout reforms without develop-

Ireneusz Krzemiƒski, professor of sociology atthe University of Warsaw, talks with WBJ aboutthe social mood in Poland, communicationissues between government and society and thedifficulty Poles have in identifying with the state

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Poles feel that the state does

not act for the public good,

says Mr Krzemiƒski

APRIL 2-8, 2012 INTERVIEW www.wbj.pl 9

ing a strong, informative cam-paign. Let me remind you thatwhen Jerzy Buzek’s govern-ment introduced the firstreforms to the retirement sys-tem, its communication wasexcellent. So there is a prece-dent for implementing toughreforms [with good communi-cation]. The problem is thatwhile there are strong argu-ments for increasing the work-ing age, these need to be asso-ciated with an effective cam-paign that convinces peoplethat such a move is necessary.

And along with this, con-crete efforts to improve thefunctioning of the social sys-tem need to be made, as well asmeasures to remove parts ofthe state administration thathave failed. This is the onlyway for the government toregain the political initiative.

Yet the political scene ischanging and new politicalparties are springing up. DoPoles identify themselves withthe ideological positions ofthese parties, or are they disil-lusioned with the whole politi-cal scene?There are significant groups ofsociety who have strong ideo-logical and political views.There is no doubt that the[opposition] Law and Justice(PiS) party is based on a verystrong nationalist-Catholic ide-ology. And such a stand isimportant for people who sup-port that party. … PiS’s ideasconcern not current problemsbut abstract ones, and thatshapes the party’s views of therole of the state, which is cur-rently perceived by PiS asbeing “not ours.”

On the other hand, thereare groups of people with liber-al views, center-right views,moderate-conservative views,who identify themselves withthe ruling Civic Platform’s(PO) modernizing position.What bothers me is that thedebate between the govern-ment and PiS still omits someproblems that are very impor-tant to people. Moreover, itlacks content-based argu-ments; their political con-frontation takes place in asomewhat abstract domain.First of all come the problemsof values, moral standards andhow to be a “good patriot,” aswell as the Smolensk planecatastrophe … And thesedebates, conducted on thelevel they were, have allowedthe new, populist Palikot’sMovement to enter parlia-ment, and also contributed tothe splitting of PiS.

Now, Palikot’s Movementis trying to introduce a newlanguage and new issues to thedebate. I think that the pres-ence in the lower house of par-liament of Palikot’s Movementcould become a very goodstimulus for PO politicians towake up and begin to fight forpolitical support. And theyshould do so in a concrete waythat is understood by Poles,and not allow themselves to be

involved in the senseless “Pol-ish-Polish War,” which is con-centrated around the“Smolensk mythology” intro-duced by PiS.

You said once that youngergenerations of Poles exhibitvery little identification withPoland. Do you see this aspart of a general disillusion-ment towards the state, or doyoung Poles have their own,specific reasons for havingsuch an attitude?Polling carried out in the 1990sshowed that the young genera-tion had a good knowledge ofour history, including the histo-ry of World War II, as well as agenerally positive attitudetowards Poland. Now, my stu-dents who are obtaining Eras-mus scholarships funded by theEU for studies in variousEuropean universities definethemselves as Poles and, at thesame time, as Europeans. Ofcourse this is a natural and pos-

itive outcome of Poland’s entryinto the EU.

But since so many youngPoles not only study but alsowork, at least temporarily, inWestern countries, they havestarted to compare their ownconditions and the state of Pol-ish administrative institutionswith the situation in othercountries. And those observa-tions, drawn from their dailylife experiences, have led to amore critical approach towardsthe functioning of our stateand its institutions. Thoseyoung people have a realisticassessment of the Polish eco-nomic condition and the coun-try’s economic distance fromthe West, but what makes themangry and frustrated is the mal-functioning of our state’sorgans, the arrogant treatmentof people by the administra-tion’s officials – they cannotfind an excuse for it. On theother hand, we should remem-ber that Poles are critical andeasily start protests against thegovernment, but they are notoriented enough toward socialactivity and cooperation ... torealize their goals.

How much does the gapbetween Poland’s economicdevelopment and that of coun-tries in the West, bother theruling party and motivate it tospeed up the modernization ofPoland?I think Civic Platform’s politi-cians are well aware of this andthey are trying to accelerateour modernization and at thesame time fight against the badstereotypes of Poland held bysome abroad. My thesis is that

what Donald Tusk wanted toachieve during our presidencyof the EU was to show howmuch Poland is involved in theEuropean Union’s response tocrises, that we really anddeeply belong to the Westernpart of Europe and that Polandis not some kind of remote andstrange Eastern country.

In my opinion he succeededfully and many stereotypes ofPoland, still present in somecountries, were abolished. Thepresent European crisis de-monstrates how much we areconcerned with European mat-ters and how much we care forthe future of the EU.

Yet anti-establishment atti-tudes and fears about thefuture are also fueling protestsamong young people in otherEU states …Yes, and I see in Poland and insome other EU countries,especially among young gener-ations, a tendency for turningtowards the left, and at thesame time being more disillu-sioned with capitalism. Theneo-liberal economic ideaswhich worked so well at theend of last century now seemto be questioned and are insome cases being replaced byincreased state intervention inthe economy.

Yet those feelings and aleaning towards the left insome countries does not meanthat there is a wish to under-mine the rules of the free-market economy. … Socialanxiety is [now] more pro-found, because there are noanswers for how to deal withthe new economic and socialsituation. There are no newand comprehensive ideas onthe horizon. It is a problem forall European societies and formany political parties. At thesame time these new signs ofsocial fears and anxiety couldlead to a rise of populism andchallenges to democratic insti-tutions.

But in Western countries, pro-testers have not rejected theiridentification with the state,like some PiS-inspired pro-testers are doing in Poland,for example ...Some protests in the West areassociated with demands forchanges to the political andeconomic system, while pro-testers are not questioningthe validity of their state. InPoland, the protests againstACTA were spontaneous re-actions against a violation ofpeople’s rights and freedomson the internet, and were notassociated with a challengetowards the existing system.Poles are deeply attached totheir country, they value ourhard-won democratic system.What differentiates us fromother countries is that there isrooted in our national con-science a distrust of politicalinstitutions, which resultsfrom our history. That mis-trust is making our politicsweaker than it could be. ●

“Poles feel that thestate’s organs are notacting for the public

good. It is not new, butsuddenly people have

had enough”

The geopolitics of Poland’s evolving relationships

APRIL 2-8, 201210 www.wbj.pl OPINION & ANALYSIS

Last week, Poland became thefirst EU country to charge oneof its officials over participa-

tion in the CIA’s Rendition, Deten-tion and Interrogation program.Zbigniew Siemiàtkowski, head ofPoland’s intelligence service from2002 to 2004, was charged in connec-tion with his alleged role in helping

to establish an infamous CIA “blacksite” in Poland and will have todefend his actions in front of adomestic criminal court.

More charges may come, withindications that Mr Siemiàtkowski’sdeputy at the time, Andrzej Derlat-

ka, as well as Leszek Miller, formerprime minister and current head ofthe Democratic Left Alliance party,might also face charges.

According to several reports,secret detention facilities were setup in several European countries inthe early 2000s, as part of the US-led“global war on terror” following the9/11 terrorist attacks. A EuropeanParliament report in 2007 said theCIA carried out over 1,000 renditionflights to Europe using airports in 14member states. In several EU coun-tries, including Lithuania, Polandand Romania, CIA suspects wereallegedly kept and, in some cases,subjected to torture.

In a 2004 “Special Review” ofblack sites undertaken by the CIAInspector General, detailed infor-mation was given on operations atthe Polish detention facility, includ-ing the repetitive use of water-boarding on alleged 9/11 conspira-tor Khalid Sheik Mohammed

(approximately 183 times in a sin-gle month).

Constitutional violationThe charges brought against MrSiemiàtkowski last week are part ofan investigation launched in 2008 bythe Polish government. This attemptto look into the country’s potentialinvolvement in a program that couldreveal serious violations of the Pol-ish Constitution and internationalhuman rights treaties, is more thanhas been done by several othercountries allegedly involved in thesame program.

But human rights organizationshave voiced concerns about theeffectiveness of the investigation,arguing that political pressure haslikely played a role in the sluggish-ness of the Polish investigation. Theabsolute refusal of both Mr Millerand Mr Siemiàtkowski to cooperate,invoking state security as theirrationale, indicates that there is like-

ly some truth in these accusations.Another important roadblock is thefact that the United States hasrefused to provide legal assistance inthe case, on the grounds of nationalsecurity and state interest.

Nevertheless, the chargesbrought last week, together withcomments from the Polish primeminister, seem to indicate that thePolish government might at last bewilling to truly support the investiga-tion. “There is no doubt Poland is ademocratic country. This is a painfulbut very clear proof that no politi-cian, even if hand in hand with thebiggest superpower in the world, cando something that will never see thelight of the day,” PM Donald Tusksaid last week.

But the PM also said that if hehad been the prosecutor, he “wouldnot have formulated the charges,”and that Poland was “in a sense thepolitical victim of the indiscretion ofsome people in the US administra-

tion several years ago.”Polish politicians should know

that regardless of their own atti-tudes, the affair will not be left torest easily. The European Parlia-ment, citing new information sinceits 2007 investigation, is preparing afollow-up report. And insiders mightblow the whistle at any moment onwhat has been described as a “globalspider’s web.”

Now is the time for Polish politi-cians to uphold the highest stan-dards of transparency and accounta-bility, and help its courts determinethe truth behind the very seriousallegations that torture might havebeen conducted on Polish territory.

Anything short of this would be apotential blow to the democraticprinciples that all governments inpost-communist Poland have beenelected to preserve. ●

Alice Trudelle is Warsaw BusinessJournal ’s co-managing editor.

At the end of March, the for-eign ministers of Germany,Russia and Poland met in

Berlin. It was the second annualmeeting, part of a framework inwhich the three countries decided tomeet every year to assess their tripar-tite relationship. Given that manyimportant European actions mustwait until the completion of theFrench elections in May, nothing sub-stantive was expected to come fromthe meeting itself. But the fact thatthese three nations have made it apoint to meet regularly is interestingand worth considering.

That consideration begins withPoland, historically caught betweenGermany and Russia, and at timesswallowed by one of them. ForPoland, these two countries havebeen an existential threat throughoutits history. Poland has three strategicoptions: one is to find a powerful andcapable outside force prepared toguarantee its existence. The second isto try to reach some accommodationwith at least one of these countries inorder to deflect the other, while mak-ing sure that its defender does notbecome Poland’s occupier. The thirdis to try to create a military force thatcan deter Russia and Germany.

Changing timesHistorically, none of these strategieshave worked particularly well forPoland. But membership in theEuropean Union, as well as inNATO, allowed the country toundertake a new strategy. ForPoland, as for other countries, hav-ing post-war Germany contained inthese multinational entities haseliminated the German threat. Atthe same time, the end of the ColdWar meant that Russia was nolonger asserting its power overPoland and, in fact, had lost the abil-ity to do so. In response, Polanddeveloped a strategy that strength-ens its relationship with the rest ofEurope, allies itself with Germanyand immunizes itself against Russia– both because of Europe’s strategicvalue and due to the fact that Russiano longer has the power to threatenPoland.

But Poland’s current problem isthat Europe is changing. The struc-tural integrity of the EuropeanUnion is under intense pressurefrom the financial crisis. Its future isunclear and the European Union’sutility as an anchor for Poland istherefore less certain. More impor-tant is the fact that Germany’s place

in the European Union has alsobecome uncertain. The Greek crisisrevealed a dual problem for Ger-many: the first is Germany’s depend-ence on a free trade zone for at leastpart of its exports. The second is thatthe free trade zone might not befinancially able to absorb thoseexports. In addition, countries likeGreece might become a burden toGermany.

Germany is not making any dra-matic shifts in its relationships, butit is searching for alternatives. Themost important is Russia, whichsupplies energy to Germany. Russiaalso needs German technology andcan use German entrepreneurialenergy. Germany, with a decliningpopulation and a growing aversionto immigration, is looking for loca-tions with low labor costs for facto-ries. Russia’s population is alsodeclining, but it still has surpluslabor that is unemployed or, moreoften, underemployed. Theirs is nota potential relationship but an exist-ing and intensifying one. Germany’sties with Russia may not replace theGerman bond with the EuropeanUnion, but a cornerstone relation-ship could develop betweenMoscow and Berlin.

Missile shieldToday, Russia is a strong regionalpower with a particular issue with theUnited States – the Ballistic MissileDefense (BMD) deployment inEurope – which Russia considers athreat to its national interest. TheRussians are threatening to respondto this deployment with one of theirown in Kaliningrad, the soon-to-be-active S-400 strategic air defense sys-tem. Russia has also threatened todeploy the Iskander mobile short-range ballistic missile system.

The BMD system – which is slat-ed to host US BMD interceptors in2018 – is as much symbolic as it isdefensive for Poland. It does notguarantee the country’s security,but it is an indicator of US interestin Poland’s security. Poland isuncertain of US commitments, andthe US is equally unsure of what itintends. But the BMD system pro-vides Poland a glimmer of an alter-native to being sandwiched betweenthe growing collaborative interestsof Russia and Germany. The BMDissue will be on the table at a NATOsummit scheduled in Chicago inMay, and it has some significance inthe foreign affairs equation.

The Polish, German and Russian

FM meeting therefore is more thansimply another diplomatic gettogether. Conditions might bechanging in Europe in a manner thatwould change relations betweenRussia and Germany. Any shift inthat equation increases Polish inse-curity or at least makes it necessaryfor Poland to find an independentplace at the German and Russiantable – something that is never easyfor Poland. That introduces thequestion of a traditional relationshipwith an outside power, namely theUnited States, even though thisstrategy hasn’t worked well forPoland in the past.

Poland’s official position is that ithas no problems with Germany orRussia – or with the evolving relation-ship that is taking place betweenthem. It is not clear whether this isthe reality or the hope of Poland.Still, when the foreign ministers ofthese three countries meet, it is usefulto remember that while relations aresometimes friendly, they are nevercasual. ●

“The geopolitics of Poland’s evolv-ing relationships” is reprinted with

permission of STRATFORSTRATFOR.com

A call for accountability

“Now is the time for Polishpoliticians to uphold thehighest standards oftransparency andaccountability”

STRATFOR

CO-MANAGING EDITOR

GARETH PRICE(GPRICE@WBJ.PL)

CO-MANAGING EDITOR

ALICE TRUDELLE(ATRUDELLE@WBJ.PL)

POLITICS EDITOR

REMI ADEKOYA(RADEKOYA@WBJ.PL)

REAL ESTATE EDITORADAM ZDRODOWSKI(AZDRODOWSKI@WBJ.PL)

COPY EDITORSDAVID INGHAMELLA PA¸KA

CONTRIBUTORSE. BLAKE BERRYEWA BONIECKABRIAN DAVIES

IZABELA DEPCZYKMARK ORDONLIAM NOLAN

COLUMNISTSADAM NARCZEWSKIANDREW NAWROCKI

PRODUCTION MANAGERPIOTR WYSKOK

GRAPHIC DESIGNER¸UKASZ MAZUREK

CARTOONSPIOTR WYSKOK

MARKETING &SALES

AGNIESZKA BREJWO MARKETING &SALES DIRECTOR(ABREJWO@WBJ.PL)

MAGDALENA KARPI¡SKA(MKARPINSKA@WBJ.PL)

AGNIESZKA KUCZY¡SKA(AKUCZYNSKA@WBJ.PL)

MARTA CZESZEJKO-SOCHACKA(MCZESZEJKO-SOCHACKAKA@WBJ.PL)

KAROL KOSIOREK(KKOSIOREK@WBJ.PL)

PR & MARKETING SPECIALIST NATALIA ROGACZEWSKA(NROGACZEWSKA@WBJ.PL)

SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGERAGNIESZKA MICHALIK(AMICHALIK@VALKEA.COM)

PRINT & DISTRIBUTION COORDINATORKRZYSZTOF WILI¡SKI(DYSTRYBUCJA@VALKEA.COM)

BOOK OF LISTS SPECIALISTJOANNA RASZKA(JRASZKA@VALKEA.COM)

PUBLISHER VALKEA MEDIA SA EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ANDREW KURETH (AKURETH@WBJ.PL) MANAGING DIRECTOR MONIKA STAWICKA

Editorials are the opinions of WBJ’s editorial board. Other opinions are those of the authors alone. Comments, opinions and letters should be sent to editor@wbj.pl. Please include a name and contact information and clearly indicate if they are to be considered for publication.

Alice Trudelle

MADE IN POLANDW a r s a w B u s i n e s s J o u r n a l ’s s p e c i a l p r e v i e w o f i t s a n n u a l p u b l i c a t i o n o n P o l i s h e x p o r t s • APRIL 2-8, 2012

Exports

Healthy exports despite trade gap

The strength ofGerman exports stillremains key for Polishcompanies

For years, Poland has import-ed more than it exports.According to preliminary fig-

ures from the Ministry ofEconomy, that trend contin-ued last year, with the coun-try’s trade deficit standing at apreliminary z∏.59.65 billionfor full-year 2011.

The perennial tradedeficit is due in significant

part to strong consumerdemand for imported goodsand to the country’s develop-ment needs. Machine tools,chemicals and engine partsare all required from neigh-boring Germany and othernearby countries to drivePoland’s economy out of thedevelopment phase andtowards convergence with itswealthier neighbors to thewest.

Poland’s z∏.59.65 billiontrade deficit for 2011 com-pared to z∏.55.16 billion in2010 and z∏.37.72 billion in2009, reflecting the economy’sgrowing appetite.

Exports strongContrary to many developedeconomies currently experi-encing widening deficits,Poland’s trade gap is not seenas reflecting a lack of compet-itiveness, or weak exportgrowth. In 2011, total Polishexports denominated in z∏otygrew by 15.3 percent year-on-year to z∏.554.77 billion, onthe back of a weak z∏oty andstrong German exports in thefirst half of the year.

The strength of Germany’sexports, and therefore thestate of the global economy, is

key for Polish companies sincemany components and rawmaterials used in Germanexports are sourced fromPoland. Around 40 percent ofPolish automotive compo-nents, for example, are sent toGermany, according to theEuropean Automobile Manu-facturers’ Association. Thatfigure appears even more sig-nificant considering thatroughly 98 percent of the Pol-ish car industry’s output isexported.

Luckily for Poland, Ger-man exports were healthy inthe first half of last year,meaning producers in thatcountry filed large numbersof orders with Polish suppli-ers. A weakened z∏oty, whichfell by roughly 15 percentagainst the euro in H2 2011,also aided Polish exporters bymaking Polish products moreprice-competitive for thosebuying in euro.

The importance of Ger-many to Poland’s exporters isunderlined by trade data for2011, which show that 26.1percent of all Polish exportsheaded to Germany. In sec-ond place was the UK, wherejust 6.4 percent of Polishexports were sent.

Important commodities Products of the chemicalindustry, mineral products,and plastics and rubber areall Polish-sourced commodi-ties that end up in German-made goods. Ready-madeproducts including transportequipment and articles madefrom metal are also impor-tant. Meanwhile, machineryand mechanical appliances,electrical and electrotechni-cal equipment was the mostimportant commodity forPoland in 2010 (latest dataavailable), earning the coun-

try’s exporters some €32.75billion.

Of increasing importancefor the future of Poland’sexport competitiveness arevalue-added goods such ashigh-tech and pharmaceuti-cals, the development ofwhich is explored in Made inPoland. These and othervalue-added goods are sec-tors that Poland will grow torely on more to help it narrowits trade deficit in the longterm, once internal demandbegins to cool.

Gareth Price

12 13

Polish firms areexporting technology“Made in Poland”

The automotive industrykeeps its sights on Europe’stroubled markets

Poland’s defenseindustry is slowlygetting back on its feetfollowing the end ofthe Cold War

More than 20 years after thefall of communism, the Polishdefense industry is still copingwith major restructuring and acomplete reorientation of itsproduction. And despite Pol-ish defense firms successfullylanding deals to provide anincreasing number of (mainlyAsian) countries with militaryequipment, much remains tobe done before Poland cancompete with many majorWestern countries.

No records of actualexports from the Polishdefense industry are available,and so figures pertaining tothe value of export licensesissued serve as a rough esti-mate. In 2006, the value of

such licenses issued was €275million. By 2008 that numberhad grown to €368 million andin 2009 it leaped up to €1.4 bil-lion. However, the jump in2009 was mainly due to coop-eration between Polish firms,which jointly delivered compo-nents to US and Canadiandefense manufacturers. By2010, the figure had droppedback to €457 million.

These numbers place Polandfar behind not only major Euro-pean countries like France,which boasted defense exportsales of €12.6 billion in 2009,Italy (€6.6 billion) and Germany(€5 billion), but also behind therelatively tiny Austria, whosedefense exports stood at €2.2billion that same year.

Success in sightBy far the largest player in thePolish market is the Tre-asury-owned Bumar Group,which received a big boost in

January 2012 when it signed az∏.1 billion contract to supplythe Indian army with 204WZT-3 Armored RecoveryVehicles.

This is the largest contractthe Polish defense industry hasseen in years. In recent times,Bumar has also sold PT-91 Mtanks to Malaysia and Gromrockets to Indonesia. “Wehave also delivered 48 MBTPT-91Ms to Malaysia andshort-range air-defense sys-tems (KOBRA) to Indonesia,”said Bumar spokespersonTomasz Badowski.

The company’s plan for2011 was to earn z∏.2.9 billionin revenues, of which z∏.530million was expected to comefrom exports.

Black Hawk upBut Poland’s defense industryoffer isn’t only restricted toBumar. Poland also does rea-

Polish cosmeticsfirms, resilient duringthe crisis, are lookingto expand to emergingmarkets

The export of Polish cosmet-ics is a multi-billion-dollarbusiness, and it’s going ratherwell. Indeed, despite theEuropean financial crisis, Pol-ish cosmetics exports are con-tinuing to climb steadily. Butwhile countries in Europeremain Polish firms’ largesttrading partners, many nowplan to expand to otherregions, including emergingmarkets.

Stellar growthPoland’s cosmetics industryexperienced an impressiveboom at the turn of the 2000s.According to a 2007 study byresearch firm Global Insight,the size of Poland’s cosmeticsexport market grew by an

astonishing 400 percentbetween 1999 and 2005, mak-ing Poland one of the fastestgrowing suppliers of cosmet-ics in the world during thatperiod.

And growth hasn’t stoppedsince, with the value of Polishcosmetics exports reachingz∏.8.1 billion in 2010, accordingto Poland’s Central StatisticalOffice. This represents anincrease of around z∏.1.5 bil-lion from 2009. According to2010 figures from industrybody Cosmetics Europe, Pol-ish cosmetics exports were insixth place in Europe in termsof value, after giants France,Germany Italy, the UK andSpain.

This success is due in partto the fact that Poland’s cos-metics industry, overwhelm-ingly composed of SMEs(Global Insight counts 795such firms, which form 98 per-cent of companies in the sec-tor), remains innovative. Nev-

Cosmetics

Beauty boomDefense industry

Gaining ground

In thissupplementExports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Defense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11,14

Cosmetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11,14

High-Tech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Food . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Pharma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Made in Poland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Automotive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

ertheless, Polish cosmeticcompanies are facing anincreasingly saturated WesternEuropean cosmetics market.Competition in the Europeancosmetics industry will nodoubt be made more intenseas the euro-zone debt crisisshrinks European consumers’budgets.

Many Polish cosmeticscompanies wishing to protectthemselves from a downturnin Europe are looking to selltheir products elsewhere.

Top Polish exportsExports by commodity type in 2010 (in 2010 prices, € billions)

Commodity type 2010

Machinery and mechanical appliances, electrical and electrotechnical equipment 32.8

Mineral products 15.5

Transport equipment 13.8

Products of the chemical industry 13.5

Plastics and rubber, and articles thereof 9.8

Textiles and textile articles 6.0

Prepared foodstuffs 4.5

Pulp of wood, paper, paperboard and articles thereof 3.7

Live animals; animal products 2.9

Vegetable products 2.9

Source: GUS

Continued on p. 14 ➡

Continued on p. 14 ➡

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A weak z∏oty helped Polish exporters in 2011

APRIL 2-8, 2012MADE IN POLAND12 www.wbj.pl

High-tech

Next-gen, todayPolish companies are making hightechnology

“Made in Poland” is not some-thing you might expect to seewritten on a bleeding-edgeproduct. Indeed, innovation isoften closely linked with acountry’s expenditure onresearch and development,

and Poland hasn’t fared well inthis regard. The country hadthe fifth-lowest expenditure onR&D in the OECD as of 2009(latest data available).

In practice however, thePolish economy is home to arespectable and growing vol-ume of high-tech manufactur-ing. Manufacturing of medical,optical and precision instru-

ments involves dozens of mod-estly innovative local SMEs,for instance. Meanwhile, pro-duction volume in the elec-tronics sector is far greater butalso largely dominated bymultinationals. LG Display,Toshiba and TPV Electronicsall have major productionmanufacturing centers inPoland that export throughoutthe region.

Some of Poland’s mostimportant high-tech exportersdon’t manufacture anything atall. They design, code andservice their products.

Polish software developers –and video-game makers in par-ticular – have earned interna-tional recognition. CD Projekthas built a strong reputationwith its “Witcher” role-playinggames, and has another fourgame titles in the pipelinebetween now and 2015. Tech-land’s “Dead Island” sold aremarkable three million copiesbetween its early September2011 debut and the end of theyear, while City Interactive sold

over two million units of its“Sniper” game between mid-2010 and the end of 2012.

Many other software pro-ducers are headquartered inPoland, such as IT-solutionsgiant Asseco Poland, which hassubsidiaries throughoutEurope and posted consolidat-ed sales revenues of over €871million for the first ninemonths of 2011. Or Comarch, arival of Asseco with a similarbusiness profile, which earnedsales revenues of €124 millionfor Q1-Q3 2011.

There are plenty of otherhigh tech firms and niches. Mil-itary and security robots arebeing created by the IndustrialResearch Institute for Automa-tion and Measurements. Galli-um nitride-based blue lasersand substrates are being pro-duced by TopGaN andAmmono, respectively. Andnew players appear regularly indifferent sectors.

“[Polish] firms are innova-tive,” said Sebastian Christow,director of the ElectronicEconomy Department at the

Polish Economy Ministry. But,he admitted, “our internal mar-ket is big enough that produc-ers don’t always look outward.”

There’s reason to be opti-mistic, though. Even if Polishexpenditure on R&D remainswoefully inadequate, there’sbeen an upward trend inspending since 2006. The num-ber of international patentapplications filed from Polandhas been rising since 2005. Andforeign perceptions of Polandare slowly changing, for thebetter. E Blake Berry

Poland used itspresidency of the EUto successfullypromote Polishagricultural produce

Last year proved to be a suc-cessful one for Poland’s agri-cultural market. This wasdespite testing times that sawadverse weather affectingcrops, and a costly outbreak ofE.coli bacteria in neighboringGermany that lead to a Russ-ian embargo on EU fruit andvegetables.

“Last year was a very hardyear for farmers. The harvestwas one of the worst for thepast 40 years,” Poland’s Minis-ter of Agriculture, Marek Saw-icki, told WBJ.

Despite the difficultiesencountered, 2011 was arecord one for Poland in termsof the performance of agri-food exports, which were up€3 billion on 2010, to just over€14 billion, according to theMinistry of Agriculture.

“When it comes to the agri-food market, what proves thatit was not a bad year are thesales results for foreign tradeof agri-food goods,” Mr Sawic-ki said.

EU impactPolish membership of the EU(starting in 2004) has helpedopen up new export possibili-

ties, since many barriers to for-eign trade have been removed.This is evidenced by a sizablerise in the value of Polish foodexports since accession, from€4 billion in 2003 to an esti-mated €14 billion in 2011.

According to preliminarydata from Poland’s CentralStatistical Office, the value ofagri-food exports during thefirst 11 months of last yearexceeded the value of exportsales in the same period of2010 by almost 14 percent.

The country’s recent six-month presidency of theCouncil of the EU also provid-ed Poland with a golden

opportunity to promote Polishproduce.

Under the motto “Polska… Tastes Good!” the min-istry showcased Polish pro-duce at various formal andinformal meetings during thepresidency, which finished atthe end of 2011.

“Polish food producewere widely discussed inStrasbourg and Brusselswhile we were promotingKashubian strawberries,¸àck apples or the SaintMartin croissants. ... Thispromotion has been veryeffective,” said Mr Sawicki.

David Ingham

Food

A record year inthe face of adversity

Polish firms areexpanding abroad asgovernment spendingfalls in Poland

Polish pharmaceutical produc-ers, heavily involved in makinginexpensive versions (gener-ics) of drugs, have recently rid-den the crest of a wave, as Pol-ish authorities strove to bringaffordable medicines to asmany people as possible.

With this goal more or lessachieved and the governmentanxious to reduce expenditureon pharmaceuticals to balancethe budget, Polish drugmakersare increasingly on the lookoutfor markets where expansionis taking place – or alternative-ly, where cost-containment isforcing payers to find ever-cheaper treatment options.

Looking east Polish pharma company Pol-pharma has focused on export-ing its generic medicines toRussia and the Common-wealth of Independent States,as well as to countries in Cen-tral and Eastern Europe. In2011, the firm made severalacquisitions, with the aim ofbecoming a leading genericsproducer in CEE. Amongother acquisitions, it pur-chased Kazakhstani drugmak-er Chimpharm and a majoritystake in Russia’s Akrikhin.

In October last year, Pol-pharma won a tender to pur-chase Polfa Warszawa. LikePolpharma, Polfa is focused onthe Russian market, where ithas a strong, established pres-ence, and on emerging CIScountries, where it has suc-

ceeded in boosting its sales inrecent years.

“Russia is an attractive mar-ket for Polish pharma compa-nies ... but only for those pro-ducers which have factoriesthere,” said Monika Stefaƒczyk,chief pharmaceutical analyst atresearch firm PMR. Others, sheexplained, may face difficultieswith getting their medicines onlocal reimbursement lists.

No such potential regulato-ry obstacles exist, however, inthe single market of the EU.

Going westEU countries offer increasinglyattractive export opportunitiesfor Polish producers, with theeuro-zone debt crisis forcingconsumers to reduce their out-goings and look for cheaperdrugs.

“Polish firms are alreadyattempting to take advantage ofthis opportunity,” said MaciejKuêmierkiewicz, director ofconsulting at the Polish branchof consulting firm IMS Health.

Indeed, cash-strapped Wes-tern nations have implementeda wave of major health carecost-containment legislation,and governments and regula-tors across the EU are seekingto boost the use of generics.Polish pharma producers aretherefore well positioned totake advantage.

Brian Davies

Pharmaceuticals

Searching for newopportunities

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Minister Sawicki (right) showcased Polish delicacies

in Brussels during Poland’s EU presidency

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EU countries are proving increasingly attractive for

Polish firms

0

2

4

6

8

10

Norway

Poland

Czech R

epublic

Hungary

Switze

rlandUK

France

Netherla

nds

Germany

8.2

4.7 4.5

3.2

1.9

1.0 1.00.3 0.3

Room for growthHigh-technology exports (as % of total global high-techexports), selected EU27 member states in 2008

Source: Eurostat

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Polish video-game makers and software producers are aiming for international

success

APRIL 2-8, 2012 MADE IN POLAND www.wbj.pl 13

This week’ssupplement offersreaders a sneak-peakof Made in Poland2012, the secondedition of our annualpublication on Polishexports

As Poland looks to keep eco-nomic growth churning, itneeds to concentrate on sever-al things. Becoming moreinnovative by encouragingmore investment in researchand development, is one ofthem. Another is making thebusiness environment asattractive as possible, so as tolure more foreign investment.

But another, often less

focused-upon factor is growingexports. Poland’s economy ismuch less dependent onexports than its smaller neigh-bors. According to the WorldBank, exports make up about30 percent of Poland’s grossdomestic product, whereas inHungary and the CzechRepublic, the figure is closerto 80 percent.

That has proven an advan-tage as the global economyslowed down – as other coun-tries curtailed imports sharply,Poland was able to fall back onstrong domestic consumption.But it also represents atremendous opportunity. InGermany, the economic pow-erhouse to Poland’s west,exports account for some 47percent of GDP, proving thatPoland could do more. Moreimportantly though, as anyonefamiliar with the top-qualityproducts and services that Pol-ish firms offer could tell you,Polish firms simply aren’t mak-ing the most of their exportpotential. The country’s lowproduction costs combinedwith increasingly modern tech-nology mean that Polish prod-

ucts offer excellent value. Butstill, a relatively small numberof companies venture to selltheir products abroad.

Export promotionFor that reason, Warsaw Busi-ness Journal has joined withthe Polish Chamber of Com-merce to create the PolishExport Promotion Program,which aims to showcase thebest of Polish products to theworld. Part of the initiative isour annual publication, Madein Poland, which delves intodetailed analysis of Poland’stop export sectors, profilestrade relationships withimportant international part-ners and provides informationon Poland’s economy andresources. The aim is to givepotential importers of Polishgoods all the information theyneed to find the right Polishproduct and partner to helptheir business.

This year’s edition – oursecond after last year’s inaugu-ral publication – will publish atthe end of April. In this sup-plement, we are giving you asneak-peak at what’s inside.

We’ve highlighted some ofthe best content, butthere will be so muchmore. All of the storiesyou are reading hereare abridged from theversions that will befound in Made inPoland, as is thelist of topexporters.

You’ll alsofind an entiresection ana-l y z i n gPo l a n d ’ sm a c r o -econom-ics, andc o m -m e n -t a r yfrom thechambers ofcommerce of countriesthat are some of Poland’s mostimportant trading partners. Itwill also include commentaryfrom Poland’s Agriculture,Economy and Foreign AffairsMinistries. It’s a must-have foranyone wanting to know moreabout Poland’s exports and itsexport market.

But alongwith that publication, the Pol-ish Export Promotion Programincludes the Mister and Juniorof Export competition, underthe leadership of the PolishChamber of Commerce. Thecompetition will award severalcompanies in various sectors

forexport

p r o d -ucts that

show aparticular

q u a l i t yand eco-

n o m i cvalue. The

awards willculminate in a

gala that willtake place this

summer. All ofthe details, as

well as a submis-sion form for

entering the com-petition, will be

available in theMade in Poland 2012

publication.Polish exporters

have a lot to offer, and morepeople and businesses aroundthe world need to know that.We hope that through this pro-gram we can help make thathappen.

Andrew Kureth

Automotive

Looking to EuropeAfter a good year in2011, the Polishautomotive industry,heavily reliant onexports to the eurozone, is holding itsbreath

Poland has a long tradition ofmanufacturing vehicles andspare parts for the automotivesector. Italian giant Fiat hasproduced cars in Poland since1920, and throughout theyears of the People’s Republicof Poland, models producedby Polish firm FSO such as the

Polski Fiat, the Polonez, theWarszawa and the Fiat 126,known affectionately as the‘Maluch’ (‘the small one’),dominated the country’sroads.

Today, the country’s auto-motive industry is firmlygeared towards exports, witha staggering 98 percent ofPolish automotive productsdestined for foreign markets.Relatively low labor and pro-duction costs still enticemultinational companies tomanufacture vehicles inPoland, with three major for-eign-owned manufacturing

plants currently in operation:Fiat Auto Poland in Tychy,Opel (owned by GeneralMotors Manufacturing Poland)in Gliwice and Volkswagen inPoznaƒ.

By any standards, 2011 wasgood to Polish automotiveexporters. Rafa∏ Or∏owski, ananalyst at AutomotiveSuppli-ers.pl, estimates the totalvalue to be somewherebetween €18.7 billion and€19.1 billion, which would bethe highest in the history ofPolish automotive exports, hesaid.

The feat is even moreimpressive considering thesector’s heavy reliance onexports to the euro zone,which was blighted by eco-nomic troubles through muchof 2011.

But some fear that 2012might be the year when theindustry starts to truly feel thepinch.

An important factor isthat Austria, Germany andItaly have decided to halttheir fleet renewal schemes,a big driver of Polish produc-tion in 2009 and 2010. Theprograms, which encouragedmotorists to trade old carsfor new ones by giving them afinancial incentive, are

expected to be a big loss forPoland.

Exporters of spare partsand components are alsoforecast to see demand fallsince Germany, France, Italyand the Czech Republic, cur-rently the main markets forPolish suppliers, are expect-ed to reduce their own carproduction levels.

Still, as long as the situa-

tion in Europe remains sta-ble, 2012 should see compa-rable production levels to2011, according to experts.Wojciech Drzewiecki, headof automotive research firmSamar, also pointed to Opel’sproduction of the new AstraGTC IV model and the pro-duction of the Caddy modelby VW in Poznaƒ, which hesaid should ensure that Euro-

pean and German demandfor Polish automotiveimports remains high.

This year may not be asexceptional as 2011 was forPolish automotive exports.But whatever it brings, theindustry will undoubtedly beforced to keep a watchful eyeon economic developmentsin the euro zone.

Liam Nolan

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Percentage of total exports

Value of exports

Czech R

epublic

United K

ingdomFra

nceItaly

Germany

The top fiveFive most important destinations for Polish automotive exports(2010, € billions)

Source: AutomotiveSuppliers.pl, Eurostat

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Last year may just have been one of the best in the history of Polish automotive

exports

Comment

WBJ supports Polish business through Madein Poland, Polish Export Promotion Program

APRIL 2-8, 2012MADE IN POLAND14 www.wbj.pl

sonably well with assault-riflesales, mostly due to exports tothe US. In 2010, 2,000 7.62mmAKMs were exported there,4,000 7.62 mm AK-47s and1,400 7.62 mm DPMs.

PZL Mielec is the biggestPolish aircraft manufacturer.Today, it manufactures bothcivilian and military aircraft,including the S-70i BlackHawk helicopter (Sikorskyaircraft, owner of the BlackHawk brand, is a sister com-pany). The company plans tobuild 20 of these machinesannually from 2012, all slatedfor export sales.

In December 2011, SikorskyAircraft signed a contract withBrunei’s Ministry of Defense to

provide 12 S-70i Black Hawkhelicopters with associatedspare parts, training and groundsupport equipment.

The aircraft will all be builtin Mielec. The contract alsocontains an option for 10 addi-tional helicopters.

Further potentialBut while Polish firms areencountering more and moresuccess abroad, these marketsare not easy to navigate andrequire a certain level ofpolitical support. “In marketssuch as Asia and Africa,strong political support isrequired to do business,” saidJakub Jaworski, director ofthe international cooperationoffice at the Polish Chamber

of National Defense Manu-facturers.

“In those countries they asktwo questions: does your ownarmy use this equipment anddo you have the support ofyour government,” he added.According to him, countrieslike the US and the UK active-ly support and lobby for theirdefense firms abroad, which isnot always the case with thePolish government.

Poland’s defense industrystill has much work to do inorder to compete with theworld’s best, but an increase inpolitical support from the gov-ernment and continued innova-tion by its firms would likelyherald many better days ahead.

Remi Adekoya

Major Polish cosmetics firmsincluding DAX Cosmetics, Dr.Irena Eris, Inglot, Oceanic,Soraya and Ziaja haveengaged, or are planning toengage, new markets.

Global expansionPolish cosmetics products arealready well-known in Russia,the top destination for Polishperfumes, perfumery products,make-up, skincare and hairtreatments in 2010. One reasonfor this popularity may be thatcosmetics are cheaper to pro-duce in Poland than, for exam-ple, in Western Europe, whichresults in lower retail prices.

Oceanic, which attributesmost of its success to the goodprice-to-quality ratio of itsproducts, already exports to 25countries and has plans toenter more countries inWestern Europe and also mar-kets in North Africa. PolishDAX Cosmetics also has astrong presence in emergingmarkets including Egypt,Hong Kong, Jordan, Labanon,Saudi Arabia, South Korea,Turkey and UAE. The firm,which saw its export salesincrease by 29 percent in 2011,now plans to expand to Russia,South Africa and Spain .

Meanwhile, Dr. Irena Eris,

one of the best-known brandson the Polish market, will soonenter the Chinese andMalaysian markets. The firmis already active in HongKong, South Korea and Tai-wan. Company co-owner Hen-ryk Orfinger recently told PulsBiznesu that he expects foreignmarkets to help drive a 30 per-cent increase in sales in 2012.

Of course, trying to enterforeign markets is not withoutits challenges. According toLidia Ziaja, export managerat skincare company Ziaja,the process of entering theChinese market can be longand costly, as each product

has to be registered, testedand approved by Chineseauthorities. But she said hercompany is working towardsthis goal.

It’s too early to tellwhether Polish cosmeticscompanies will defy the Euro-pean downturn and continueto push their exports with thesame impressive growth levelsthat have characterized thelast decade. But with compet-itive prices and a healthy doseof innovation, Polish cosmet-ics firms seem well preparedto venture far away from theirtraditional markets.

Ella Pa∏ka

Defense: Gaining ground Cosmetics:Searching for growth markets

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➡ Continued from p. 11

➡ Continued from p. 11

Top 25 Largest Polish Exporters (2010)Company Sector Revenues Address E-mail/website

from exportin 2010 (in z∏. mln)

1 PKN Orlen SA Raw materials and fuel 24,635,025 ul. Chemików 7 zarzad@orlen.pl 09-411 P∏ock www.orlen.pl

tel: (+48) 24 365 00 00fax: (+48) 24 365 40 40

2 Fiat Auto Poland SA Automotive 12,552,021 Al. WyÊcigowa 6 www.fiat.pl02-681 Warsaw www.fiatgroup.pl

tel: (+48) 22 607 47323 KGHM Raw materials 12,023,922 ul. M. Sk∏odowskiej-Curie 48 ir@kghm.pl

Polska Miedê SA and fuel 59-301 Lubin www.kghm.pltel: (+48) 76 747 82 00;fax: (+48) 76 747 85 00

4 Volkswagen Automotive 7,367,324 ul. Warszawska 349 www.volkswagen-poznan.plPoznaƒ Sp. z o.o. 61-060 Poznaƒ

tel: (+48) 61 876 17 81fax: (+48) 61 876 14 73

5 LG Electronics Electrical and 5,746,303 ul. LG Electronics 7 www.lg.com/pl/M∏awa Sp. z o.o. electronic goods 06-500 M∏awa

tel: (+48) 23 654 74 04fax: (+48) 23 654 3259

6 ArcelorMittal Metals 5,234,913 Al. Józefa Pi∏sudskiego 92 www.arcelormittal.com/poland/Poland SA 41-308 Dàbrowa Górnicza

tel: (+48) 32 776 66 66fax: (+48) 32 776 82 00

7 LG Electronics Electrical 5,128,044 ul. LG Electronics 1-2 www.lg.com/pl/Wroc∏aw Sp. z o.o. and electronic goods 55-040 Biskupice Podgórne

tel: (+48) 71 792 94 00fax: 48 71 792 94 05

8 Philips Lighting Electrical 3,734,970 ul. Kossaka 150 www.lighting.philips.pl Poland SA and electronic goods 64-920 Pi∏a

tel: (+48) 67 35 13 0009 GK Grupy Lotos SA Raw materials and fuel 3,675,842 ul. Elblàska 135, lotos@grupalotos.pl

80-718 Gdaƒsk www.lotos.pltel: (+48) 58 326 43 00fax: (+48) 58 301 88 38

10 GK GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals 3,376,259 ul. Rzymowskiego 53 www.gsk.com.plPharmaceuticals SA and costmetics 02-697 Warsaw

tel: (+48 ) 22 576 90 00fax: (+48) 22 576 90 01

11 Volkswagen Motor Automotive 3,064,015 ul. Strefowa 1 vwmp@vwmp.pl Polska Sp. z o.o. 59-101 Polkowice www.vwmp.com.pl

tel: (+48) 76 848 3000fax: (+48) 76 848 34 00

12 W´glokoks SA Raw materials and fuel 2,721,125 ul. Mickiewicza 29 info@weglokoks.com.pl 40-085 Katowice www.weglokoks.com.pl

tel: (+48) 32 258 24 31fax: (+48) 32 251 54 53

13 BSH Electrical 2,719,579 Al. Jerozolimskie 183, www.bsh-group.plSprz´t Gospodarstwa and electronic goods 02-222 WarsawDomowego Sp. z o.o. tel: (+48) 22 572 76 00;

fax: +48 (22) 572 66 00

Company Sector Revenues Address E-mail/websitefrom export

in 2010 (in z∏. mln)14 PLL LOT SA Transport and logistics 2,648,545 ul. 17 Stycznia 39 lot_info@lot.pl

03-906 Warsaw www.lot.comtel: (+48) 22 577 61 11

15 Faurecia w Polsce Automotive 2,641,403 ul. Spó∏dzielcza 4, www.faurecia.pl05-600 Grójec

tel: (+48) 48 665 01 13fax: (+48) 48 665 03 03

16 TRW Polska Sp. z o.o. Automotive 2,465,679 ul. Rolnicza 33 www.trw.pl42-200 Cz´stochowa

tel: (+48) 34 343 10 03fax: (+48) 34 369 34 30

17 Grupa Can-Pack SA Metals 2,336,729 ul. Jasnogórska 1, canpack@canpack.eu 31-358 Kraków www.canpack.eu

tel: (+48)12 662 34 03fax: (+48) 12 662-34-19

18 GK Ciech SA Chemicals 2,276,135 ul. Pu∏awska 182, ciech@ciech.com 02-670 Warsaw www.ciech.com

tel: (+48) 22 639 10 00;fax (+48) 22 639 14 51

19 Fiat Powertrain Automotive 2,186,487 ul. Gra˝yƒskiego 141, www.fiat-gm-pwt.pl Polska Sp. z o.o. Bielsko-Bia∏a, 43-300

tel: (+48) 33 8132 100fax: (+48) 33 8132 451

20 Toyota Motor Automotive 2,177,351 ul. Uczniowska 26, www.toyotapl.com/walbrzychManufacturing Poland 58-306 Wa∏brzychSp. z o.o. tel: (+48) 74 888 80 00

21 Grupa Tele-Fonika Electrical 2,119,940 ul. Wielicka 114, www.tfkable.com/plKable Sp. z o.o. S.K.A. and electronic goods 30-663 Kraków

tel: (+48) 12 652 5000;fax: (+48) 12 652 5156

22 Polska ˚egluga Transport and logistics 2,106,921 Pl. Rod∏a 8, www.polsteam.com.plMorska PP 70-419 Szczecin

tel: (48) 91 359 4333;fax: (+48) 91 359 4288

23 Indesit Company Electrical 2,088,313 ul. J. Dàbrowskiego 216, service.pl@indesit.com Polska Sp. z o.o. and electronic goods 93-231 ¸ódê www.indesit.pl

tel: (+48) 42 645 51 00;fax: (+48) 42 645 51 91

24 Electrolux Electrical 1,928,725 ul. Kolejowa 5/7, www.electrolux.plPoland Sp. z o.o. and electronic goods 01-217 Warsaw

tel: (+48) 22 568 98 67fax: (+48) 22 434 73 03

25 Grupa Valeo Automotive 1,800,762 ul. Przemys∏owa 3, valeo@valeo.comAutomotive 32-050 Skawina www.valeo.pl

tel: (+48) 12 299 80 00;fax: (+48) 12 299 80 04

Source: “100 Largest Exporters in 2010.”

Reprinted with permission of Polityka

Rank Ra

nk

Mirror, mirror Top 10 destinations for Polish beauty preparations, skin-careproducts and other similar products (2010, € million)

Source: GUS

Position Country Value

1 Russian Federation 3102 United Kingdom 2263 Germany 1674 Ukraine 1345 The Netherlands 826 France 737 Spain 698 Italy 679 Turkey 6410 Romania 59

LOKALE IMMOBILIAW 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 l y s u p p l e m e n t o n r e 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 • APRIL 2-8, 2012, LI 17/13

JLLS looks for

offices for

Bayer

Jones Lang LaSalle is

looking for office space in

the Tri-city area that will

accommodate a finance

and accounting shared

service center whose

creation in the

agglomeration has

recently been announced

by Bayer. The center,

which will service the

CEE region, is expected

to be ready for use by the

end of this year. It will

employ over 200 people

and take up

approximately 2,500 sqm

of space.

Galeria

Warmiƒska

closer to

getting permit

Finishing work is

underway on a zoning

plan in Olsztyn,

Warmiƒsko-Mazurskie

voivodship, which covers

the area in which Libra

Project wants to build its

Galeria Warmiƒska

shopping and

entertainment scheme.

The zoning plan is

expected to be ready in

April. Once it is adopted

by the Olsztyn City

Council, Libra Project will

be able to apply for a

building permit for the

Galeria Warmiƒska mall.

“We expect the investor

to be able to start

construction by the end

of this year,” Olsztyn

Mayor Piotr Grzymowicz

said in a statement. ●

Office

Cornerstone for Olivia Point andOlivia Tower projects in GdaƒskTPS is building newphases of its OliviaBusiness Centre in thecity’s Oliwa district

Developer TPS last week helda cornerstone laying ceremonyat the construction site of thesecond and third phases of itsOlivia Business Centre officecomplex in Gdaƒsk. The con-nected structures are sched-uled to be completed in thelast quarter of this year.

The Olivia Business Centreinvestment is located on Al.Grunwaldzka in Gdaƒsk’sOliwa district. The phaseddevelopment will sit on 3.5hectares of land and will com-prise a total of almost 120,000sqm of office space, whencompleted.

The first building in thecomplex – Olivia Gate –opened for business inNovember last year deliveringmore than 17,000 sqm ofGLA. Its tenants includeGoyello, PwC, Meritum Bank,

SII, AOS, GFKM, EnergaGroup companies and PKOBP.

“The construction of thesecond and the third officebuildings in Oliwa is a natural

result of the success of the firstbuilding in Olivia BusinessCentre,” said Maciej Grabski,

the investor behind the OliviaBusiness Centre complex.

“Practically all the space inthe first office building hasalready been taken up by ten-ants and the interest in ourinvestment on the part of com-panies looking for office spaceremains high,” Mr Grabskiadded.

Called Olivia Point, thesecond phase of Olivia Busi-ness Centre will be a seven-floor building offering 9,600sqm of leasable space. It willbe connected with the thirdphase, which is called OliviaTower, up to the height of thefifth floor.

Olivia Tower will be a 12-floor office building compris-ing 14,200 sqm of leasablespace. The ground floors ofboth the second and the thirdphase of Olivia Business Cen-tre will house service spaceand both structures will fea-ture connected two-floorunderground parking lots.

Adam Zdrodowski

Olivia Business Centre . . . . . . .15

Żoliborz One offices . . . . . . . . .15

Brama Mazur mall . . . . . . . . . . .15

Skanska homes . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Foreign currency mortgages . .16

Property-related stocks . . . . . .16

Poznań warehouses . . . . . . . . .17

Green buildings . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

In this issue

1716

Skanska Residential Develop-ment Poland will soon launchits first project

The Poznaƒ region looks setto be a vibrant logistics loca-tion in the upcoming years

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

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

or

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The latest phases of Olivia Business Centre will be ready by the end of this year

MMG acquires land forBrama Mazur mall in E∏kRetail space manager anddeveloper Master ManagementGroup has acquired 1.85hectares of land in downtownE∏k, Warmiƒsko-Mazurskie voi-vodship, on which it plans todevelop a 16,250-sqm shoppingand entertainment center cal-led Brama Mazur.

The company acquired theplot, which is located at theintersection of E∏k’s ul.Dàbrowskiego and ul. KoÊ-ciuszki, from the E∏k City Hallin a tender procedure. It plansto apply for a building permitfor the Brama Mazur scheme inthe next few months. AZ

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˚oliborz One offices underwayDeveloper Apricot CapitalGroup has launched construc-tion on its ˚oliborz One officeproject in Warsaw. The schemeis the first phase of an invest-ment that will in the future alsoinclude a housing estate com-prising 350 apartments.

Located on ul. Szamocka inthe capital’s ˚oliborz district,close to the planned extensionof the district’s ul. Krasiƒskiego,the ̊ oliborz One project will bea nine-storey building offeringmore than 8,700 sqm of class-Aoffice space.

The development is sched-uled to be completed in Maynext year and open for businessin mid-July. Budimex is thegeneral contractor of the proj-ect.

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APRIL 2-8, 2012LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE16 www.wbj.pl

M∏yny

Królewskie

on sale

Warsaw Stock Exchange-

listed developer Dom

Development has

launched sales of

apartments in its M∏yny

Królewskie multifamily

residential project in the

Polish capital. The scheme

is the third new housing

development for which the

company has launched

sales this year. The

investment will be built in

Warsaw’s Wola district

and will comprise four

buildings housing a total

of 294 apartments. The

first units in the scheme

are scheduled to be

turned over in Q4 of 2013.

Atlas Estates’s

1,000th

Warsaw homeWarsaw Stock Exchange-

listed developer Atlas

Estates has announced the

sale of its 1,000th

apartment in the Polish

capital. The company has

been present in the Polish

market for six years. It is

now building the Concept

House Mokotów and

Apartamenty przy

Krasiƒskiego schemes in

Warsaw. ●

Security Closing % change 52-week 52-week % change Total Marketprice (week) low high (year) shares value

on March 29 (z∏. mln)

BUDIMEX 85.30 -2.40 64.00 109.20 99.50 25,530,098 2,177.72

CELTIC 15.50 -12.48 15.00 22.70 20.50 34,068,252 528.06

DOMDEV 34.66 -8.79 23.50 50.80 47.00 24,670,397 855.08

ECHO 4.35 1.64 3.05 5.55 4.87 420,000,000 1,827.00

ELBUDOWA 117.40 4.82 87.00 168.00 159.50 4,747,608 557.37

ENERGOPLD 1.96 0.51 1.81 4.10 4.10 70,972,001 139.11

ERBUD 16.40 -13.23 14.65 40.00 40.17 12,644,169 207.36

GANT 7.95 -0.63 5.85 14.20 14.00 20,499,953 162.97

GTC 6.60 8.20 6.10 21.79 21.10 219,372,990 1,447.86

HBPOLSKA 0.93 13.41 0.70 2.44 2.49 210,558,445 195.82

JWCONSTR 6.21 1.80 4.36 15.50 14.47 54,073,280 335.80

LCCORP 1.44 5.11 0.85 1.62 1.57 447,558,311 644.48

MARVIPOL 8.90 -7.29 7.22 9.95 9.05 36,923,400 328.62

MIRBUD 1.97 -3.90 1.94 4.54 4.56 75,000,000 147.75

MOSTALWAR 15.65 -1.39 15.40 45.00 44.65 20,000,000 313.00

MOSTALZAB 1.52 7.80 1.07 2.89 2.74 149,130,538 226.68

ORCOGROUP 15.80 -1.37 14.00 40.00 37.99 17,053,866 269.45

PBG 38.45 11.94 34.35 188.00 184.30 14,295,000 549.64

PLAZACNTR 2.63 -4.36 1.80 5.15 4.20 297,174,515 781.57

POLAQUA 6.40 0.95 4.53 18.99 17.20 27,500,100 176.00

POLIMEXMS 1.35 2.27 1.23 3.64 3.50 521,154,076 703.56

POLNORD 14.76 -2.96 11.03 33.55 31.72 23,798,439 351.26

RANKPROGR 13.95 -0.36 8.60 16.97 11.20 37,145,050 518.17

ROBYG 1.66 -2.35 1.04 2.13 2.05 257,390,000 427.27

RONSON 1.01 -0.98 0.77 1.58 1.41 272,360,000 275.08

TRAKCJA 1.13 -9.60 0.65 3.72 3.51 232,105,480 262.28

ULMA 69.65 -0.50 57.00 88.00 82.30 5,255,632 366.05

UNIBEP 5.85 5.60 4.47 7.75 7.85 33,927,184 198.47

WARIMPEX 4.05 -2.41 2.95 10.89 10.06 54,000,000 218.70

ZUE 7.90 1.28 5.07 13.29 13.60 22,000,000 173.80

Property-related stocks Mortgages

Swiss franc mortgagesdisappear from the marketThe availability ofmortgagesdenominated in eurois steadily decreasingtoo

Nordea Bank stopped lendingmortgages denominated inforeign currencies last month.The bank was the last lenderoffering Swiss franc-denomi-nated mortgages in Poland,which means the availabilityof that type of loan has noweffectively ended in the Polishmarket.

Swiss franc-denominatedmortgages were highly popu-lar in Poland from 2006 to2008, according to a recentreport by real estate advisoryHome Broker. According toPolish Bank Association data,such mortgages accounted for69 percent of the total valueof mortgages granted in 2008.

By 2011, however, theamount had decreased toseven percent as banks,prompted by regulators andworried by instability in thefinancial markets, graduallyremoved Swiss franc-denomi-nated loans from their offers.

Last year, the move was

made by banks including Mul-tiBank, PKO BP, DeutscheBank and Polbank, the HomeBroker report said. Meanwhile,both that study and a recentreport by financial consultancyOpen Finance, show that thenumber of euro-denominatedmortgages being offered hasbeen shrinking as well.

Currently, 10 banks inPoland offer such mortgages,three of which require thatthe mortgage-taker has asalary paid in the commonEuropean currency. Most ofthe remaining banks havespecial restrictions concern-ing credit worthiness as far aseuro-denominated loans are

concerned.Both Home Broker and

Open Finance said that therelative attractiveness ofmortgages denominated inthe Polish currency is grow-ing, with some of the cheaperloans in z∏oty now able tocompete with those denomi-nated in euro.

“[Our] analysis leads us toconclude that a ‘cheap’ mort-gage denominated in thez∏oty is slowly becoming acompetitive solution for themore and more expensivemortgages denominated inthe euro,” the Home Brokerreport said.

Adam Zdrodowski

The developer wantsto become a leadingplayer in the Polishhousing market

Developer Skanska Residen-tial Development Poland plansto launch construction on itsfirst investment in Warsaw bythe end of the second quarterof 2012. The project will belocated near ul. Ostrobramskain the capital’s Praga Po∏udniedistrict and will compriseapproximately 1,600 apart-ments, when completed.

The scheme will sit onalmost seven hectares of landthat the firm acquired fromPolish Investments Real EstateHolding in autumn last year.Along with the land, Skanskaalso purchased the design ofthe planned development anda building permit.

The whole investment willbe built in approximately six toseven phases, each of themcomprising two to four build-ings. The first phase of theproject will deliver 300 units,said Micha∏ Melaniuk, vicepresident of Skanska Residen-tial Development Poland.

Meanwhile, the company is

already looking for other plotsin Warsaw on which it wants tobuild large-scale multifamilyresidential projects. “We are innegotiations concerning theacquisition of a plot of land inthe Mokotów district which weexpect to finalize in the nextfew weeks,” Mr Melaniuk said.

He added that some 1,000units will be built in the loca-tion with construction expect-ed to launch next year. “In thesecond half of this year, we’llprobably start looking for plotsfor other new projects in War-saw,” Mr Melaniuk said.

Ambitious plansSkanska Residential Develop-ment Poland was formallylaunched in May last year andhas since been preoccupiedwith the organization of itsbusiness in the country. Theestablishment of the firm, MrMelaniuk said, was a naturalstep in the development ofSkanska’s operations inPoland.

He pointed out that inter-nationally the Skanska Groupis involved in four basic typesof operation – general contrac-tor services and the develop-

ment of commercial, residen-tial and infrastructure projects.

Until last year, only theconstruction and commercialspace divisions of Skanska hadbeen active in Poland. Thegroup had previously builtsome apartments in Warsaw,but the creation of a separateresidential arm means thegroup now wants to be moreseriously involved in the sector.

Mr Melaniuk admitted thatthe residential market maycurrently be perceived as lesspromising than the commer-cial sector, but said that themarket is cyclical and that it isbetter to start new residentialprojects when the housingmarket is less heated than dur-ing a development boom.

In the long run, Mr Mela-niuk sees Skanska ResidentialDevelopment Poland as one ofthe largest residential develop-ers in Poland. The companywants to focus on large-scaleprojects and ultimately torecord annual sales resultscomparable to those of thecurrent market leaders.

Green homesHow is Skanska Residential

Development Poland going toreach that stage? Accordingto Mr Meleniuk, the compa-ny’s projects will be character-ized by high quality and func-tionality. They will also bebuilt in locations with well-developed transportationlinks and other infrastructure.

Perhaps not surprisingly,the developer is also going tofocus on green solutions in itsresidential schemes. Sustain-able building is a much-cher-ished value in the Skanska

Group and the company isalready well known for theuse of green solutions in itsoffice buildings, Mr Melaniuksaid.

As far as the standard ofthe planned Skanska homes isconcerned, they will notbelong to either the low-end,or the luxury segments of themarket. “We expect that theprices will be very close to theaverage apartment price inWarsaw,” Mr Melaniuk said.

Adam Zdrodowski

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Mr Melaniuk said his company’s apartments will be

characterized by green solutions

Developers

Skanska Residential DevelopmentPoland set to launch first project in Q2

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Swiss franc-denominated mortgages were highly

popular in the Polish market from 2006 to 2008

The region was thirdin Poland last year interms of warehousespace leasing activity

The industrial space market inthe Poznaƒ area will experienceintensive growth in the upcom-ing years, driven by both thearea’s economic strength andits developing road infrastruc-ture, said a recent report byJones Lang LaSalle.

Poznaƒ’s prospects havebeen boosted by the completionof a stretch of the A2 motorwaythat links the city with Ger-

many. Completion of theunder-construction Stryków-Warsaw stretch of the samemotorway is expected to furtherstrengthen Poznaƒ’s position.

Proof of this is the fact thatall the largest industrial devel-opers operating in Polandhave land for new projects inthe region, with some havingalready announced plans to goahead with their investmentsin the area within the next fewmonths, the study said.

Currently, there are nearlyone million sqm of warehousespace in the Poznaƒ area, most

of which is located along theA2 motorway. The mostimportant locations in theregion include Sady, Komorni-ki and Gàdki.

Almost 60,000 sqm ofwarehouse space were underconstruction at the end of lastyear. More than 200,000 sqmof industrial space were leasedin 2011, which made the Poz-naƒ region the third-mostactive area in Poland, theJones Lang LaSalle reportsaid. Ahead of it were Warsawand Silesia.

Adam Zdrodowski

The constructionindustry takes a closerlook at the costs andbenefits of greenbuildings

In recent years developers,building owners and somemajor tenants in Poland havestarted paying closer atten-tion to sustainable building.This is attested to by a steeprise in the number of green-certified buildings both in thecountry and the wider Centraland Eastern Europe region.

But all over the world,green attitudes still have someway to go before they becomeentrenched in the buildingindustry’s ways. “Considerthis: 40 percent of landfillwaste globally comes from thebuilding industry, while newbuildings make up only 2 per-cent of the world’s real estatestock and a large share ofconstruction waste is recycla-ble,” said Devin Saylor, headof Colliers’ green certificationservices for the CEE region.

The industry will be given achance to stop and reflect onthe costs and benefits of ener-gy saving, emissions reductionand work-place enhancementthis month at the first editionof the Real Green Symposium

& Fair. The full-day sympo-sium, which will be followedby the 9th Annual CEEQAGala in the evening, will fea-ture presentations, case stud-ies and panel discussionsdevoted to examining “thehard-edge business case forgreen building.”

For the occasion, Ms Say-lor and her team have pre-pared a short survey based onthe four most frequentlyasked questions they receiveabout green buildings. Theyhope that turning around andasking the market these ques-tions will help to dispel mis-conceptions about greenbuildings and generate discus-sion among developers, build-ing owners and major tenantswho will attend the confer-ence. “We want to get peoplequestioning what green is,why it is becoming popular,and the real economic bene-

fits of it,” said Ms Saylor. The survey, reprinted

here, will also be posted onthe website of CEEQA,organizer of the Real GreenSymposium & Fair. Attendeeswill also be able to answer on-site at the conference onApril 17. An in-depth articleon the state of sustainablebuilding, based on the resultsof Collier’s survey, will bepublished in Lokale Immobil-ia following the conference.

Alice TrudelleWBJ is a media partner of

the Real Green Symposium &Fair and of the 9th Annual

CEEQA Gala

APRIL 2-8, 2012 LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE www.wbj.pl 17

Zacznij.biz is a business plan competition organized by Lewiatan BusinessAngels. There are two editions of this competition: Zacznij.biz “Science – thehidden potential of business” and Zacznij.biz “A new face of your business”.The purpose of the contests is to promote entrepreneurship, as well as toassist entrepreneurs in preparing their business plans and to help them attractinvestors – business angels.

The jury selected 80 participants out of 100 applications. Szymon Kurzyca, aninvestment expert from Lewiatan Business Angels (LBA), noted that the par-ticipants showed great understanding for the purpose of business angels, aswell as specific aspects of private investment. Business projects taking part inthe competition have a real potential for entering the market and give oppor-tunity for an attractive return on investment for the business angels.

Selected contestants were invited to take part in the Innovatorium I. The pur-pose of this workshop was to deliver the knowledge of business angels expec-tations regarding marketing aspects, competitors or financial projections andvaluations. The workshops were conducted by Szymon Kurzyca and MaciejStrz´bicki, a marketing expert cooperating with LBA.

After Innovatorium I, which took place on February 14-15, 2012, participantswere then voted on by the jury. Members of the Zacznij.biz jury include: JacekB∏oƒski, Szymon Kurzyca, Tomasz Grzybowski, Edward Kozicki, Piotr Pajewskiand Maciej Strz´bicki. The jury chose 23 projects to take part in the semi-finalphase of the competition.

The purpose of Innovatorium II (which took place on March 30, 2012) was toprepare the participants for the pitch, i.e. presentation of their ideas to thepotential investors – business angels. The most promising ideas will be thenpresented to the business angels at the Final Gala on 17th May 2012.

Members of Jury of Honour of the Zacznij.biz competition are: Bo˝enaLubliƒska-Kasprzak, President of the Polish Agency for EnterpriseDevelopment; Henryka Bochniarz, President of the Polish Confederation ofPrivate Employers Lewiatan; Professor W∏odzimierz Kurnik, Rector of theWarsaw University of Technology; and Professor Micha∏ Kleiber, President ofthe Polish Academy of Sciences. They will help to choose the winners. Soon wewill get to know the most valuable and interesting projects for business angels.

www.zacznij.biz.pl

Real Green Symposium & FairApril 17,9 am – 4 pm Warsaw Marriott HotelFor more information, log

on to ceeqa.com

SH

UT

TE

RS

TO

CK

More warehouse space will appear in the Poznaƒ area in the next few years

Warehouses

Poznaƒ-area market in foryears of growth: report

Sustainable building

What is the green hype all about?

Green building survey1. Green buildings cost significantly more to build than conventional

buildings T/F

2. Green building materials are difficult to find in Eastern Europe andare more expensive T/F

3. Green buildings can cost less to operate and maintain T/F

4. Green buildings transact/sell for more than non-green buildings T/F

info.colliers.pl/realgreen

APRIL 2-8, 2012 THE LIST www.wbj.pl 19

Construction & Real Estate

Warehouse Space DevelopersRanked by investments completed in 2010 www.bookoflists.pl

Notes: NA = Not Applicable, NR = Not Ranked, WND = Would Not Disclose. Research forthe list was conducted in November 2011. Number of employees is as of October 2011. All infor-mation pertains to the companies' activities in Poland. Companies not responding to our surveyare not listed.

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 andtypographical errors may occur. Corrections or additions to The List should be sent, on official letterhead, to Warsaw Business Journal, attn. Joanna Raszka,ul. Elblàska 15/17, 01-747 Warsaw, via fax to (+48) 22 639-8569, or via e-mail to wbjbol@wbj.pl. Copyright 2011, Valkea Media SA. The List may not be reprint-ed or reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission of the publisher. Reprints are available.

Rank

Company nameAddressTel./FaxE-mailWeb page

Investments completed(sqm) - Warehouses:

1st half of 2011 / 2010 /

2009 / 2008

Investments completed(sqm) - Warehouses:

Overall

Largest investmentsrecently completed (name,location, completion year,

usable area - sqm):

Type of warehousesconstructed

Services offered

Warehouseconstruction:

For lease /For sale

Number of employees /Year founded

Top local executive /Title

1

Panattoni Europe (Panattoni Poland Sp. z o.o.)ul. Emilii Plater 53, 00-113 Warsaw22 540-7171/22 540-7170plinfo@panattoni.comwww.panattoni.pl

130,000230,000100,000500,000

1,460,000

Panattoni Tesco BTS (Gliwice, 2010,57,000); Panattoni Zelmer BTS

(Rzeszów, 2011, 32,000); PanattoniPark Toruƒ (Lubicz/Gr´bocin, 2010,

30,000); Panattoni Park O˝arów(O˝arów, 2010, 20,000)

Gas heating system; skylights andsmoke vents; ESFR sprinkler

systems; light intensity inaccordance with the law; clear

height of 10 m; concrete structures;column grid - 12 m / 22.5 m;

jointless floors; 5 t/sqm load floors;mechanical ventilation; steel roof

structure

Warehouse leasing and selling; realestate management; asset

management; free developmenttransactions; build-to-suit projects;

buildings commercialization

✓✓

602005

Robert DobrzyckiRegional Partner

2

MLP Groupul. 3 Maja 8, 05-800 Pruszków22 738-3010/22 738-3019info@mlp.plwww.mlp.pl

52,10068,000WND

44,350

WND

MLP Pruszków I (Pruszków, 2011,7,542); MLP Pruszków II (Brwinów,2011, 5,000); MLP Tychy (Tychy,

2011, 3,000)

Class A warehouses with freezerareas; production areas

Build-to-suit✓✓

WND1999

Michael ShapiroPresident

3

CA IMMO Real Estate Asset Management Poland Sp. z o.o.ul. Emilii Plater 53, 00-113 Warsaw22 540-6540/22 540-6541warsaw@caimmo.comwww.caimmo.com

WND39,00032,00021,960

WND WNDLogistics parks; class A warehouses

with freezer areas; high storageWarehouses leasing; build-to-suit

✓✓

452002

Andrzej Miko∏ajczykManaging Director

NA

Platan Group Sp. z o.o.ul. Poleczki 23, 02-822 Warsaw22 545-0245/22 545-0246platangroup@platangroup.com.plwww.platangroup.com.pl

--

WND-

WND WND High storage Build-to-suit✓-

461995

Karolina KaimPresident

NA

PPMB Promontul. Metalowa 3, 43-100 Tychy32 720-5300/32 217-0567promont@promont.euwww.promont.eu

--

WND29,000

72,700 Office building/Budynek biurowy(Tychy, 2010, 750)

Logistics parks; freezer areas; highstorage

Logistics; warehouses leasing✓-

1001996

Sylwester BaradziejPresident

NA

Problem Sp. z o.o.ul. Przasnyska 6B, 01-756 Warsaw22 866-4444/22 866-4440info@problem.com.plwww.problem.com.pl

--

8,000-

WND WND WND WND✓✓

WND1988

Andrzej PazeraGeneral Director

NA

SEGRO Poland Sp. z o.o.Pl. Andersa 5, 61-894 Poznaƒ61 850-5300/61 850-5301poland@SEGRO.comwww.SEGRO.pl

51,890-

124,000119,000

WND

Tulipan Park Gliwice DC1 (Gliwice,2011, 9,550); SEGRO Business Park

¸ódê SBU (¸ódê, 2011, 3,400);SEGRO Industrial Park Tychy DC01

(Tychy, 2011, 15,860)

Logistics parks including freezerareas and high storage

Build-to-suitWNDWND

WND2006

Magdalena SzulcBusiness Unit Director Central Europe

NA

Torus Sp. z o.o., Sp.k.ul. Arkoƒska 6/A4, 80-387 Gdaƒsk58 764-6376/58 764-6311torus@torus.gda.plwww.torus.gda.pl

523--

1,257

WNDK6 office/biuro (Kowale, 2011,

1,359); K6 warehouse/magazyn(Kowale, 2011, 523)

WND Build-to-suit✓-

402002

S∏awomir GajewskiPresident

NR

AIG/Lincoln Polska Sp. z o.o.ul. Grzybowska 5A, 00-132 Warsaw22 564-5000/22 564-5085office.warsaw@aiglincoln.com.plwww.aiglincoln.com.pl

WNDWNDWND

48,000

WND WND WND WNDWNDWND

WND1997

Brian PattersonManaging Director

NR

Prologisul. Z∏ota 59, 00-120 Warsaw22 218-3600/22 218-3601info-pl@prologis.comwww.prologis.com

WNDWND

364,840416,945

WND Prologis Park Wroc∏aw V DC1(Wroc∏aw, 2011, 19,000)

BTS building; class A warehouses;light industry space; high storage; 5

t/sqm floors; ESFR sprinklersystems; ground floor loading docks;

35 m deep maneuverable areas

Land selection and purchase; build-to-suit; real estate management

✓✓

571997

Ben BannatyneManaging Director CEE

APRIL 2-8, 2012MARKETS20 www.wbj.pl

SO

UR

CE

: W

SE

PLN-EUR

4.16

49

4.14

09

4.13

00

4.15

03

4.16

00

4.16

16

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

3

30.0

34

5 PLN-USD

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

3

30.0

3

3.14

17

3.13

48

3.09

39

3.11

00

3.12

34

3.11

91

3.0

3.5 PLN-GBP

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

3

30.0

3

4.98

37

4.95

92

4.94

34

4.94

97

4.97

10

4.99

08

4.8

5.2 PLN-CHF

3.45

48

3.43

60

3.42

36

3.44

15

3.45

10

3.45

40

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

3

30.0

33.3

3.6 PLN-RUB

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

3

30.0

3

0.10

71

0.10

73

0.10

70

0.10

66

0.10

67

0.10

64

0.10

0.12 PLN-100JPY

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

3

30.0

3

3.80

11

3.78

58

3.73

57

3.75

15

3.78

82

3.79

79

3.5

4.0

currency rates

Polish currency

retreats

Currency report

The z∏oty appreciated strong-ly at the start of last week, fol-lowing the rise of theEUR/USD and the release ofpositive retail-sales data forPoland. Sales grew 13.7 year-on-year in February anddespite the unemploymentrate for the same month com-ing in at a five-year high of13.5 percent, the z∏oty wasbuoyed, advancing to reach itsweekly lows against the euro(z∏.4.13), the dollar (z∏.3.08)and the Swiss franc (z∏.3.42).

The following daysbrought worse news for mar-kets. Negative data from theUS and the euro zone causedthe EUR/USD to dive belowthe $1.33 level. Emerging-market currencies reacted,

with the major z∏oty currencypairs retreating.

On Thursday, investorsignored news that Poland’sruling Civic Platform-PolishPeople’s Party coalition hadagreed to reform the pensionsystem, since most hadthought an agreement wouldeventually be reached.

On Thursday night, mar-kets got some relief whennews spread that Europeandebt crisis firewall funds areset to increase to around€800 billion. This was con-firmed on Friday. The z∏otyregained some groundtowards the end of the week,finishing Friday at z∏.4.15against the euro and z∏.3.11against the dollar. ●

Adam NarczewskiX-Trade Brokers DM SA

SO

UR

CE

: N

BP

Major indices

Top 5 Closing % change (week) 52-week high 52-week low

ABMSOLID 3.92 100.00 15.10 1.49PEMUG 1.69 37.40 1.69 0.86REINHOLD 1.40 37.25 4.50 0.90PBOANIOLA 5.00 34.05 7.70 3.10EDINVEST 5.68 23.48 6.83 2.32

WIG 41,028.06 (March 29 close)

Change for the week: 0.47% 52-week high: 50,371.74

Change year to March 29: 7.07% 52-week low: 36,549.47

Top 5 Closing % change (week) 52-week high 52-week low

PBG 38.45 11.94 188.00 33.70GTC 6.60 8.20 21.79 6.01ASSECOPOL 49.13 4.47 55.45 34.50PZU 323.50 2.37 398.60 283.10POLIMEXMS 1.35 2.27 3.66 1.19

Bottom 5 Closing % change (week) 52-week high 52-week low

RESBUD 33.30 -42.59 70.00 2.88INTAKUS 0.48 -26.15 1.52 0.44SADOVAYA 6.63 -24.05 13.68 6.11ONE2ONE 1.70 -22.73 5.95 1.70IFCAPITAL 6.60 -21.15 8.99 0.45

Bottom 5 Closing % change (week) 52-week high 52-week low

KGHM 139.10 -3.94 200.30 102.40CYFRPOLSAT 13.80 -0.72 17.69 11.60BRE 282.50 -0.53 357.90 203.30PKNORLEN 37.71 -0.53 58.85 30.33PGE 19.08 -0.16 25.07 15.98

WIG20 2,271.36 (March 29 close)

Change for the week: 0.42% 52-week high: 2,932.62

Change year to March 29: 3.52% 52-week low: 2,089.84

mWIG40 2,493.00 (March 29 close)

Change for the week: 0.73% 52-week high: 2,987.72

Change year to March 29: 13.82% 52-week low: 2,076.52

sWIG80 10,226.94 (March 29 close)

Change for the week: 0.51% 52-week high: 12,932.00

Change year to March 29: 18.86% 52-week low: 8,218.71

NewConnect 41.93 (March 29 close)

Change for the week: -1.22% 52-week high: 59.10

Change year to March 29: 1.06% 52-week low: 40.00

WIG-Banki 5,891.94 (March 29 close)

Change for the week: 0.93% 52-week high: 7,387.49

Change year to March 29: 6.29% 52-week low: 4,944.19

DJIA13,145.82 (Mar 29 close)

0.76% (for the week)

CHANGE: 6.04%

(year to Mar 29)

52-week high: 13,289.08

52-week low: 10,404.49

NASDAQ3,095.36 (Mar 29 close)

1.05% (for the week)

CHANGE: 16.86%

(year to Mar 29)

52-week high: 3,095.36

52-week low: 2,298.89

S&P5001,403.28 (Mar 29 close)

0.75% (for the week)

CHANGE: 9.88%

(year to Mar 29)

52-week high: 1,414.00

52-week low: 1,074.77

FTSE1005,742.03 (Mar 29 close)

-1.77% (for the week)

CHANGE: 0.74%

(year to Mar 29)

52-week high: 6,103.73

52-week low: 4,791.01

DAX6,875.15 (Mar 29 close)

-1.52% (for the week)

CHANGE: 13.16%

(year to Mar 29)

52-week high: 7,600.41

52-week low: 4,965.80

NIKKEI22510,114.79 (Mar 29 close)

-0.12% (for the week)

CHANGE: 18.16%

(year to Mar 29)

52-week high: 10,207.91

52-week low: 8,135.79

world stock indices

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

340,000

40,600

41,200

41,800

42,400

43,00002

.03

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

32,200

2,240

2,280

2,320

2,360

2,400

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

3

2,400

2,440

2,480

2,520

2,560

2,600

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

310,000

10,120

10,240

10,360

10,480

10,600

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

341.0

41.6

42.2

42.8

43.4

44.0

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

26.0

3

27.0

3

28.0

3

29.0

357,00

5,800

5,900

6,000

6,100

6,200

Other indices

Bears gain

ground

Stocks report

As the first quarter of 2012comes to a close, it’s clearthat indices across the globehave experienced one oftheir best quarters in recentyears. For Poland’s majorindices, the main WIG andthe blue-chip WIG20, how-ever, fears over the financialsituations of Spain and Por-tugal could have a majorimpact on their movementsin Q2.

The IBEX 35 in Madridfell on both Monday andTuesday of last week as fearsmounted over the country’sability to deal with a climbingdeficit. Aside from someprofit taking after a strongquarter, the Iberian peninsu-la is slowly catching theattention of market bears.

Nevertheless, Polishstocks began with rises lastMonday, largely thanks toGerman business sentimentimproving unexpectedly forthe fifth month in a row inMarch. Both the WIG and

WIG20 grew, by 0.77 percentand 0.9 percent respectively.

On Tuesday, stocks werelittle changed, with moder-ate gains by the WIG andWIG20 supported by reas-suring comments from USFed chairman, Ben Ber-nanke.

On Wednesday, slidingoil and metals prices gaveinvestors more reason tosell Polish equities. Com-modity-related shares werehit hard, with KGHM shed-ding over 4 percent. Addingto a poor session forKGHM was the late releaseon Tuesday of a reportshowing that 2012 will beworse for the company thanlast year. The WIG andWIG20 lost slightly overhalf a percent.

On Thursday, marketbears pulled indices evenlower, with the WIG losing1.39 percent. Finally, on Fri-day, the WIG managed togain 0.58 percent. ●

Andrew Nawrocki WBJ market analyst

APRIL 2-8, 2012 SPORTS www.wbj.pl 21

American football

Eagles win Topliga openerThe Warsaw Eaglesbeat Koz∏y Poznaƒ 27-0 in the first game ofthe new season

The Warsaw Eagles recordeda comfortable 27-0 victoryover Koz∏y Poznaƒ in the Pol-ish American Football League(PLFA) Topliga season open-er, at the OSiR Bemowo stadi-um in Warsaw. The Eaglesimproved to 6-0 all-timeagainst the Koz∏y (Goats),after beating them in the firstgame of the season for the sec-ond consecutive year.

After a poor start from theEagles’ offense, the team got alift from its defense whenRafa∏ Brzozowski picked up aKoz∏y fumble and ran 25 yardsto the end zone for the game’sopening score. The Eaglesthen scored a further 10 pointsin the second quarter, includ-ing a 43-yard field goal fromWarsaw’s new American spe-cial weapon, Brett Petticord,which extended their half-timelead to 17-0.

With no points scored inthe third quarter, Warsawfinally put the game away earlyin the fourth when new Eagles’quarterback Kevin Lynchthrew his first Topliga touch-down, a 15-yard strike to Grze-gorz Janiak.

Elsewhere, the GdyniaSeahawks came out on top fol-lowing a thrilling matchagainst Devils Wroc∏aw.Sebastian Krzysztofek scoredtwo fourth-quarter touch-downs in a 34-27 win, whichsaw the Seahawks becomeonly the second team otherthan the Wroc∏aw Crew (nowthe Giants) to beat the NACSuperFinal VI runners up, inmore than two years.

In the weekend’s othergame, AZS Silesia Rebels, the

team formed from a merger ofthe Silesia Miners and theRuda Âlàska Warriors, cameout on top against the Dom-Bud Kraków Tigers.

It was the Tigers who start-ed the game brightest, scoringthe opening points following a27-yard touchdown pass fromFilip MoÊcicki to Thad Gaebe-line. But it was one-way trafficafter that as the Rebels scoredthe next 40 points to start theseason with a 40-6 victory.

David Ingham

Soccer

Japan-Brazil match could be called offThe game in Wroc∏awis due to take place onOctober 16

The international friendlymatch between Japan andBrazil at the Municipal StadiumWroc∏aw, could be called off.

Last week, the game wasno longer on the official list ofupcoming international ma-tches on FIFA’s website, whichsuggested it may have alreadybeen canceled. There was,however, no official announce-ment from the Polish Football

Association (PZPN) regardingthe status of the game.

Attracting five-time WorldCup winners Brazil, and theirstar-studded lineup which con-tains the likes of Ronaldinho,Neymar and Hulk, was amajor coup for the operatorsof the Municipal Stadium. Butthe move didn’t go down at allwell with the PZPN, as firstlythe match was organized with-out their permission, and sec-ondly, the date of the game isthe same as Poland’s WorldCup Qualifier against Eng-

land, in Warsaw.“They need to rethink the

matter,” said PZPN chief Grze-gorz Lato, adding that it wasimpossible that two internation-al matches could take place atthe same time in Poland.

The Municipal Stadium,which has a capacity of 42,771,opened back in September2011. During Euro 2012 it willhost three group matches: Rus-sia-Czech Republic; Greece-Czech Republic and Poland-Czech Republic.

David Ingham

Soccer

¸ukasz Piszczek makes

Bundesliga team of the weekPolish internationalsRobert Lewandowskiand Jakub B∏aszczy-kowski also starred

Borussia Dortmund’s ¸ukaszPiszczek was selected for theBundesliga team of the weekby German magazine Kicker,following another outstandingperformance for the leagueleaders last week.

The Polish defender scoredone and set up two in his side’s6-1 victory over FC Köln, which

saw the defending championsextend their lead at the top ofthe Bundesliga to five pointsover rivals Bayern Munich.

The German magazine,which rates each player thatmakes the team of the week,classified both Mr Piszczek andJapan’s Shinji Kagawy as“world class,” after Dort-mund’s demolition of the BillyGoats, as the FC Köln team isknown.

Mr Piszczek’s internationaland club teammates, 23-year-

old striker Robert Lewandows-ki and current Polish captainJakub B∏aszczykowski, alsoplayed a big part in the win. MrLewandowski scored one afterbeing set up by Mr B∏aszczy-kowski, to take his league tallyto 17 for the season.

All of this is good news forPoland’s chances at Euro 2012,with the three Dortmund play-ers and Arsenal goalkeeperWojciech Szcz´sny set to bePoland’s key players.

David Ingham

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Warsaw Eagles v Koz∏y Poznaƒ

APRIL 2-8, 2012LIFESTYLE22 www.wbj.pl

April 11, 7 pmPasión de Buena VistaSala KongresowaPalace of Culture andScience Pl. Defilad 1Warsaw

The influence of the legendaryBuena Vista Social Club ofCuban musicians is well known,due to the film of the samename and the numerousalbums of famed members ofthe group, such as Ibrahim Fer-

rer, Juan de Marcos Gonzálesand Compay Segundo.

But with many of the origi-nal musicians from the collec-tive having passed away,Pasión de Buena Vista is thenext best thing for fans of thisstyle of Latin American music.

The combination of liveauthentic Cuban music fromartists including Pachin Ino-cente, and the dancing of Cari-dad Sosa-Varona and Yamilet

Gonzàles-Campusano, amongothers, provides a spectaclethat is not to be missed.

According to the show’schoreographer Francisco Blan-co Prada, “This show will intro-duce you to a new dimension ofdance and singing, Pasión deBuena Vista – it’s the purestCuban fire.”

For more information, logon to kongresowa.pl

David Ingham

The painting is housedin Poland’s NationalMuseum in Kraków

Leonardo da Vinci’s 15th-cen-tury painting “Lady with anErmine,” has been weakenedby both old age and the effectof bark beetles, Janusz Czop, aconservator from the NationalMuseum in Kraków, told jour-nalists last week.

The masterpiece was paint-ed on a chestnut board andover the years bark beetleshave damaged the artwork bynibbling on the wood.

However, given the age ofthe painting it is still in rela-tively good condition, accord-

ing to Mr Czop.“The painting is 500

years old and has beensubject to all the process-es of aging. … Still, allthings considered, it is ina very good condition,thanks to the technologythat da Vinci used,” MrCzop said, adding that theItalian artist painted ondurable wood.

“Lady with anErmine” is one of only fourexisting female portraits creat-ed by Leonardo da Vinci. Theothers are the Mona Lisa, theportrait of Ginevra de’ Benciand La belle ferronnière.

The oil painting, which is

housed in Poland’s NationalMuseum in Kraków, was com-pleted around 1490. It isbelieved to be of CeciliaGallerani, the mistress of theDuke of Milan, LudovicoSforza. David Ingham

Concert

Latin-American passion

Art

Da Vinci masterpiecedamaged by beetles

April 15, 7 pmRed BoxStodo∏a,ul. Batorego10Warsaw

Back on stage after an absenceof more than 20 years, Britishband Red Box have returnedto showcase new material, aswell as two new musicians: vio-lin player Emily Maguire andinstrumentalist Derek Adams.

The electropop band, whowere formed by lead singerSimon Toulson-Clarke in thelate 1970s, had a number ofhits in the 1980s including

“Lean on Me (Ah-Li-Ayo)” and “ForAmerica.” In totalthey have releasedthree albums, “TheCircle and theSquare,” “Motive”and 2010’s “Plenty.”

And althoughthere has been adefinite change inmusical direction to amore chilled-out style sincethey reformed, fans can stillexpect to hear the distinctivesound of their hits at theirupcoming concert in Warsaw.

Tickets for the event arepriced from z∏.99. ●

For more information,logon to stodola.pl

David Ingham

Concert

Sound of the 80s

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Centre for ContemporaryArt at Ujazdowski Castle ul. Jazdów 2www.csw.art.pl

Czarna Gallery ul. Marsza∏kowska 4www.czarnagaleria.art.pl

Galeria 022, DAP, Lufcik ul. Mazowiecka 11awww.owzpap.pl

Galeria 65 ul. Bema 65www.galeria65.com

Galeria Appendix 2 (Praga)ul. Bia∏ostocka 9www.appendix2.com

Galeria Asymetria ul. Nowogrodzka 18awww.asymetria.eu

Galeria Foksal ul. Foksal 1-4www.galeriafoksal.pl

Galeria Milano Rondo Waszyngtona 2A (Praga)www.milano.arts.pl

Galeria Schody ul. Nowy Âwiat 39www.galeriaschody.pl

Galeria XX1 Al. Jana Paw∏a II 36www.galeriaxx1.pl

Galeria Zoya ul. Kopernika 32 m.8www.zoya.art.pl

Green Gallery ul. Krzywe Ko∏o 2/4www.greengallery.pl

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

Królikarnia National Galleryul. Pu∏awska 113awww.krolikarnia.mnw.art.pl

Le Guern Galleryul. Widok 8, www.leguern.pl

Museum of IndependenceAleja SolidarnoÊci 62www.muzeumniepodleglosci.art.pl

National Museum in Warsaw Al. Jerozolimskie 3www.mnw.art.pl

Polish National Opera atTeatr WielkiPl. Teatralny 1www.teatrwielki.pl

Pracownia Galeriaul. Emilii Plater 14www.pracowniagaleria.pl

Rempex Art and Auction Houseul. Karowa 31www.rempex.com.pl

Royal CastlePl. Zamkowy 4www.zamek-krolewski.com.pl

Simonis Galleryul. Burakowska 9www.simonisgallery.com

State ArchaeologicalMuseum in Warsawul. D∏uga 52 (Arsena∏) www.pma.pl

State Ethnographic Museumul. Kredytowa 1www.ethnomuseum.website.pl

Historical Museum of Warsaw Old Town Square 28-42www.mhw.pl

History Meeting House of Warsaw ul. Karowa 20www.dsh.waw.pl

Warsaw Philharmonic ul. Jasna 5www.filharmonia.pl

Warsaw Rising Museum ul. Grzybowska 79www.1944.pl

Wilanów Palace Museumand Wilanów PosterMuseumul. St Kostki Potockiego 10/16www.milanow-palac.plwww.postermuseum.pl

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

Museums, galleries and venues in Warsaw

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“Lady with an Ermine”

Simon Toulson-Clarke

APRIL 2-8, 2012 LAST WORD www.wbj.pl 23

Smartphone worship and the logic behind itTech Eye

If you don’t have a smartphone, youshould get one. According to legiti-mate scientific research you'll proba-bly never hear of, people who don’thave smartphones are more likely todevelop “Complete AnachronismSyndrome” than people who do havethem. The have-nots are also moreapt to smell like muskrats.

You know what else? There’s nogood reason not to have a smart-phone. You can give whateverexcuse you want, from “I don’t needone” to “a smartphone killed mygrandpappy” to “I enjoy smellinglike a muskrat.” Whatever yourlogic, it’s wrong. Scientific researchhas proven that, too.

Here are some excellent reasonswhy every sane adult should have asmartphone. One: the digital camera

is extremely useful for documentingthe idiocy of your fellow humans.Two: GPS can get you to and frompractically any pub in the world.Three: there are plenty of apps to dis-tract fidgety kids. And four: smart-phones are the new frontier for inno-vation and awesomeness in the gamedevelopment industry.

Those last two kind of go togeth-er, Techeye has learned the hardway. Our own offspring, who is fastapproaching his fifth birthday, isabsolutely obsessed with mobilegames.

One of his new favorites is “AngryBirds Space” which, as any non-cavedweller should know, is the latest itera-tion of the unstoppable “Angry Birds”franchise from Rovio (rovio.com).

Released in late March, “Angry

Birds Space” marks the Finnishdeveloper’s first migration away fromthe original title’s gameplay. It feelsfamiliar – the pigs still steal eggs, thebirds still wreak horrible vengeance –but the game’s new take on physics isrefreshing. Levels comprise null-geeenvironments, mini-worlds with grav-ity, and entertaining mixes of the two.The game is also surprisingly usefulfor explaining the concepts of atmos-phere, gravity and orbits to a kid.

It’s available for iOS, Android, PCand Mac. There are two versions: free(with ads) and premium (z∏.3, no ads).

Another populartitle is “Where’s MyWater?”, from DisneyMobile (disney.go.com).The game’s thread-bareplot revolves about asewer-dwelling alligatornamed Swampy whowants to have a bath.Unfortunately the watermains in his sewerappear to have beendesigned by MC Escher.

That’s where theplayer comes in – you have to create apath for the water to flow toSwampy’s bathtub. It quickly getscomplicated, with elaborate puzzlesinvolving purple poison and greenacid. And pink duckies.

Impressively, no matter howbyzantine the puzzles get, the solu-tion is always fairly intuitive. Evenyoung Whippersnapper Techeye canfigure many of them out, although tobe honest he’s a weird kid. He’s con-vinced that Swampy is a smurf, forexample. An alligator smurf.

“Where’s My Water?” is availablefor iOS and Android. There’s a freeversion (with limited levels) and apaid version (z∏.3).

The last game we’re going to reviewthis week is “Super Stickman Golf”

from Noodlecake Studios (noodle-cake.com). Although it isn’t as high-profile as “Angry Birds Space” or“Where’s My Water?”, and the graph-ics harken back to the Age of Atari, thegame is fun. Don’t expect an authenticgolf experience – this is a one-clubgame (hint: it’s not a sand wedge). Still,there are dozens of courses and power-ups to offer variety.

“Super Stickman Golf” is avail-able for iOS and Android. It’s free toplay, but you can get power-ups using“golf bux,” an in-game currency.

Multiplayer is also an option,apparently, but we haven’t tried itbecause our offspring is always glee-fully hitting into the water hazards. Itmay be time to get him a smartphoneof his own soon. ●

Ever lost a grandpappy in a smartphone-related accident? Let us know: techeye.wbj@gmail.com

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“Super Stickman Golf”

“Where's my Water?”

To advertise in WBJ’s classifieds section, contactMs Agnieszka Brejwo, at

(+48) 222-577-526 or abrejwo@wbj.pl