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Transcript of WBJ #47 2011
VOLUME 17, NUMBER 47 • NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 . z∏.12.50 (VAT 8% included) . ISSN 1233 7889 INDEX-RUCH-332-127
SShhaallee ggaass rruusshhCould shale gas prove a boon
for the country’s poorer
eastern regions? 8
Since 1994 . Poland’s only business weekly in English
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CCoorrrruuppttiioonn aatt tthhee ttooppFive people were detained last week in an
investigation into corruption that took place
during the privatization of state assets 3
TTaaxx hhiikkeess ccoommiinnggSearching for billions to balance the
budget, Donald Tusk’s government plans
to increase taxes on minerals, fuel and
cigarettes 5
RRuussssiiaa’’ssmmiissssiillee tthhrreeaattDmitry Medvedev has said Russia will deploy
missiles on the Polish border if it doesn’t
receive US guarantees over the missile defense
shield in Europe 3, 11
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News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-4
Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-7
Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Finance & Economics . . . . . . . . . . .9
Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
Opinion & Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Cover Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-13
Interview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
Lokale Immobilia . . . . . . . . . .15-19
Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
The List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Lifestyle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
Last Word . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
REAL ESTATELokale Immobilia
• Special GRI issue
• UBS skyscraper
• Polish commercial
market
15-19
Reagan inWarsaw
A statue of former US
President Ronald
Reagan was unveiled in
the capital last week
4
A new flavorUndeterred by the country’s harsh
winters, several producers are
trying their hands at making
wine in Poland 12-13
In this issue
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5
10
15
20
25
WomenMen
UK*Lat
via
Hunga
ry
Poland
German
y**
Franc
eIta
ly
Roman
ia
*Data for persons aged 16+**Data for 2009/10
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011NNEEWWSS2 www.wbj.pl
Death penalty
in Poland?
Jaros∏aw Kaczyƒski, the
leader of Poland’s main
opposition party, Law
and Justice, told
journalists last Friday
that his party would soon
submit an amendment to
the penal code calling
for the reinstatement of
the death penalty. “We
would like to reinstate
the death penalty for
exceptionally cruel
murders,” Mr Kaczyƒski
said. He added that there
is no law in the EU which
forbids the death
penalty. Poland has
signed and ratified
Protocol 6 of the
European Convention on
Human Rights which
forbids the death penalty
in times of peace.
Russian ruble
for Belarus?
Belarusian President
Alexander Lukashenko is
reportedly willing to
replace his country’s
currency with the
Russian ruble. He has
already been rewarded
with cheaper gas
supplies from Russia for
his signing of an
agreement towards
deepening integration
with Moscow. Mr
Lukashenko recently
joined the presidents of
Russia and Kazakhstan in
signing a declaration for
the establishment of a
Eurasian Economic Union
(EUG). After the signing
Mr Lukashenko told
Russian television that
Belarus is interested in
taking part in a
hypothetical EUG union
with the Russian ruble as
its currency.
Poland
admonishes
Belarus for
arrest
Poland’s Ministry of
Foreign Affairs said in a
statement that it
“unequivocally
deprecates the unjustified
and harsh prison
sentence of four and a
half years along with the
seizure of property”
imposed on Ales
Belyatsky, head of the
Viasna Human Rights
Center, by Belarus.
“Poland and the European
Union appeal to Belarus
to immediately release
Ales Belyatsky and other
political prisoners as a
precondition for the
European Union’s
dialogue with the
Republic of Belarus,”
reads the statement. ●
Accor ..........................................18
Alior Bank ....................................9
Amica Wronki ............................19
Atrium European Real Estate ..15
Bank Millennium........................10
Bank Zachodni WBK....................9
Best Western..............................18
Biedecki......................................10
BNM ..........................................17
BNP Paribas ................................9
BZ WBK ........................................9
CBRE ..........................................18
Chevron ........................................8
Citigroup ......................................7
Colliers International ..........16, 17
Cushman & Wakefield ........17, 18
Danone ......................................16
Droidhen ....................................23
Everest Group ..............................7
Exxon Mobil ..................................8
Fitch............................................20
Fortis ..........................................15
Ghelamco ..................................17
Globe Trade Centre....................17
Goodman Group ........................19
Grupo Lar ..................................16
H&M ..........................................16
HP ................................................7
Info-TV-FM ..................................6
Jones Lang LaSalle ............18, 19
Joshoclock ................................23
Kancelaria Brochocki
NieruchomoÊci ..........................16
KBC Securities ............................6
KGHM ....................................2, 20
Lehman Brothers ......................17
Lion’s House ..............................18
Lot ................................................3
Louvre ........................................18
Marathon Oil ............................8, 8
McKinsey & Company ................7
Moody ....................................2, 20
Neinver Polska ..........................17
Opus Trust....................................7
Orlen ............................................2
P4..................................................6
Peter Nielsen & Partners ......6,10
PGE ..............................................8
PGNiG ......................................8, 8
Philips Lighting Poland ............19
PKN Orlen ................................8, 8
PKO BP ......................................10
PKP ............................................15
PKS ............................................15
PMR............................................19
Polkomtel ....................................6
Polska Grupa Energetyczna ....8, 8
Polska Telefonia Cyfrowa ............6
Polska Telefonia Komórkowa
Centertel ......................................6
Project Syndicate ......................11
Prologis ......................................16
PwC ..............................................7
PZU ............................................10
Raiffeisen Bank............................7
Retail Provider ..........................15
Ruch ..........................................16
RWE Polska..................................3
Schmidt Hammer
Lassen Architects ......................15
SDU Technika Z∏àczeniowa ......16
STRATFOR ..................................11
ThyssenKrupp Energostal ........16
TVP ..............................................6
UBS ............................................15
Vantage Development................17
W´glokoks ....................................2
X-Trade Brokers
Dom Maklerski SA ................9, 20
Zeptolab ....................................23
Hungary has become the lat-est country in Europe toreceive a thumbs-down fromMoody’s, which downgradedthe country’s credit rating tojunk status last Thursday.Moody’s cut the rating onHungary’s government bondsfrom Baa3 to Ba1, keeping itsoutlook negative and sayingthe bonds now possess “spec-ulative characteristics.”
The markets wasted notime in reacting, with Polandfeeling the pain too. Yields onHungarian five-year bondsrose to 9.3 percent, up 60basis points, while yields on10-year bonds were around
9.4 percent, up 45 basispoints. The z∏oty, which hadbeen losing value even beforeMoody’s decision (despite anearlier intervention by thePolish central bank), tankedeven further on the news.
At the end of Friday, thez∏oty was trading at z∏.3.43 tothe dollar and z∏.4.54 to theeuro, its lowest point againstthose two currencies since June2009. Many analysts fear con-tinuous bad news coming fromthe euro zone coupled withproblems in Hungary couldcontinue to weaken the z∏oty.
The ratings agency said itsmain reason for downgrading
Hungary was “the uncertaintysurrounding the Hungariangovernment’s ability to meetits targets on fiscal consolida-tion and public-sector debtreduction over the mediumterm, in view of higher fund-ing costs and the low-growthenvironment.”
Hungary was the firstmember of the EuropeanUnion to benefit from aninternational bailout duringthe financial crisis, havingbeen rescued from default in2008, with a €20 billion loanfrom the International Mone-tary Fund, the World Bankand the EU.
Then, in 2010, HungarianPrime Minister Viktor Orbansaid his country was “a worldchampion in cutting spend-ing,” and wouldn’t need theIMF’s help again.
But in the face of risingborrowing costs, Mr Orbanhas now had to eat his wordsand yield to market pressureby announcing that Budapestwas prepared to negotiate anew agreement with the IMFand the European Union.Ratings agency Standard &Poor’s has already said it willwait on its next decision con-cerning Hungary’s credit rat-ing until the outcome of thosenegotiations is known.
RReemmii AAddeekkooyyaa
z∏.7.4 billionwas the loss in value incurred by copper giant KGHM
after Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced the
planned new tax on minerals. That’s about $2.2 billion.
100 billionis the number of cubic meters of gas that Poland could
potentially produce per year by 2030, according to the
latest estimates by Polish firm Orlen. Currently,
domestic gas production amounts to 4 billion cubic
meters.
1.5%is the predicted decrease in Poland’s advertising
market during 2012. This is despite the boost the
industry should receive from the country’s hosting of
the Euro 2012 soccer championships in June next year.
15 millionwill be the number of metric tons of coal imported into
Poland in 2011, a one-million-ton increase on 2010,
according to predictions made by Polish coal exporting
company W´glokoks.
“My last years in PiS seemed to me like a penalcolony combined with a pre-school”
Former Law and Justice member Jacek Kurski, describing the atmosphere in the
party, ruled with an iron fist by leader Jaros∏aw Kaczyƒski
Quote of the Week
Tough battles ahead
On the eve of the United Nations climate change confer-ence in Durban, South Africa, the European EnvironmentAgency revealed Poland is the bloc’s second biggest airpolluter. Meanwhile, the EU says it is committed to signan ambitious and legally binding treaty on climate action,but the US and China are not. WBJ.pl takes a look atwhat can be expected from the summit.
On WBJ.pl
Numbers in the News
Company index
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NOVEMBER
28 POLISH RESIDENTIAL MARKETEvent: This annual meeting of the residential real
estate industry aims to provide independentand reliable information about Poland’s mar-ket. Location: Novotel Centrum Hotel, War-sawkonferencje.nowyadres.pl
30 EUROPAPROPERTY OCCUPIER FORUM Event: This real estate conference ends with a net-
working evening and the CEE Green BuildingAwards presentation. Location: MarriottHotel, Warsaweuropaproperty.com
DECEMBER
1 CFO EUROPEAN SUMMITEvent: This event will bring together top CFOs and
financial executives from across the regionto exchange views, discuss key industryconcerns and share best practices as theycontend with the increasing challenges fac-ing their organizations. Location: Westin Hotel, Warsaw
accaglobal.com/cfoeuropeansummit
1 NEW EUROPE GRIEvent: This event offers a forum where senior play-
ers meet each other and build friendships ina setting devoid of selling pressure. Location: Hyatt Regencymygri.com/neweurope
1-2 CONSUMER FINANCE CONGRESSEvent: An inspiring and interesting debate about
the challenges and problems of the con-sumer finance market. Location: WSE, Warsawgab.com.pl
5 WIND ENERGY FORUMEvent: This event will be dedicated to a discussion
on the methodology of a recent assessmentof wind farms’ impact on birds and bats.Location: Marriott Hotelfew2011.psew.pl
8 POLISH INVESTFORUM Event: This meeting is the third edition of the Pol-
ish Investforum. Location: Sheraton Hotelroadshowpolska.pl
November/December
DATELINE
Hungary’s finances
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Figures in focus
Heavy numbers
Total percentage of obese men and women (over 18),
selected EU27 countries, 2008 or 2009
Source: Eurostat
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 NNEEWWSS www.wbj.pl 3
Kubica to miss
F1 startPolish racing driver
Robert Kubica has
announced that he will
not recover in time to
race at the start of the
2012 Formula 1 season.
Kubica suffered horrific
injuries in a crash in
February this year when
a rally car he was
driving veered off the
road at high speed and
smashed into a barrier.
It was expected that
Poland’s only F1 driver
would be fit enough to
take the wheel for his
Renault team at the
Australian Grand Prix on
March 18 2012, but Mr
Kubica has now decided
to announce publicly
that this will be
impossible.
Wajda to begin
Wa∏´sa movie
Acclaimed Polish film
director Andrzej Wajda
will begin shooting a
film about Nobel Peace
Prize winner and
former leader of the
Solidarity trade union
Lech Wa∏´sa in Gdaƒsk
on December 1. “This
will be the most
difficult movie I have
made in my life,” the
Oscar-winning director
said at a press
conference on Thursday.
The director said that
documentary footage of
the strikes, which took
place at the Gdaƒsk
shipyard, as well as Mr
Wa∏´sa’s negotiations
with communist
authorities would be
woven in to the film,
which is planned
for release in autumn
2012.
The Polish
eagle returns
The Polish Football
Association (PZPN) has
bowed to public
pressure and decided to
reinstate the white
eagle as the emblem
on the shirts of
Poland’s national
soccer team. Earlier this
month the PZPN had
announced that the
eagle, Poland’s national
emblem, would be
replaced by the
federation’s own symbol,
a decision which led to
widespread criticism
from fans and
politicians.
The new shirts, which
feature an eagle in the
center of the shirt, are
expected to be ready for
the team’s friendly
match against Turkey on
December 16. ●
Corruption
Former state officials charged withbribe-taking, money laundering The former head of aPolish intelligenceagency has beenarrested as part of theinvestigation
Five people have beendetained in Katowice in con-nection with an investigationinto bribe-taking and moneylaundering that allegedly tookplace during the privatizationsof Lot Polish Airlines andenergy company Stoen (nowRWE Polska). Millions ofz∏oty were reportedly involved.
Gromos∏aw C., the formerchief of Urzàd Ochrony Paƒst-wa (Office for State Protec-tion), a now-defunct stateintelligence agency, was arrest-ed in his Warsaw apartmentlast Tuesday in connection
with the investigation. UnderPolish law, only the first nameand the first letter of the sur-name of a suspected criminalmay be written out in full in anarticle appearing in the press.
Four others were alsoarrested, including personswho worked for or advised theMinistries of Treasury andFinance.
The accused were taken toKatowice’s Appellate Prosecu-tor’s Office, where they arefacing charges of corruptionand money laundering.
Gromos∏aw C. was chargedlast week with jointly taking a€1.4 million bribe with otherpublic officials in connectionwith the privatization of Stoen,court spokesperson LeszekGo∏awski told local media.About $1 million in bribe
money, meanwhile, is allegedto have changed hands duringthe privatization of Lot.
Certain companies interest-ed in the privatization of bothfirms reportedly offered bribemoney during the respectiveprivatization processes. Rzecz-pospolita reported that investi-gators found that bribes wereindeed given in the final pur-chase of Stoen and Lot.
The investigation has beenongoing for several years, butnewly discovered evidence hasallowed prosecutors to launchproceedings. The break-through was made thanks toevidence given by a Swissbanker. A Swiss bank has alsosent a Warsaw prosecutors’office a selection of bank state-ments that relate to the inves-tigation. GGaarreetthh PPrriiccee
Missile shield
RRuussssiiaa oonnccee aaggaaiinn tthhrreeaatteennss ttooddeeppllooyy mmiissssiilleess oonn PPoolliisshh bboorrddeerrMoscow wants legalguarantees that a US-backed missile shieldin Europe will not bedirected against Russia
Russian President DmitryMedvedev has said thatMoscow will deploy missiles inthe Kaliningrad oblast, whichborders Poland, to target theplanned US-backed missiledefense shield in Europeunless it receives legal guaran-tees that the shield will not beaimed at Russia.
The US says it is building amissile defense system incountries throughout Europe,including Poland, to protectitself and its allies against bal-listic missile threats from Iran.
President Medvedev stat-ed in a television broadcastlast Wednesday that if the USdid not provide solid guaran-tees that the shield would notbe aimed at Russia, Moscowwould deploy “modern offen-
sive weapons systems in thewest and south of the coun-try, ensuring our ability totake out any part of the USmissile defense system inEurope. One step in thisprocess will be to deployIskander [ballistic] missiles in
the Kaliningrad region.” US and NATO partners
have so far refused to complywith Moscow’s demands. Aspokesperson for the USNational Security Council toldthe AFP that “we will not inany way limit or change our
deployment plans forEurope.” He added, however,that Washington would contin-ue “to work with Russia todefine the parameters of pos-sible cooperation.”
Russia fears that the deter-rence potential of its nucleararsenal could be blunted by theshield. “Legislators in somecountries openly state that thewhole system is against Rus-sia,” said Mr Medvedev.
Russia has been particular-ly vocal in its opposition to themissile interceptors thatRomania and Poland haveagreed to host from 2015 and2018 respectively, and has inthe past threatened to site mis-siles in Kaliningrad.
“The European missiledefense program is alreadyunderway and work on it is,regrettably, moving rapidly inPoland, Turkey, Romania, andSpain. We find ourselves fac-ing a fait accompli,” said theRussian president.
“There is still time to reach
an understanding,” Mr Med-vedev said, emphasizing thatRussia has the political will todo so.
‘Very disappointing’NATO Secretary GeneralAnders Fogh Rasmussen saidthe suggestion that missilescould be deployed in areasneighboring the alliance’s ter-ritory was “very disappoint-ing” and “reminiscent of thepast.”
“NATO’s missile defensesystem … is designed todefend against threats emanat-ing from outside Europe and isnot designed to alter the bal-ance of deterrence,” he said.
Mr Medvedev also threat-ened to quit the New STARTnuclear arms reduction pact,which it signed recently withthe US.
The threats come daysbefore Russian parliamentaryelections, planned for Decem-ber 4.
AAlliiccee TTrruuddeellllee
Markets losing trust in German bonds?After weeks of panic over thefinancial situations of Greeceand Italy, a German govern-ment bond auction caused fur-ther anxiety in the markets lastweek after attracting weakinvestor demand.
The German governmentwas able to sell only €3.6 bil-
lion of the €6 billion in 10-yearbonds it offered at auction.They were sold for an averageyield of 1.98 percent.
Some interpreted the lowdemand as a signal of decreas-ing investor appetite for what,up until now, were consideredthe safest euro-zone bonds.
Interest rates on the coun-try’s 10-year bonds rosesharply after the auction, to2.18 percent.
The German bond auctionsent shockwaves through mar-kets as investors, reeling from aspate of bad news out ofEurope over the last few
months, initially interpreted itas a sign that the crisis hadreached the core of the eurozone.
However, after the initialshock, most analysts seem toagree that it’s still too early tosay whether the mood has nowturned against German bonds
and whether the country’s yieldrates will continue to rise. Someargue that with all the gloomynews emerging about theimmediate future of the Euro-pean economy, rates on Ger-man bonds should go lower asinvestors search for safereturns. RReemmii AAddeekkooyyaa
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Five people have been charged with corruption
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President Medvedev wants Russia to be able to “take
out” the US missile defense system
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011NNEEWWSS4 www.wbj.pl
The Solidarity movement
Lech Wa∏´sa slammed in wife’s autobiography Poland’s former firstlady recounts herstruggles during herhusband’s leadershipof the Solidaritymovement
Danuta Wa∏´sa, the wife ofNobel Peace Prize winner andformer Solidarity leader LechWa∏´sa, released her tell-allautobiography “Dreams andSecrets” last week, sheddinglight on the private life behindPoland’s first post-communistleader.
The 550-page bookrecounts Ms Wa∏´sa’s role asthe wife of the trade unionactivist and former president,while also revealing details ofher loneliness during some ofthe most significant momentsin modern Polish history.
The 62-year-old, who wasPoland’s first lady from 1990to 1995, tells how she strug-gled to hold together herhome life and bring up eightchildren while her husbandwas at the forefront of theanti-communist Solidaritymovement.
“We had crowds of laborunion members, advisors,
politicians, journalists andlunatics pouring into our apart-ment from dawn until late atnight,” she writes. It was “com-plete chaos instead of a normalhome,” she added.
Ms Wa∏´sa recounts howshe was expected to deal withall domestic chores, includingcooking for the family and anyother visitors who came to herhome, a task which she sayseventually led to a breakdown.
“I was a mother, a teacher,a cook, a cleaning lady, a
nurse, I had no time to do any-thing else,” she said.
In the book, she also criti-cizes her husband for not con-sulting her on major decisionsin his life, including his choiceto run for the presidency in1990.
In an interview with thePolish edition of Newsweekmagazine, Mr Wa∏´sa reactedby saying, “My wife has told nolies, but you have to put every-thing into context.”
DDaavviidd IInngghhaamm,,VVeerroonniikkaa JJooyy
Lech Wa∏´sa did thehonors and recalledMr Reagan’s role inthe fall of communism
Former Polish President andSolidarity leader Lech Wa∏´saunveiled a statue of late USPresident Ronald Reagan inWarsaw last week.
The 3.5 meter bronze statue,located on Al. Ujazdowskie,opposite the US Embassy,depicts the historical momentwhen Mr Reagan stood at apodium at Berlin’s Branden-burg Gate in 1987 and imploredto then-General Secretary ofthe Communist Party of theSoviet Union Mikhail Gor-bachev: “Mr Gorbachev, teardown this wall.”
In Poland, Mr Reagan isrevered by many as one of thegreatest leaders of the 20th cen-tury because of his hard-linestance against the Soviet Unionand his vigorous support fordemocracy in Europe.
“I wonder whether today’sPoland, Europe and the worldwould look the same withoutPresident Reagan,” Mr Wa∏´sasaid at the unveiling of the stat-ue. “As a participant in thoseevents, I must say that it’sinconceivable.”
In his 1981 Christmasaddress Mr Reagan spoke
about the situation in Polandand in particular about the per-secution of the oppositionalSolidarity trade union by theSoviet-imposed communist gov-ernment.
“The target of this depres-sion [repression] is the Solidari-ty movement, but in attackingSolidarity its enemies attack anentire people. ... By persecutingSolidarity the Polish govern-ment wages war against its ownpeople. I urge the Polish gov-ernment and its allies to consid-er the consequences of theiractions,” he said.
In a letter to Poland, USPresident Barack Obama said,“President Reagan had a giftfor inspiring hope in people fac-ing difficult circumstances. Hehelped restore a sense of opti-mism in America during a peri-od of economic and global chal-lenges, and did the same for thePolish people through hisunflinching support for the Sol-idarity movement.”
Mr Reagan, who served asUS president for two termsbetween 1981-1989, died in2004 at the age of 93.
DDaavviidd IInngghhaamm
US-Polish relations
Reagan statue unveiled in Warsaw
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Ronald Reagan is admired by many in Poland
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The Wa∏´sa’s home in the 1980s was “complete chaos,”
according to Ms Wa∏´sa
Miner KGHM’s stockprice plunged lastweek on fears a newtax will erase value
Polish copper- and silver-mining giant KGHM saw itsstock drop by more than 20percent last week afterPrime Minister Donald Tuskproposed a new tax on min-erals in an address settingout his government’s priori-ties for the current parlia-mentary term.
KGHM already paysaround z∏.90 million in taxesper year, according to theFinancial Times, with the taxon copper set at z∏.3.1 permetric ton.
“Although the exact levelof the new tax is stillunknown, it will definitely behigher than the currentlevel,” said Piotr ¸opaciuk,head of Polish equityresearch at Erste SecuritiesPolska. “To the investors,this means a loss of income,and that explains the drop instock market value.”
A spokesperson for thefinance ministry told WBJthat it “does not have afinalized project, but Minis-ter of Finance Jacek Ros-towski estimates the new taxwill bring in about z∏.2 bil-lion.”
Regardless of the exactincrease, it is unlikely that
KGHM’s share price willreturn to levels seen prior to
Mr Tusk’s announcement,according to Artur Iwaƒski,
an analyst at the PKO DomMaklerski brokerage.
“The stock market valueof KGHM will return towhere it was prior to thePrime Minister’s addressonly if either the financeministry abandons the planto raise taxes or the price ofcopper increases by 30 per-cent – but these two scenar-ios are very unlikely,” MrIwaƒski said.
Mr ¸opaciuk added thathe predicts the economiccrisis will cause a decrease inthe price of copper in 2012and this will also have a neg-ative effect on the value ofKGHM stock.
IIzzaabbeellaa DDeeppcczzyykk
Industry
Proposed mineral tax hits copper giant hard
The government aimsto raise z∏.2.45 billionfor next year’s budgetthrough the tax hike
Prime Minister Donald Tusk’snew government has put forthproposals which could seeprice rises on both fuel andcigarettes. The governmenthas made the decision in anattempt to raise approximatelyz∏.2.45 billion for the 2012budget.
The proposals involveincreases to excise tax on bothfuel and tobacco, which wouldcome into effect on January 1,2012. It is expected the pro-posed increase to tax on fuelcould bring in z∏.2.2 billion.
Urszula CieÊlak, an analystat fuel-market consulting firmReflex said that any increase ingas prices would come to less
than z∏.0.19 per liter. Sheadded that fuel companieswould, at least initially, absorbpart of the cost.
Ms CieÊlak said she wasn’tsurprised by the government’splans. “Under the existing law,which takes effect January 1,2012, Poland is obliged tocomply with a new EU mini-mum taxation on diesel fuel,”which she said will increasefrom €302 per 1,000 liters in2011, to €330 in 2012. She alsoadded that the tax increaseresults from the changes in theEUR/PLN exchange rate.
The government also pre-dicts the proposed 4 percenttax increase on tobacco couldadd another z∏.245 million tothe government’s coffers, butonly if sales drop no less than2.5 percent.
Joanna Grabowska, a PR
representative for ImperialTobacco Polska, one of thelargest tobacco companies inPoland, said in a press releasethat the company was “firmlyopposed” to the proposed taxincrease on tobacco products,saying it will have “severe con-sequences for the tobaccomarket.”
The company is concernedthat the rise in taxes willincrease trafficking of illegaltobacco, thereby reducing rev-enue for the state as well asPolish tobacco farmers.
“The level of taxation oftobacco smoking in Poland isalready very high compared toEU requirements,” the com-pany said, adding that it, “isextremely concerned that thevalue of the illicit market intobacco products is increas-ing.”
Already, “the aggregatelosses in the last four yearshave amounted to about z∏.9
billion,” Ms Grabowskaclaimed in a press release.
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Tax increase
Tax on tobacco and fuel set to increase
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 BBUUSSIINNEESSSS www.wbj.pl 5
Advertising
market to
shrink
According to forecasts
from media house
Equinox Polska, the
value of the Polish
advertising market is set
to fall by 1.5% in 2012,
despite the upcoming
Euro 2012 soccer
championships. Analysts
expect the market to
drop to z∏.7.1 billion in
2012, from this year’s
z∏.7.21 billion. According
to Maciej Malec,
managing director at
Equinox Polska, the
trend of cutting
expenditure on
advertising in large
companies and the
deepening economic
crisis in Europe and in
Poland will lead to
“significant decreases in
advertising
expenditures.”
EU warns
Poland
The European Union has
sent a warning to
countries which in its
opinion may not meet
the common fiscal
criteria for 2012. Poland
was among the five
countries which
received the warning
last week. European
officials worry that
Poland’s ballooning
national debt could
mean it won’t be able to
fulfill the criteria. This
is despite a raft of
planned reforms to the
Polish tax and social
security system that
were announced by
Prime Minister Donald
Tusk recently to help cut
the deficit. ●
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news broke
SH
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TO
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The proposed tax on fuel could bring in z∏.2.2 billion
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011BBUUSSIINNEESSSS6 www.wbj.pl
The event’s aim is to integrate the worldof sport and businessPolish foundation Stamm Sport Promotionheld its second Warsaw Olympic Eveninggala, the aim of which is to integrate theworld of sport and business by lobbying foryoung talent and to encourage businesspeo-ple to invest in the foundation’s sport proj-ects.
During the event awards for the Ambas-sador of Sport were handed out to the peoplewho have been supporting the foundation’sinitiative.
W∏odzimierz Szaranowicz, the manager ofTVP Sport, received the award in the “Media”category. Andrzej KraÊnicki, the chairman ofthe Polish Olympic Committee, received theaward in the category “Sport Activist,”Andrzej Supron, a Polish Olympic wrestler,received the award in the category “Athlete”and Marek Goliszewski, chairman of the Busi-ness Center Club, received the award in the“Business” category.
Almost 250 people filled out the roomwhich was provided by Mr Goliszewski.
The evening was hosted by Przemys∏awBabiarz, a journalist and sports commentatorfor Poland’s public television station TVP, as
well as by Mr Supron.The event included a concert of Pawe∏
Stasiak with the Papa D band, and a 100kgcake from the Polish confectionery companyMarta Grycan.
There was also an auction of objectsoffered by sports stars, and a exposition ofartworks by the famous, Oscar-winning Pol-ish film director, Andrzej Wajda.
According to organizers, the friendlyatmosphere created a great opportunity fornetworking. ●
‘Ambassadors of Sport’ awarded
at second Warsaw Olympic
Evening gala
Media patronage
Contact: Miros∏aw Stefanik
Legal News
BROUGHT TO YOU BY PETER NIELSEN & PARTNERS LAW OFFICE
Insurers to pay lease costsfor substitute vehiclesPursuant to the resolution adopted by theSupreme Court on November 17, 2011,insurance companies are now obliged tocover justified and economically reasonableexpenses for the lease of a substitute vehi-cle in cases involving damage or destruc-tion of an individual’s vehicle.
In the Supreme Court’s opinion, in a situ-ation where a private individual’s vehicle hasbeen damaged and the vehicle was notbeing used for a business activity, the insur-ance company should cover the costs ofleasing a replacement vehicle. The insur-ance company’s liability is not dependenton whether the insured party is able or notto use public transport. Thus, even if theinsured party was, after the accident, ableto use public transport, they may still beentitled to a refund of costs incurred forleasing a substitute vehicle provided thatthe expenses were justified by the circum-stances.
Further reasons for the Supreme Courtresolution will be known after the justifica-tion is published.
St. Nicholas Day packages foremployees exempt from tax St. Nicholas Day (December 6th) gift pack-ages are exempt from personal incometax if they have been financed from theemployer’s social benefits fund and if theyare meant for the employees. For such arelease to be applicable the value of thepackage may not exceed z∏.380 per taxyear.
Municipalities responsiblefor wasteFrom January 1, 2012, new provisionsunder the act on keeping municipalitiesclean become binding. The amendmentsare important as they delegate the fullresponsibility for waste management tolocal authorities. This means it is the munic-ipalities who will now be responsible forreducing the amount of garbage depositedat waste disposal sites and for organizingthe system of selective waste collection forinhabitants. Municipalities will choose thecompanies which will take care of wastemanagement through tenders. They willalso collect the relevant fees from inhabi-tants, from which they will finance furtherwaste-management activities. Thosemunicipalities which fail to reach the pre-scribed levels of recycling for a given yearwill be forced to pay penalties.
Employment contract for definite term Pursuant to the resolution adopted by theLabor Chamber of the Supreme Court onNovember 17, 2011, any employee whosefixed-term contract was terminated by theemployer with notice is only entitled tocompensation if the parties had not previ-ously agreed on the possibility of termina-tion with notice. The compensation will beattainable if the time by the end of whichthe contract was to continue has alreadypassed or if reinstating the said employeeto work would be inadvisable due to theshortness of the period left until the expiryof that term. ●
Market regulation
Poland’s four majortelecoms fined z∏.113 millionThe regulator’sinvestigation foundthe firms colludedagainst mobile-TVservices providerInfo-TV-FM
Poland’s anti-monopoly regula-tor, UOKiK, has fined Poland’sfour largest telecom firms atotal of z∏.113 million after con-cluding that they restrictedcompetition in Poland’s marketfor digital TV services (DVB-H) for mobile phones.
UOKiK found that thecompanies colluded againstInfo-TV-FM, which providesDVB-H services, after theconsortium they had formedfailed to win a tender to pro-vide the services. The compa-nies are accused of conspiringto restrict Info-TV-FM’s busi-ness activities and of publiclyquestioning the legitimacy ofthe company’s offers on vari-ous websites.
Of the total amount, P4(operator of the Play network)was fined z∏.10.7 million,Polkomtel (Plus) was finedz∏.33.4 million, Polska Telefo-nia Cyfrowa (T-Mobile) z∏.34million and Polska TelefoniaKomórkowa Centertel (Or-
ange) z∏.35 million. In a press statement
UOKiK representative Ma∏-gorzata Cieloch said the fourparties had entered into an“unlawful agreement” that“lasted for over two and a halfyears and ceased the develop-ment of the DVB-H wholesaletelevision market. Additional-ly, consumers lost the opportu-nity to enjoy mobile TV servic-es on the phone.”
Piotr Janik, an analyst fromKBC Securities, said thatUOKiK’s decision was expect-ed. He added that for PolskaTelefonia Komórkowa Center-tel, which operates as a sub-sidiary of incumbent telecomTelekomunikacja Polska, “the
market reaction was neutral.The stock price did not react,because given the scale ofprofits, a fine of z∏.35 million isnegligible.”
Katarzyna Meller, a PR rep-resentative for Polkomtel, saidin a statement that the compa-ny disputed UOKiK’s decision.“Polkomtel did not participatein any such agreement,” shesaid, adding that the companywill appeal the decision.
Wojciech Jabczyƒski, aspokesperson for Telekomu-nikacja Polska, said that thecompany did not participate inany “conspiracy,” saying it hasalways made business deci-sions independently.
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Telekomunikacja Polska was fined z∏.35 million
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 BBUUSSIINNEESSSS www.wbj.pl 7
Raiffeisen
Bank record
profits
From January to the end
of September, Raiffeisen
Bank Polska made a net
profit of z∏.247 million, an
increase of 42% y/y. The
result was a record for
the company, Parkiet
wrote. At the end of
September, the total
value of loans given by
the bank amounted to
z∏.18.54 billion – a 19.9%
increase on the same
period a year earlier. The
value of deposits grew
even more strongly
(26.8%), reaching z∏.18.59
billion.
Polish banking
growth
potentialBanking sectors in
Eastern Europe are
expected to grow faster
than those in Western
Europe, Rados∏aw
Przyby∏, a partner at
McKinsey & Company,
told Parkiet. According to
a report by the company,
the banking sectors in
Poland and Russia have
the highest growth
potential, given that they
are the region’s largest
economies and their
banking markets are still
far from saturated. The
banking sectors in both
countries also have large
amounts of capital and
liquidity.
Rostowski
third-best
finance
minister
Polish Finance Minister
Jacek Rostowski has
been ranked the
European Union’s third-
best financial minister by
the Financial Times. Mr
Rostowski was beaten to
the top two places by
Sweden’s Anders Borg
and Germany’s Wolfgang
Schäuble, who were
ranked first and second
respectively.
Poles buying
German
apartmentsPolish citizens are
purchasing increasing
amounts of property in
Eastern Germany,
reported Dziennik Gazeta
Prawna. In certain
locations, Poles account
for as much as 50% of the
local population. That’s
because apartments
there are often priced up
to 50% lower than in
Poland. ●
Business services
TToouugghh ttiimmeess ssppeellll ooppppoorrttuunniittyy ffoorrPPoolliisshh bbuussiinneessss sseerrvviicceess sseeccttoorr
“Crisis? What crisis?” askedMarek Grodziƒski, vice presi-dent of BPO at CapgeminiPoland and vice president ofthe board at the Association ofBusiness Service Leaders inPoland (ABSL), in a recentreport, pointing out that thePolish business services sectorhas grown impressively overthe last two years.
According to EverestGroup research, the businessservices market in Poland has
grown between 10 and 11 per-cent annually since 2008,reaching a total value of $1.5billion in 2010. This could riseto $1.7 billion by the end of2011, the firm says.
Booming business“I think we need to learn fromwhat happened in 2008-2009when the last crisis hit,” saidJacek Levernes, vice presidentof HP global business servicesfor Europe, Middle East &
Africa, and president of themanagement board of ABSL.As the crisis put pressure onsales and revenue growth,companies started to adjusttheir cost structures, heexplained. “That’s why we sawa wave of investments in thebusiness services sector, whichwe are still benefiting fromtoday,” he said.
ABSL estimates thatbetween 2008 and 2011 employ-ment almost doubled in the sec-tor, growing by an average of 22percent annually, from 46,500 toa projected 75,500 jobs by theend of this year.
Mr Levernes said thatgrowth over the next fewyears could be similarlystrong, saying he knows of 10to 15 projects whose investorsare currently looking atPoland as a potential invest-ment destination.
“Unless this becomes ahuge depression, which I don’tthink it will, then we will seeanother wave of investmentsand I think that will speed upgrowth to 100,000 jobs in thesector,” he said.
As for his own company’splans, however, Mr Levernessaid he is not sure if HP willopen a new center in Poland anytime soon, although the idea hasbeen discussed recently.
A changing mixThe possibility that some of themost basic services used bycompanies in the West, such asIT and BPO, may move furtheroffshore could also prove to bean advantage for Poland, saidMr Levernes.
“Poland will never win aglobal competition in terms ofthe lowest cost. But Poland cantop the list in terms of the bestvalue provider, and I think wewill see many more of thesemore complex investments inthe future,” he said.
By transitioning from sim-ple transactions and adminis-trative processes to morecomplex knowledge-based,decision-support and analytictypes of services, the businessservice sector could gain long-term stability, believes MrLevernes.
“It’s in Poland’s best inter-est to build capacity to take onmore complex types of servicesand centers, because those arevery tough to find and build,but also very tough to changecompared to basic services,which are easy to shift,” hesaid.
The Everest Group, whichis advising investors to con-sider Poland for higher-orderengineering services andR&D support, notes that the
trend has already started.One example is Citigroup’splanned R&D center in¸ódê, which will employresearchers, banking experts,system architects, softwareprogrammers and businessanalysts.
The right marketingExamples of more complexservices range from finance,HR, procurement, marketing,legal, and R&D, to medicalservices and even film produc-tion.
But if Poland can’t marketitself “none of this is going towork,” warned Mr Levernes.
Poland is getting somerecognition, with the EverestGroup recently upgrading thecountry to its elite group of“maturing locations” for serv-ice investments, along withBrazil, China, India and thePhilippines.
But many people, includingin Poland, still don’t realizePoland is number one inEurope and number five glob-ally,” said Mr Levernes. “Ithink Poland can be much bet-ter at marketing itself.”
And if Poland manages todo that, opportunities to bringin more advanced businesseswill flourish, he said.
AAlliiccee TTrruuddeellllee
Business leaders say Poland has what it takesto lure increasingly sophisticated businessservice investments, but it has to lay thegroundwork first
Business
PPoolliisshh SSMMEEss mmuusstt eexxppaanndd tthheeiirr hhoorriizzoonnssFor Poland’s dynamiceconomic growth tocontinue, the country’ssmall and medium-sized firms need tobecome more active inforeign markets
It’s essential for Poland’s smalland medium-sized businessesto begin to venture more intomarkets abroad if the countryis to continue its strong eco-nomic growth as living stan-dards rise, experts said lastweek at a conference dedicat-ed to encouraging the foreignexpansion of Polish SMEs.
There are about 3.9 millionregistered SMEs in Poland, ofwhich 1.8 million are consid-ered “active” according to theCentral Statistical Office.SMEs make up 99.9 percent ofall economic entities regis-tered in Poland and employabout 6.6 million people, 70percent of the active laborforce. The experts were unani-mous in their agreement thatgetting these engines ofPoland’s economy to expand
their reach into foreign mar-kets is essential to the coun-try’s growth.
Witold Or∏owski, chiefeconomist at PwC and a for-mer presidential economicadviser, said Poland is able todraw foreign investors “largelydue to its low labor costs,” butthat when Poles start to earnwages closer to their WesternEuropean counterparts, thecountry would become lessattractive.
“The only chance for futuregrowth is for Polish SMEs toexpand into other markets,”he said, adding that the Polishmarket is too small to createbig firms. “So if we want tocreate our own strong brands,we either expand or we will beleft behind.”
Held backIn 2010, Polish firms invested€4.1 billion in foreign coun-tries, bringing the total valueof Polish investments abroadto €29.1 billion, according tofigures from the NationalBank of Poland. However,most of these were invest-
ments made by large firms, notSMEs, the experts said. Sever-al barriers are holdingPoland’s small and medium-sized firms back, including lim-ited access to capital, poorknowledge of other marketsand cultural differences, theexperts said.
Agnieszka Rzepecka, theCEO of Opus Trust, a fiduci-ary services firm, said that Pol-ish entrepreneurs can be divid-ed into three groups when itcomes to expanding their firmsabroad: “those who activelyattempt to enter foreign mar-kets, those who are interestedbut hesitant to commit them-selves and those who have nointerest whatsoever in ventur-ing out of Poland.”
“The last group is verypoorly-educated about thepossibilities in other marketsand approach talk of enteringforeign markets highly suspi-ciously as if expecting somefoul play,” she added.
Bo˝ena Lubliƒska-Kas-przak, the head of the state-funded Polish Agency forEnterprise Development
(PARP) said that languagebarriers can also play a role.
Partner neededThe experts also agreed that akey prerequisite to entering aforeign market was to have alocal partner on the groundwho understands the realitiesand complexities of the partic-ular country’s market.
Agencies such as PARPand the commercial sections
of Polish embassies and con-sulates offer assistance withthis, and the Polish Informa-tion and Foreign Investmentagency (PAIiIZ) this monthannounced plans to imple-ment a pilot program sup-porting Polish investors insix countries: the CzechRepublic, France, Germany,Russia, Ukraine and theUK.
RReemmii AAddeekkooyyaa
$ bln
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
2011201020092008
*Top end of forecast
1.221.32
1.52
1.70*
At your service
Poland's global services market
(in $ billions)
Source: Everest Group
€ bln
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
201020092008200720062005
2.7
7.0
3.9
1.9
3.74.1
Bouncing back?
Polish direct investments abroad (total in € bln)
Source: National Bank of Poland
Situated on Poland’s easternborder, the Lubelskie voivod-ship has been through somehard times in recent years.Known for having high unem-ployment rates and one of thelowest per capita GDPs in thecountry, the region has bene-fited less from Poland’s recenteconomic transformationthan others located closer toWestern Europe. But thismight just be about to change.The region is sitting on whatexperts say could be one ofthe biggest reserves of shalegas in Poland. Companiesincluding some of the world’sbiggest oil firms have startedprospecting, with somealready striking lucky.
According to the Environ-ment Ministry, there are cur-rently eight firms that own atotal of 24 concessions to searchfor shale gas in the Lubelskieregion. These include ExxonMobil, Chevron, and MarathonOil , as well as Polish giantsPGNiG and PKN Orlen.
Mariusz Sagan, director ofthe department of strategy andinvestors services for the cityof Lublin, says he hopes that
the development of shale gaswill provide an opportunity fordynamic economic growth ineastern Poland.
Alice Trudelle: Has Lublin CityHall been promoting the regionfor exploration? Mariusz Sagan: Not in a directway. We haven’t conducted anypromotional campaigns as such,nor have we spoken to shale gasproducers. However, we target-ed the support services compa-nies to encourage their settle-ment in Lublin. In that way weaim to create a favorable envi-ronment for the actual shale gasproducers in the region.
How would you say local com-munities have reacted to theprospect of shale-gas explo-ration and production? Havethere been protests?So far, we haven’t seenprotests from the local com-munities. Their attitude ispositive and optimistic. Peo-ple hope that shale gas pro-duction will provide jobs andimprove their living stan-dards. They see it more as anopportunity than a threat.
Are people in the city or regionalready profiting form shale gasexploration?Let me emphasize that shalegas exploration is not foreseenin the city of Lublin, and so themunicipality does not take prof-it from the drilling process. Asfar as local communities areconcerned, they will benefitmore when the gas resourcesare located. For the time being,it is individual property ownerswho benefit from the researchthrough lending their land tocompanies. They can also claimcompensation for land damage.
Do you think local communitiescould benefit from shale gasproduction in Lubelskie?Yes, in many ways, althoughdirect benefits will not be sig-nificant according to the bind-ing legislation. First of all,shale gas producers are obligedto pay taxes on hydrocarbonexploration. This influencesthe communal budget in adirect way and allows for moreinvestment in local infrastruc-ture. With the significant finan-cial influx, existing plans toboost local infrastructure inthe region could finally be real-ized. Secondly, a new companycould increase the communalrevenues through the growthof [tax] inflows and thus
improve social support and liv-ing standards in the region.Thirdly, it could activate thecommunities in the towns andregions located close to a well,since a new company translatesinto new jobs. Finally, it couldattract more visitors and newinvestors to Lubelskie throughthe continued presence of theregion in the media.
Do you foresee an increase inthe number of jobs linked withthe shale gas industry? Yes, certainly. Up to 100,000new jobs are anticipated inPoland thanks to the shale gasindustry. Those will be con-nected with the gas extractionprocess. However, they willalso entail the support servicesrelated to the industry, con-struction works connectedwith the infrastructure devel-opment and general facilitiessuch as hotels, restaurants andother retail services resultingfrom the economic growth. Inthe future, if gas resourcesprove sufficient for extractionon an industrial scale, largeenergy projects could be con-sidered, such as the construc-tion of gas power plants orchemical industry plants basedon cheaper gas supply.
How would you describe CityHall’s relationship with the cen-tral government with regards to
shale gas?Our relationship remains good.There is an exchange of infor-mation going on. We also putforward our suggestions regard-ing new legislation favorable forlocal governments. In my hum-ble opinion, the central govern-ments should implement lawsand regulations which would
enable the local governments ofthe regions where shale gas isproduced to set up special-pur-pose entities. In that way localgovernments would become co-owners of the gas-extractingcompanies operating in theirregion and could influence thegas producers.
AAlliiccee TTrruuddeellllee
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 20118 www.wbj.pl EENNEERRGGYY
Lubelskie voivodship
IInn sshhaallee ggaass ggoolldd rruusshh,, aa vviieeww ffrroomm PPoollaanndd’’ss eeaasstt
voivodship border
Concession for shale gas prospection
Chevron Polska
Chevron PolskaEnergy Resources
Marathon Oil Poland
DartEnergyPoland
Silurian
Orlen Upstream
Lublin
Orlen Upstream
DPV Service
PGNiGExxonMobil
ExxonMobil
ExxonMobil
Cuadrilla Polska
The energy companyalso plans to startdrilling at a newconcession from 2012
Polish gas monopolist PGNiGmay have up to 900 billion cubicmeters (bcm) of shale gas at its15 licensed concessions inPoland, Przemys∏aw Krogulec,the company’s shale gas projectmanager, said last week.
He added that this was anoptimistic assessment, basedon information from the USEnergy Information Adminis-tration (EIA). The EIA said inApril 2011 that Poland couldhave as much as 5.3 trillioncubic meters of technicallyrecoverable shale gas, morethan any other country inEurope.
Despite PGNiG’s anno-uncement, ¸ukasz Cioch, gen-eral director of the Centre forEnergy Studies at TischnerEuropean University, is morecautious about the company’sshale gas predictions. He toldWBJ that in PGNiG’sannouncement, the word ‘may’(have 900 bcm of shale gas) iscrucial for the entire shale gas
debate in Poland at this earlystage. “There is quite a lot ofpressure from multiple stake-holders, including the media,hence speculation and wishfulthinking precede fact-basedassessment,” Mr Cioch said.
“It is certainly too early tospeak in [terms of] re-defininggeopolitical or economic [reali-ties],” he added.
PGNiG is now movingahead with plans to drill atTomaszów Lubelski, a new con-cession in the Lubelskievoivodship, at the beginning ofnext year, to add to the twooperational concessions it
already has at Markowola, alsoin Lubelskie, and Lubocin, innorthern Poland. The companyhas said production of shale gasat the latter site could start in2014. A spokesperson forPGNiG said the firm couldspend more than z∏.200 millionbetween 2012-2013 on devel-oping its wells in Lubocin.
The company is also plan-ning to drill up to five test wells,mainly in the north of Poland,in the search for shale gasreserves. “We are planning onintensifying our work,” thespokesperson said.
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Shale gas reserves
PGNiG estimates vast shalegas reserves at its Polish sites
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A flare burns at PGNiG’s Lubocin concession
Looking for shale gas in Lubelskie
Concessions given by the Environment Ministry in the Lubelskie
voivodship for shale gas prospection
Source: Environment Ministry
WBJ sits down with Mariusz Sagan, director ofthe department of strategy and investor servicesfor the city of Lublin, to discuss how shale gascould transform the Lubelskie region
Poland’s first nuclear plantto be built on Baltic coastState-owned energy companyPolska Grupa Energetyczna(PGE) announced last Fridaythat it had picked three cities –˚arnowiec, Choczewo andGàski, all on the Baltic coast –as the three potential locationsfor the construction of thecountry’s first nuclear powerplant.
Tomasz Zadroga, president
of PGE’s management board,said that 92 locations wereconsidered before the choicewas narrowed down to thethree locations on the Balticcoastline.
“The final decision on thesite will be made in 2013,” saidJacek Cichosz, the deputyhead of PGE’s nuclear unit.Environmental and geological
criteria, as well as access towater, which is crucial for cool-ing elements of the plant’s sys-tem, are among the criteria setto be used to select the finallocation.
A tender to pick a technol-ogy supplier is expected to belaunched by the end of theyear.
IIzzaabbeellaa DDeeppcczzyykk
Be∏chatów tops list ofbiggest EU pollutersAccording to the EuropeanEnvironment Agency’s (EEA)new report “Revealing thecosts of air pollution fromindustrial facilities in Europe,”PGE’s Elektrownia Be∏chatówpower plant in Rogowiec pro-duced 29.5 million metric tonsof CO2 in 2009, and caused airpollution with a total econom-ic cost of up to €2.5 billion.
This means the Be∏-chatów plant, Europe’slargest conventional powerplant, created more pollu-tion than any other plant in2009. Two other Polishpower plants made the
EEA’s top 20 list: PGE Elek-trownia Turów (11.7 millionmetric tons of CO2, up to€1.3 billion worth of dam-age, 10th place) and Enea’sKozienice power plant (10.9million metric tons of CO2,up to €1.2 billion worth ofdamage, 13th place).
In terms of country rank-ings, however, German facili-ties are responsible for abouta fifth of the cost of industrialair pollution in Europe (€34billion) which makes Poland’sneighbor the number-onepolluter in Europe. Polandcame in second, with €19 bil-
lion in damage done.The EEA estimates the
total economic cost of dam-age caused by emissionsfrom industrial facilities in2009 at “at least” €102-169billion. A small number ofindustrial facilities cause themajority of damage to boththe region’s citizens and itsenvironment, with 50 per-cent of the total damagecosts coming from just 2 per-cent of the 2,000 facilitiesregistered in the EuropeanPollutant Release and Trans-fer Register.
AAlliiccee TTrruuddeellllee
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 FFIINNAANNCCEE && EECCOONNOOMMIICCSS www.wbj.pl 9
Economic indicators
Weak z∏oty dampens effectof low euro-zone demandAnemic euro-zonedemand is hittingPolish industry, butthe weak z∏oty issoftening the blow
Poland’s industrial outputgrew year-on-year in Octoberbut nevertheless came in lowerthan expectations as the crisisin the euro zone reduceddemand for Polish exports.
Industrial output increasedby 6.5 percent y/y in October.The reading was below the 7.2percent predicted in aBloomberg survey of analysts.In September industrial out-put grew by an annualized 7.7percent.
Despite the dampening ofdemand in the euro zone, ana-lysts say the recent weaknessof the local currency hashelped Polish exporters.
“Polish manufacturingseems to continue to benefitfrom the z∏oty’s depreciationand higher competitiveness ofdomestic products. Thus, sofar, it neutralizes the effect ofweaker foreign demand, [butonly] to some extent,” BankZachodni WBK analysts wrotein a research note.
The z∏oty has declined invalue by almost 11 percent inH2 this year, increasing theattractiveness of Polishexports.
However, BZ WBK’s econ-omists expect industrial outputgrowth to continue slowingdue to weakness in theeconomies of Poland’s maintrading partners.
“One should expect that inthe coming months the decel-eration of economic growthabroad will become more visi-ble. Consequently, that will
have a negative impact on Pol-ish manufacturing,” BZWBK’s analysts wrote.
Forecasts for Polish eco-nomic growth have beenrevised downwards on signsthat demand from Germany,the country’s biggest tradingpartner, is shrinking. Poland’sFinance Ministry said inNovember that its best-casescenario for GDP growth nextyear is 3.2 percent, down from aprevious forecast of 4 percent.
Producer prices upPoland’s producer-price infla-tion (PPI), often seen as abarometer for future inflationreadings, grew to 8.5 percenty/y in October, mainly due to
the weaker z∏oty. The consen-sus prediction had seen PPI at8.3 percent for October, fol-lowing 8.4 percent the monthbefore.
Largely because of theexpected weakening of theeconomy, analysts don’t seeOctober’s PPI growth as partof a long-term upward trendthat is putting pressure onprices.
“In the environment ofeconomic slowdown, theupward trend in PPI shouldreverse soon and the scope oftransmission of high produc-tion costs to consumer priceswill be limited,” BZ WBK ana-lysts wrote.
GGaarreetthh PPrriiccee
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
October
2011
Septem
ber 20
11
August
2011
July 20
11
June 2
011
May 20
11
April 2
011
March 2
011
Februa
ry 2011
Januar
y 2011
December
2010
November
2010
October
2010
Slipping back?
Industrial production y/y growth in percentage
2
4
6
8
10
October
2011
Septem
ber 20
11
August
2011
July 20
11
June 2
011
May 20
11
April 2
011
March 2
011
Februa
ry 2011
Januar
y 2011
December
2010
November
2010
October
2010
Inflating fears?
Poland's producer-price inflation (PPI) y/y growth in percentage
Source: Central Statistical Office
NBP intervenes, to minimal effect The National Bank of Polandstepped in for the fourth timesince September to defend thedepreciating z∏oty. At first, theexchange rate to the euro fellfrom z∏.4.48 to z∏.4.44. But theeffect was short-lived, as a pre-vailing grim mood in the eurozone, along with a failed Ger-man 10-year bond auction,pushed the Polish currencydown, sending the PLN/EURcross to z∏.4.5.
The scope of interventionmay have been in the area of€150 million to €200 million, alarge amount for the market,Bartosz Gruszczyƒski, a cur-rency dealer at Alior Banktold Wyborcza.biz.
The frequent interventionof the NBP in the currencymarket is difficult to under-
stand, said Przemys∏awKwiecieƒ, chief economist atXTB brokerage house, in amarket analysis statement. Inhis view, the central bankshould refrain from actionuntil the situation is truly criti-cal, otherwise the market willgrow accustomed to its moves.
Nevertheless, a report pre-pared by BNP Paribas suggeststhat this may not be the end ofthe NBP’s intervention. In theshort term, though, theregion’s currencies can expectdepreciation. In a comment tothe Polish Press Agency,Witold Koziƒski, NBP vicepresident, suggested thatactions targeted against disad-vantageous tendencies on thecurrency market are still quitepossible. MMOO
Core
inflation
jumps to
2.8 percentThe National Bank of Polandreported core inflation(excluding food and fuelprices) for the month ofOctober at 2.8 percent y/y inPoland, much to the surpriseof analysts. The general mar-ket consensus predicted arange of 2.5 percent to 2.7percent, closer to the 2.6 per-cent y/y recorded forSeptember. The central bankalso reported that inflationexcluding administered pricesjumped to 3.9 percent y/yfrom 3.5 percent y/y the previ-ous month.
MMOO
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 201110 www.wbj.pl LLAAWW
Katarzyna Zwierz-WikockaAttorney
AA sstteepp--bbyy--sstteepp gguuiiddee ttoo tthhee pprroocceessssooff tteerrmmiinnaattiinngg aann eemmppllooyymmeenntt ccoonnttrraacctt
Legal Forum
Undoubtedly, one of the most diffi-cult parts of being an employer is ter-minating employees’ contracts. Allemployers hope the people they hirewill enjoy a successful period ofemployment, but sometimes underunexpected circumstances, such aslow productivity, a lack of ability, lossof trust, or poor performance, theemployer has to make the difficultdecision to dismiss an employee.
Although the procedure of termi-nating a contract may seem quitestraightforward and the legal require-ments relatively well-known, employ-ers can still make mistakes that mayresult in an appearance in court.
So what should employers payattention to and which mistakesshould they avoid in order to lawfullyterminate an employment contractfor an indefinite period with notice?
To answer these questions, theprocedure for lawful termination canbe described in five simple steps.
1. The first step in the termination
process is to answer a basic, butvery important question – can theemployee be dismissed? To answerthis question in the affirmative theemployer should make sure that theemployee is not under special pro-tection against dismissal, that he orshe is not within four years of retire-ment, pregnant, on maternity leaveor in the process of organizingmaternity leave, or that the employ-ee is not a protected member of atrade union. Furthermore, theemployer should check that none ofthe situations where it is impossibleto terminate an employment con-tract are applicable (e.g. if theemployee is not in the middle of aperiod of leave or any other author-ized absence from work).
2. The second step is preparing a let-ter of notice. The notice letter shouldspecify reasons justifying the termi-nation of employment, the length ofthe notice period, the date on whichemployment will end and informa-
tion on the employee’s right toappeal to the Labor Court. Further-more, the notice letter shouldinclude the number of unused vaca-tion days due to the employee. Theemployer may grant leave to theemployee during the notice periodor pay the employee a cash equiva-lent for each day of unused leave.
It should be emphasized that thereasons for the termination shouldbe specific. This means that theemployer needs to provide theemployee with clear, legal, andunderstandable reasons for his orher being fired. A lack of specific,real and justified reasons for termina-tion may incite the employee to suethe employer for wrongful andunjustified dismissal. It is importantto note that during a court disputethe employer may not raise otherreasons for termination than thoseincluded in the notice letter. For thisreason it is advisable to include anddescribe in detail all the reasons forthe decision in the notice letter.
3. The next step is a consultationregarding the planned terminationwith trade unions (if any) who repre-sent the employee. The employershould provide trade unions with awritten notification of the intention toterminate a contract with notice,stating the reason for dismissal.Trade unions may state their objec-tions if they consider that the deci-sion is unjustified.
4. The next procedure should be toprovide the employee with a letterof notice. During a meeting withthe employee, the employershould carefully explain the infor-mation in the letter of terminationand ensure that the employeeunderstands all the details. Theemployee should provide a signa-ture and date confirming that theyhave received the letter of notice.Although termination is not a nego-tiation process the parties may,during the notice period, decide tochange the way the employment
contract in question is being termi-nated and reach a mutual agree-ment on termination. However, theemployer may withdraw his state-ment on termination of the employ-ee’s contract with notice only withthe consent of the employee.
5. The final step in finalizing the pro-cedure of termination consists ofrespecting the notice period, payingthe employee his or her remunera-tion during this notice period, granti-ng unused leave or paying a cashequivalent for unused leave to theemployee (if any is outstanding) andissuing to the employee a certificateof employment.
Observance of these five stepsdoes not guarantee that theemployee will not make a claimagainst the employer due to anunjustified or unlawful termination.It does, however, guarantee thatthe employer’s actions were con-sistent with the Labor Code. ●
Legal Forum is a paid-for module which gives law firms in Poland an opportunity to discuss and inform readers about important developments in the market. The content is created in consultation with Warsaw Business Journal's editorial staff.
EEssttaabblliisshhiinngg aa ccoommppaannyy iinn 2244 hhoouurrssLegal View
Shameful recordsOne of the maladies which hinder theconduct of business in Poland is thelong process of establishing a compa-ny. According to the World Bank’s“Doing Business” report, in 2009 ittook no less than 32 days to establish acompany in Poland.
On January 1, 2012 a number ofcrucial acts will be amended, includingthe Commercial Companies Code andthe law governing the Polish entrepre-neurs register. The intention of thelegislation is to shorten the length oftime it takes to establish a business.
Electronic articles of association The amendments will introduce analternative way of creating and regis-tering a limited liability company.Potential investors will be able tochoose between the traditional pro-cedure and an electronic one – theso-called S24. Articles of associationof a company established by elec-tronic means will be concluded onthe basis of a ready-made draft ofthe articles. A visit to the notary forthe purpose of preparing a notarialdeed will no longer be necessary.Instead, investors will be able to fillout a form of the articles and send it
with an electronic signature. It will not be possible to tamper
with the contents of the draft of thearticles. Thus, founders of the compa-ny will have to agree to the provisionsof the draft articles, and only choosethe admissible variations or supple-ment some of the provisions of thearticles. The detaileddraft of the articleswill be provided inthe ordinance of theMinister of Justice.We can alreadyassume that theMinister will pro-pose standard limit-ed liability articles ofassociations for com-panies, in which thefounders will be able to choose, forexample, the amount of capital heldby the firm or the number of membersof the management board. After thecompany has been registered, share-holders will be able to make amend-ments, but only through the tradition-al route.
Conclusion of the articles of associ-ation under the amendment willrequire that an electronic signature besupplied to the articles. A significantchange is that the signature will no
longer need to be certified, since thisrequirement has not been a success.The detailed technical issues will besettled in the regulations ordinance ofthe Minister of Justice.
The procedure for entering a com-pany into the entrepreneurs registerwill also take place electronically, while
the necessary attach-ments will also be sub-mitted the same way.
Finally, the mostcrucial stipulation asfar as the speed of pro-ceedings go is that theregistration court willbe required to recog-nize each applicationfor registration withinone day.
Thanks to the changes, those set-ting up a company will be able to paythe initial capital payment withinseven days of the date of entrance of acompany into the register. Today com-panies are obliged to make the pay-ment before the company has beenregistered.
Can it really take only 24 hours?Of course this does not mean an endto all formalities connected with
establishing a company. Within sevendays of the registration of a companyit will be necessary to submit signa-tures of members of the managementboard to the registration court. Thus,the visit to a notary office or a courtwill still be unavoidable. It should alsobe remembered that newly createdcompanies also need to register withthe statistical and tax offices and also,usually, with ZUS [the SocialInsurance Institution]. The manage-ment board of the electronically regis-tered company will be obliged to turnto the relevant authorities and per-form the formalities in the normalway.
Without a doubt, the new methodfor establishing a company will pro-vide entrepreneurs with an interestingoption. Investors who decide to usethis course will save some time andmoney. The only basic pre-conditionwill be that they will have to agree tothe standard provisions of the articlesof association.
However, not even the electronicmethod of establishing a company willsave entrepreneurs from a number ofobligatory written, and time-consum-ing, activities. This is not to mentionthe bureaucratic obstacles which awaitfully registered companies. ●
Pawe∏ NowakLegal advisor, Peter Nielsen partners
Chinese eye
Bank
Millennium
parentAccording to Portuguese
weekly Expresso, three
Chinese banks are
interested in purchasing
a stake in Millennium
BCP, the majority
shareholder of Polish
lender Bank Millennium,
reported Gazeta Prawna.
The probability of a
Chinese investor
completing such a deal is
reportedly highly likely,
although the size of the
potential stake was not
revealed.
Individual
retirement
accountsThe first Polish financial
institutions have been
given the green light to
offer individual
retirement accounts.
Poland’s financial
regulator has already
given the go-ahead for
PKO BP Bankowy PTE and
PTE PZU to establish such
accounts starting in 2012.
But these institutions will
first have to change their
charters to allow them to
offer the service to
consumers. ●
“Not even the electronicmethod of establishing a
company will saveentrepreneurs from a
number of time-consuming activities”
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 OOPPIINNIIOONN && AANNAALLYYSSIISS www.wbj.pl 11
R ussian President DmitryMedvedev last week orderedhis country’s military to pre-
pare to deploy mobile, short-rangeballistic missiles to the Russianenclave of Kaliningrad, which bor-ders Poland. Though Russia hasthreatened to deploy missiles toKaliningrad in the past, this is thefirst time it has used this threat sincethe so-called reset in relationsbetween the US and Russia in 2009.
Mr Medvedev’s public announce-ment on the issue is the latest in along line of developments which sug-gest the reset was nothing more thana temporary truce allowing each sideto focus on other issues withoutaddressing the countries’ fundamen-tal geopolitical differences.
The order was handed down to amissile brigade equipped with theIskander-M, Russia’s most modernand accurate tactical ballistic missile,with the explicit directive of counter-ing the planned US ballistic missiledefense (BMD) shield in CentralEurope, Mr Medvedev said.
He went on to state that Russiacould also base long-range strategicweapons in southern and westernRussia, an apparent reference tointermediate-range weapons bannedunder the Intermediate-Range
Nuclear Forces Treaty. Such weaponswould be able to strike European tar-gets in minutes. Mr Medvedev alsomentioned intercontinental-rangedelivery systems capable of penetrat-ing the US BMD system.
In reality, Russia’s opposition toboth the George W Bush administra-tion’s BMD plans for Poland and the
Czech Republic and the current“phased, adaptive approach” actuallyhas nothing to do with BMD. Rather,Moscow wants to portray the US’sBMD plans in Europe as destabilizingthe nuclear balance between the twocountries in an attempt to block thedeployment of US military forces intoformer Warsaw Pact countries. Oneangle Russia has pursued has beenintegration, by which Russia intendedto limit the need for US military sys-tems to be located in Central Europe.
Was there a reset?In recent years Russia and the USbacked away from their traditionalhostile stances towards each otherwhen the US proposed a reset ofrelations. However, this did not meanthat either Washington or Moscowbelieved relations would be warm;rather, both were buying time inorder to take care of other concerns.The United States needed time towrap up its obligations inAfghanistan and counter a resur-gence in Iranian power – and to dothis, it needed Russia’s help. Russia,meanwhile, needed time to continueits resurgence into its former Sovietstates, by pushing out the encroach-ing influence from the West.
Though Washington is still preoc-cupied with other parts of the world,Russia has been fairly successful in itsgoals. The next problem Moscowwants to address is the countries justbeyond the former Soviet border inCentral Europe and Washington’sintentions to deploy US forces inthose countries.
Russia has been very forward intelling the US that if it does not agreeto let Moscow take part in missiledefense in Europe, then Russia willrespond by undermining the US’splans. Since August, Russia and the
United States have been in negotia-tions about finding a role for Russiain such a program, though Washing-ton has not shown any sign of backingdown. STRATFOR sources inMoscow have indicated that theKremlin believes the United States isdragging out these negotiations inorder to keep buying time.
The BMD dispute is only oneindicator of the ephemeral nature ofthe reset in relations between Wash-ington and Moscow. On November22, the US State Department said itwould stop providing Russia withdata on its military forces in Europe –the Conventional Forces in Europe(CFE) treaty calls for the exchange ofthis information. Russia suspendedits observance of the treaty in 2007,when tensions between the UnitedStates and Russia were escalatingquickly. The United States said itwould not work with Russia on shar-ing such information until Russiareturned to the table to negotiate theCFE treaty.
Moreover, the US Senate hasstalled a vote on appointing anambassador to Russia. As a result,Republican senators have said theUnited States needs to reconsiderwhether there truly ever was a resetin relations.
Reasserting Soviet dominanceAnother indicator of Russia movingaway from the reset was MrMedvedev’s pronouncement onNovember 21 that the Russian mili-tary intervention in Georgia wasabout pushing back against NATO’sintentions to expand to the formerSoviet states. Until then, Russia hadsaid the 2008 Russo-Georgian warwas about preventing “genocide” inSouth Ossetia (though it was quietlyunderstood that the war was a signalto the West that Russia was going toreclaim its dominance over its formerSoviet sphere in any way it saw fit).
Now Moscow has moved even fur-ther away by ordering preparations forthe most overt deployment of Russianmilitary force since Georgia in 2008.At this time it is still just preparation,but it is meant as a signal to the Unit-ed States about Russia’s next step.Although Russia has made similarthreats in the past, last week’s warningthat they could move missiles to Kalin-ingrad is significant. ●
This edited version of “Russia’slatest move to stymie US efforts in
Central Europe” is reprinted with per-mission of STRATFOR.
stratfor.com
At their recent summit inCannes, the G20 shelved, ifnot buried, the World Trade
Organization’s moribund DohaDevelopment Round of multilateraltrade negotiations. Crisis-wearyEurope and America face a risingtide of protectionism at home, andare trying to find ways to blunt theedge of China’s non-transparenttrade competitiveness.
Turning his attention from theAtlantic to the Pacific, US PresidentBarack Obama – with his eye, onceagain, trained on China – has nowunveiled a new regional trade initia-tive. Why was the US unwilling tomove forward on the Doha Round, butwilling to pursue a regional free-tradeagreement?
Better growthThe answer lies in the fact that theTrans-Pacific Partnership (TPP),launched by Obama and the govern-ments of eight other Pacific economies– Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia,New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, andVietnam – is not just about trade.
While President Obama chose tostick to the economic factors drivingthe TPP, US Secretary of State HillaryClinton, on the eve of the just-conclud-ed Asia Pacific Economic Cooperationgathering in Hawaii, laid out the initia-tive’s wider strategic context. “TheUnited States will continue to makethe case that … [the region] must pur-sue not just more growth, but bettergrowth,” which “is not merely a matterof economics,” Clinton said.
“Openness, freedom, transparency,and fairness have meaning far beyondthe business realm,” she continued.“Just as the United States advocatesfor them in an economic context, wealso advocate for them in political andsocial contexts.”
Following up on these remarks,President Obama drew attention topersistent US concern about China’sexchange-rate policy, inadequate pro-tection of intellectual property, andimpediments to market access.
“For an economy like the UnitedStates – where our biggest competitiveadvantage is our knowledge, our inno-vation, our patents, our copyrights –
for us not to get the kind of protectionwe need in a large marketplace likeChina is not acceptable,” he observed.
The TPP initiative should beviewed against this background, andnot just in the context of the collapse ofthe Doha Round.
A three-pronged attackThe TPP’s agenda is divided into threecategories: core, cross-cutting, andemerging issues. The core agenda is tostitch together a traditional free-tradeagreement focused on industrialgoods, agriculture, and textiles. Theagreement would also have provisionsfor intellectual-property protectionand what are dubbed the social andenvironmental issues.
In short, the TPP’s core agenda willoffer the region a “Doha Round-type”agreement that includes the social andenvironmental agenda that developingeconomies have been resisting withinthe WTO.
Going beyond the core, the cross-cutting issues include investor-friendlyregulatory systems and policies thatenable “innovative” or “employment-
creating” small and medium-sizeenterprises to operate freely acrossborders within the TPP region.
Finally, the TPP seeks to bring intothe ambit of a trade and investmentagreement “new and emerging” issues.These include “trade and investmentin innovative products and services,including digital technologies, andensuring state-owned enterprises com-pete fairly with private companies anddo not distort competition in ways thatput US companies and workers at adisadvantage.”
Chinese influenceIn short, the US has moved to bringtogether all of the economies in theregion that are worried about China’sbeggar-thy-neighbor trade andexchange-rate policies. For the US,the eight other TPP countries, with acombined population of 200 million,constitute its fourth-largest exportmarket, behind only China, the Euro-pean Union, and Japan. If Japanjoins, the TPP’s importance wouldrise dramatically.
While the economics of the TPP is
important, the strategic component iseven more so. This is the second leg ofAmerica’s new “Pacific offensive,”aimed at offering nations in the regionan alternative to excessive and rapidlygrowing dependence on a rising China.
The first leg of the offensive was theidea of the “Indo-Pacific” region,which Clinton developed a year agoand followed up this year with an essaycalled “America’s Pacific Century.”There, she defines the new region ofUS strategic engagement as “stretch-ing from the Indian subcontinent tothe western shores of the Americas.”
Extending east from the IndianOcean and west via the Pacific, the USis creating a new strategic frameworkfor the 21st century. The TPP is justone of the pillars of that new edifice.
Sanjaya Baru is Director for Geo-Economics and Strategy, International
Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS), andthe author of The Strategic
Consequences of India’s Economic Performance.
Copyright: Project Syndicate,2011.project-syndicate.org
Russia’s significant warning
“Moscow wants to portraythe US’s BMD plans inEurope as destabilizingthe nuclear balance”
The economics of strategic containmentSanjaya Baru
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GARETH PRICE([email protected])
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ALICE TRUDELLE([email protected])
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REMI ADEKOYA([email protected])
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INTERNSIZABELA DEPCZYK VERONIKA JOY
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PRODUCTION MANAGERPIOTR WYSKOK
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MARKETING &SALES
AGNIESZKA BREJWO MARKETING &SALES DIRECTOR([email protected])
JOWITA MALICH([email protected])
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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 [email protected]. Please include a name and contact information and clearly indicate if they are to be considered for publication.
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011CCOOVVEERR SSTTOORRYY12
Szymborska
recovering
from surgery
Polish poet Wis∏awa
Szymborska, who
received the 1996 Nobel
Prize for Literature, is
recovering well after
surgery, her secretary
Micha∏ Rusinek told a
press conference last
week. Ms Szymborska
was awarded the Nobel
Prize “for poetry that
with ironic precision
allows the historical and
biological context to
come to light in
fragments of human
reality.”
No fines for
illegal vendors
Polish law enforcement
officials cannot yet fine
vendors who illegally
conduct trade in
prohibited places. Such
vendors usually set-up
ad hoc shops on city
streets without a permit
and while the
government is looking
to crack down on such
endeavors, enforcement
officials have to wait
for it to adopt
appropriate regulations.
A change to Poland’s
criminal code
introducing fines was
proposed in mid-
September and was
recently passed into
law, but it has yet to be
enforced in practice.
Faster trains
When Poland’s new train
timetables come into
force on December 11,
train connections
between seven Polish
cities are expected to be
faster than they are
currently. As a result it is
hoped that 2011 will see
a reversal in the multi-
year trend that has seen
train connections in
Poland becoming less
efficient. “This year, PKP
Polish State Railways, the
company responsible for
upgrading and
maintaining the tracks,
has completed 430 km of
railway lines,” said
Andrzej Paw∏owski, a
member of the board at
PKP Polish Railway
Lines, reported
Rzeczpospolita. ●
www.wbj.pl
In Poland, a country morefamous for its vodka than itsvineyards, wine production is asmall-scale industry that is stillin its infancy. However,despite numerous obstacles,the country’s winemakers arestarting to find ways to pro-mote their produce and showthat it is possible to produce aquality tipple from Polish-grown grapes.
Kraków’s Enoexpo WineTrade Fair, the latest edition ofwhich took place in lateNovember this year, featureda large number of Polish vint-ners, many of whom are nowproducing bottles consideredto be of a quality standard.This is a considerable achieve-ment considering the wineindustry in Poland only reallytook off in 2008, after Polishproducers were finally allowedto apply for a permit to selltheir own wine.
However, the industry isstill in its infancy, wine criticWojciech Boƒkowski, who wasin attendance at the Krakówfair, told WBJ.
“There are only four or fiveprofessional wineries aroundthe country that produce wineof an international quality,” hesaid. “The rest are amateuroperations.” Mr Boƒkowski,who presented several Polishwines to a number of foreignwinemakers at the fair, addedthat they were “all veryimpressed by the quality.”
The lay of the landThere are around 450 wineriesscattered throughout Poland,a large number of which arelocated in the Podkarpackievoivodship, in the country’ssouth. Nevertheless, wine pro-duction facilities can be foundas far north as the Baltic coast.The majority of these aresmall-scale operations, withvineyards sized around a quar-
ter of a hectare.“There is a potential profit
of around z∏.6,000 per yearfrom a quarter of a hectare ofland,” said Marek Nowiƒski,the head of the PodkarpackieWinemakers Association, addingthat this figure is higher thanthe potential income fromother traditional crops such asbeets and cabbage.
In spite of the large num-ber of wine makers, who pro-duce a total of around 500 hec-toliters per year, only a hand-ful have a license to sell theirproduce. Mr Boƒkowski esti-mates there are fewer than 10who have obtained a license.
Grapes of wealth?The majority of Polish wine-makers are not farmers, butsmall-scale entrepreneurshoping to tap into a growingmarket, which Mr Nowiƒskisaid is expanding by around 5percent annually. Growth isstrongly associated with Poles’changing drinking habits, asthey consume fewer hard spir-its like vodka, and more wine.
The International Wine
and Spirit Research group pre-dicts that annual consumptionof wine in Poland will rise to107.6 million liters by 2016.This would be a 25 percentincrease on 2010. But at pres-ent the average Pole still onlydrinks 2.7 liters of wine annu-ally, compared to around 40liters in France and Italy.
“Polish wine is still a kindof a novelty, so [when] con-sumers take their first step, Iam afraid that the majority canbe disappointed,” said Grze-gorz Jach, marketing directorat Centrum Wina, a wine dis-tribution company.
“[Polish] producers need toquickly learn and implementefficient practices, enlarge thescale of production and workhard on improving quality. Inmy opinion this is the way tobuild a [stronger] image ofPolish wine among publicopinion, as Austrians achievedover the last 20 years,” headded.
According to a recentreport by market research firmEuromonitor International,“grape wine sales will benefit
from the expected sophistica-tion and diversification of themodel of alcoholic drinks con-sumption. Poles are travelingmore widely, discovering newtastes and new cuisines, andwant to replicate these experi-ences at home, thanks to
enjoying wine drinking. Theshift towards grape wine willalso be strongly dependent onthe purchasing power of Polishconsumers.”
Poles’ spending power willbe key if Polish winemakersare to be successful, because in
Toruń
Wisła Banksregion
Zielona Góra
Gdańsk
Olsztyn
Zielona Góra region
PodkarpackieregionMałopolskie
region
Lower Silesiaregion
Warsaw
North Poland region
Kraków
Wrocław
Vineyards
Growth areas
Poland’s wine-growing regions
Source: Rzeczpospolita
CO
UR
TE
SY O
F M
IKE
WH
ITN
EY
The Adoria vineyard in Zachowice makes wine from the same type of grapes used in some California wineries
Poland’s wine industry
Better with ageRoberto Galea
Winemaking inPoland is a toughbusiness, butenterprising growersare finding ways toproduce qualityvintages
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 CCOOVVEERR SSTTOORRYY www.wbj.pl 13
Paul Fogo is a senior attorney with Miller, Canfield, W. Babicki, A. Chelchowski & [email protected]
Opening up
a winery
Legal Eye
The number of commercialwine producing vineyardsin Poland numbers lessthan 10, but less than 10years ago the number waszero. Since joining theEuropean Union in 2004the rules governing the pro-duction and sale of wine inPoland have been harmo-nized with those of the restof the region, resulting inpart in the current growthin the number of vineyardsin Poland. This is becauseowners are now able to selltheir wine on the sameterms and conditions asother producers through-out the EU.
Setting up shopThe production and bottlingof wine in Poland is regulat-ed by the “Wine Act.” Theproduction of wine isdeemed to be a “regulatedactivity” within the Act onFreedom of EconomicActivity. As such, a would-be vineyard owner has tosatisfy various administra-tive requirements in orderto produce and sell wine ona commercial scale.
To begin with, the entre-preneur will need to regis-ter himself as a wine pro-ducer with the Ministry ofAgriculture. To be recordedon the official list of wineproducers, the entrepre-neur will need to prove thathe or she has satisfied thefollowing requirements: (i)established a written planof the production process;(ii) designated a personresponsible for quality con-trol; (iii) obtained properplanning for a productionfacility; and (iv) fully con-structed the productionfacility with proper bottlingequipment.
Once the wine produceris recorded as a producer ofwine, they will need to applyagain to the Ministry ofAgriculture to be recordedon yet another list, this timeas a producer of wine specif-ically made from grapesgrown in Poland. In this casethe entrepreneur mustrenew his registration on anannual basis.
Additionally, the bottlingprocess will be subject toperiodic inspection by“Sanepid,” Poland’s Officeof Sanitary Control.
But the obligation to reg-ister oneself with the Min-istry of Agriculture in order
to produce wine only appliesif the annual production ofwine exceeds 5,000 liters peryear. If less than thisamount is produced, theowner of a vineyard doesnot need to register in orderto produce wine in Poland.
Labeling requirements Labeling requirements areset forth by EU Directives2000/13 and 2003/89. Infor-mation must include thetype of product, a list ofingredients in descendingorder of weight, the quanti-ty, name and address ofbottler/producer and/orimporter, country of origin,region of origin, alcoholcontent, lot identification,allergen information andsugar content (if sparklingwine). Optional informa-tion includes the variety ofgrape and vintage year,provided that at least 85percent of the grapes wereharvested in the same year.
A popular misconceptionis that labeling must be inPolish. While this may havebeen true in the past, todaywine labels may be in anyone of the EU’s official lan-guages, with the singleexception that allergeninformation must always bepresented in Polish. Aller-gen information refers tothe amount of sulfur dioxideand sulfites, if any, thatexceeds 10 mg per liter.
Quality of grapesIn order to produce wine,the grapes used must satisfyminimum requirements thatapply equally throughoutthe EU, as established byEU Council Regulation1234/2007. Moreover, over-all wine making standardsare set forth by EU CouncilRegulation 606/2009.
Selling abroadWine approved for sale inPoland may be soldthroughout the EU withoutany additional obligations,other than possibly provid-ing allergen information ona bottle’s label in the locallanguage.
The United States andthe EU agreed in 2008 torecognize each others’ wine-making practices. As such,both Poland and the US arerequired to allow the importof each others’ wine withoutadditional registration obli-gations. ●
Hybrid grapes
Common hybrid grape varieties in Poland
Name Regent Rondo Seyval Blanc
Wine Red Red White
Acidity moderate low-moderate moderate-high
Palate full bodied, Bordeaux style full-bodied neutral, slight citrus
Cross Seibel 5656 x Rayon d'Or Silvaner x Müller-Thurgau Zarya Severa x St. Laurent
comparison to many importedwines, Polish bottles are oftenon the pricey side. The betterexamples can sell for as muchas z∏.50-90 – the same price asa decent Bordeaux.
“My wines sell for anythingbetween z∏.48 to z∏.70,” saidPolish winemaker Marcin P∏o-chocki, whose wines are sold atseveral shops and top hotelsaround the country. “I wouldprefer the price to be as low aspossible so that as many peo-ple as possible are able to tastemy wine.”
Battling with the bestOne reason why it may seemsurprising that Poland pro-duces any wine at all is theharshness of its winters. Thismakes traditional grape vari-eties (such as Merlot, Caber-net Sauvignon and PinotBlanc, which grow in warmerclimates such as France, Cali-fornia and Chile) notoriouslyhard to grow. But local pro-ducers have adapted well,using hybrid varieties devel-oped in Germany that can begrown in more temperate cli-mates.
One Polish firm that hasachieved success using hybridgrapes is Winnica P∏ochoc-kich. The company almostexclusively grows hybrid vinesand currently owns active vine-yards sized at a combined 2.5hectares. Its 2010 Blanka vin-tage, a wine blending SeyvalBlanc (54 percent) with otherhybrid grapes, won the goldmedal at this year’s Enoexpoin Kraków. Owner MarcinP∏ochocki expressed his satis-faction at winning the presti-gious award, pointing out that2010 was not even a particular-ly good year for Polish wines.“The short, wet autumn didnot help the vintage,” he said.
However, not all Polishwines are made from hybridgrapes. Mike Whitney, a Cali-fornian who runs Adoria Vine-yards in Zachowice, makeswine in the same style as thosehe grew up with, using grapescommonly grown across theAtlantic. His wines includeChardonnay (aged in Ameri-can oak barrels) and PinotNoir, while his 2010 vintagealso includes a steel-vat-fer-mented Chardonnay and aReisling.
Mr Whitney reiterated the
view that Polish winemaking isstill in its early stages. “This isa new wine region. Wine wasproduced here in the past, butthe people who made the winewere either driven out afterWorld War II or died off 300years ago, so none of theknowledge remained,” he said.
“Everyone is learning, fromhow to make wine to whatgrows well where.”
Despite the difficulty ingrowing warm-weather grapesin Poland, the results are wellworth the effort, according toMr Whitney. “Our 2010 PinotNoir has black cherries andred fruits notes, our 2011 Ries-ling has peach, pineapplelemon and lime notes.”
Wine critic Mr Boƒkowskisaid that hybrid wines tend to
have “spicy, vegetal and herba-ceous” notes. He added thatthe Pinot Noir produced inPoland is also “very promis-ing.”
Andrzej Strzelczyk, thesommelier at Warsaw’sMamaison Hotel Le Regina,said that Polish wines are
“acceptable,” adding that theycould be compared to Slo-vakian or German wines interms of their high level ofacidity and complexity.
A difficult professionObtaining the permits to makewine and sell it legally is a longand difficult process, with thegovernment offering little orno assistance. Mr Whitney ofAdoria Vineyards said that“the government in Warsaw
does not help, but the localgovernment in Wroc∏aw [withwhich his winery is associated]helped by not getting in theway.”
And the reason for the lackof state assistance, accordingto Renata Kania, a spokesper-son for the Ministry of Agri-culture, is “Because Poland isa small wine producer” and asa result “it does not provideaccess to funds from nationalsupport programs.”
This means that many ofPoland’s professional wine-makers have to supplementtheir income from othersources. This goes some wayto explaining why many winer-ies have opened their doors toboth local and foreign tourists.
But most Polish wine pro-ducers share the same dream– to be able to support them-selves through wine salesalone. Marcin P∏ochocki, whoalso runs seminars and a hotelto supplement his income,said “I often tell my wife thatwe could be the first Polishwinemakers to do this fulltime.” ●
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Hybrid varietes of grapes are the most successful at surviving harsh Polish winters
“The shift towards grape wine willalso be strongly dependent on the
purchasing power of Polishconsumers”
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011IINNTTEERRVVIIEEWW14 www.wbj.pl
Indonesia
AA SSoouutthheeaasstt AAssiiaann ppoowweerrhhoouussee
Ewa Boniecka: As a memberof the G20, how is your coun-try approaching the presentglobal financial crises? Darmansjah Djumala: As theonly Southeast Asian countryin the G20, we play theunique role of bridge-builderbetween the Southeast Asianregion and the rest of theworld, including the West.Our foreign policy, beingbased on principles of inde-pendence and being active, iswell suited to that task. In theG20 we play the role of
bridge-builder in the sensethat we represent the voice ofAsian developing countries ineconomic relations with thedeveloped countries of theWest. Due to the fact that oureconomic position is quitestrong, that we rank 18th inthe world in terms of [nomi-nal] GDP, and our democracyis well established, we canalso, if necessary, play the roleof political bridge-builderbetween Asia and the West.While Indonesia is not affect-ed by the present globalfinancial crisis, we look withconcern at the situation in theEuropean Union and throughthe G20 we are always activein trying to find solutions todeal with the crisis.
And what are your thoughtson the cause of the present cri-sis in Europe? From an Indonesian perspec-tive, it seems that the cause ofthe crisis in the euro zone liesin the bad economic manage-ment of particular countries.
Moreover, the roots of the cri-sis are also more conceptual,by which I mean that there isno integration among thecountries between two aspectsof the economy: fiscal policyand monetary policy.
In Indonesia these aspectsare integrated and we have theauthority to establish our ownmonetary and fiscal policy,which must run on differenttracks but at the same speed.But if you are a member ofeuro zone, you only haveauthority in fiscal policy, not inmonetary policy.
As the country with the largestMuslim population in theworld, how do you see Indone-sia’s role in the fight againstterrorism from radical Mus-lim groups?Indonesia is a country withthousands of islands, inhabitedby 350 ethnic groups, speaking5,000 languages and dialects.We are a country of many reli-gions, although 87 percent ofthe population is Muslim. The[2005] terrorist attack on theisland of Bali was carried outby outside groups. We admitthat there are small [numbersof] radical Islamic groups inIndonesia. Whenever one of
these small groups performs aterrorist activity, they are goingto be caught and put on trial.
I assure you that Islam doesnot allow one to kill people. Italso condemns violence. Mus-lims in Indonesia are peacefuland practice moderate Islam.We called it “Islam as a cultur-al value system, not a politicalmovement.”
Related to how to deal withterrorism, the government’spolicy is based on four pillars.First we use legal enforcementtowards terrorist groups. Thesecond track is the democrati-zation of society and theinvolvement of Muslims inpolitical activities, includingtheir participation in the estab-lishment of Islamic parties, togive them freedom of choice indemonstrating their aspira-tions. The third is the promo-tion of human rights and edu-cation of people to increasetheir respect for other people’sfaiths and differences. And thefourth track uses a religious-based approach. As I told youbefore, the majority of Mus-lims in Indonesia are moderateand very tolerant, but they area silent majority. Now the gov-ernment is empowering themto be more vocal, so that theirvoices and aspirations can beheard by the world community.
What do you see as the mainfactors for the development ofmutual relations betweenPoland and Indonesia?We are located very far fromone another and our culturesand ways of life are very differ-ent, but we share some veryimportant values. We pioneerdemocracy in our respectiveregions and both nations have amajority religious group.Poland was a pioneer in pro-moting democratization inEastern Europe; likewiseIndonesia in Southeast Asia.We can compare those rolesand make democratic values abasis for our understandingand cooperation. Our two gov-ernments have recently beeninvolved in supporting theprocesses of democratization inNorth African countries suchas Egypt, Tunisia, and Libya.
How do you view Polish-Indonesian economic rela-tions?Our total trade volume standsat about $680 million, withPoland importing around $614million, and exporting onlyaround $66 million. But thesefigures still do not representour potential cooperation. As Imentioned before, there aretwo main challenges regardingour current economic rela-tions: distance, and the factthat our two markets have onlyinteracted for the last 20 years.
So to promote better rela-tions and cooperation in thisfield, our two governments tryto work on two fronts. The firstis governmental. This meansthat our two governments muststrongly involve themselves indeveloping their own mutualrelations. The second is busi-ness-to-business relations. LastSeptember a delegation of 28Polish businessmen led by anofficial from the Ministry ofEconomy visited Indonesia,and as a result a letter of intentrelated to mining and energywas signed. Polish businessmenare very interested in investingin the development of wind tur-bines as an alternative energysource, and cooperating in coalmining in Indonesia. We hopethat Poland’s enormous successand expertise in coal miningcould have a positive impact onIndonesia’s mining sector.
There is also cooperation inthe defense industry. Polishdefense products can be pur-chased by Indonesia via anexport credit mechanism.Moreover, there is also tech-nology cooperation withregards to certain items, andjoint ventures. Other sectors ofcooperation between our twocountries are textiles, furniture,rubber, and chemical products.
Figures showing the level oftrade between Indonesia andPoland are not very impressivein comparison, for example,with those for Polish trade withChina. How do you see the sit-uation?China has much longer traderelations with Poland, datingback to the period when the
two countries were still underthe communist umbrella,while Indonesia developedrelations with Poland approxi-mately 20 years ago. Tradition-ally, Indonesia’s biggest trad-ing partner in Europe is theNetherlands, due to our his-torical ties, and Germanybecause of its technologicalcapacity. So in comparisonwith those countries our eco-nomic cooperation and tradewith Poland is still at quite anearly stage. But it is a big chal-lenge for me as Indonesianambassador to Poland to invig-orate them and I am very opti-mistic that our mutual tradewill grow.
How do you view the possibil-ity of developing Polish-Indonesian relations in fieldssuch as education, cultureand tourism?I acknowledge the impor-tance of the development ofmutual human contacts inorder to promote understand-ing and friendship. TheIndonesian government isrunning and financing specialprograms to introduce our lifeand culture to Poles. It is pro-vided by the Indonesian Min-istry of Education and it isaddressed toward Polish stu-dents who are interested instudying at our universitiesfor periods of one to twoyears. Basically, the studentswould learn the Indonesianlanguage and culture. In total,243 Polish students have par-ticipated in this program. Wealso have an Indonesian artand culture scholarship, last-ing for two months, addressedat providing scholarships forPolish artists. A third pro-gram is for Polish mid-careerdiplomats. It offers training inthe Diplomatic Academy ofIndonesia, and focuses ondiplomacy, internationalaffairs, culture and AsianAffairs, among other things.There is also an opportunityfor Polish diplomats and oth-ers to participate in an inter-national program for foreigndiplomats, where they canlearn the Indonesian lan-guage. ●
Darmansjah Djumala, Indonesia’s ambassadorto Poland, talks to WBJ about Indonesia’s role inthe G20, his views on the global financial crisis,Indonesia’s approach to fighting terrorism andrelations between Indonesia and Poland
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Jakarta, capital of Indonesia
Darmansjah Djumala
LLOOKKAALLEE IIMMMMOOBBIILLIIAAW 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 • NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011, LI 16/47
Fortis not
selling Stary
Browar?
Developer Atrium
European Real Estate has
failed to reach an
agreement with Fortis for
the purchase of Stary
Browar, a commercial,
cultural and business
center in Poznaƒ, local
media reported. Atrium
says it is not commenting
on the reports. Fortis, a
development company
owned by Gra˝yna
Kulczyk, the ex-wife of
Polish billionaire Jan
Kulczyk, said earlier that
it was selling Stary
Browar to raise funds to
buy an international firm.
Media reports say,
however, that Ms Kulczyk
wanted to sell the
property due to her ill
health, and that now she
has recovered and no
longer intends to sell.
Jantar
extension
opensThe Jantar shopping
center in S∏upsk,
Pomorskie voivodship,
has announced the
opening of the first phase
of the mall’s extension,
which comprises 7,000
sqm of retail space. The
retail center, which will
comprise 46,000 sqm
once extension work is
finished, is due to have
all work completed by
the spring of 2012. When
it first opened in 2008,
the Jantar project housed
22,500 sqm of reatil
space. ●
The architect says thestructure will combinea modern style with anhistoric location
Swiss financial services firmUBS has decided to have its103-meter Ilmet buildingknocked down and replacedwith a new 188-meter tower.UBS says the Ilmet building,located at Rondo ONZ in cen-tral Warsaw, is neither tall normodern enough.
The new, 60,000-sqm high-rise building is to stand out asa modern landmark “in theWarsaw skyline while at thesame time capturing the fullpotential of the outstandinghistoric location,” JohnLassen, a founding partner ofSchmidt Hammer LassenArchitects, the company thatdesigned the new structure,said in a statement.
A company representativedeclined to reveal the cost ofthe investment.
The new building willcomprise three connectedbut individually stepped rec-tangular volumes, whoseheights will increase the fur-ther east they are positioned.The structure will also fea-ture an open lobby that will
allow people to pass into andthrough the building, con-necting the plaza and park infront of the structure withthe courtyards of the histori-cal tenement houses to itssouth.
The building is designed tobe energy efficient, with thearchitect hoping that it will beable to qualify for sustainabili-
ty certificates. “The modular facade sys-
tem, with floor-to-ceiling glasselements, provides high levelsof transparency as well as fullintegration of sun shading andlight reflection shutters. Thesloped rooftops are equippedwith photovoltaic cells and ele-ments for harvesting rainwa-ter. The total sustainability
approach is a combination ofintelligent building manage-ment and minimizing technicalinstallations by using passiveelements,” Schmidt HammerLassen Architects wrote in astatement.
According to the architect’swebsite, the building’s con-struction is to take placebetween 2012 and 2016. UBS
has not revealed when theinvestment will launch.
When contacted by LokaleImmobilia, City Hall wasunable to reveal if UBS hadalready received administra-tive permits that would allowthe demolition of Ilmet andthe construction of the newbuilding.
IIzzaabbeellaa DDeeppcczzyykk
Shopping centers
Retail Provider to build a 45,000 sqm mall in OlsztynThe developer plansto integrate thescheme with the city’sbus and railwaytransport links
Polish developer RetailProvider plans to build a45,000-sqm retail center inthe city of Olsztyn, north-eastern Poland, and to inte-grate it with the city’s bus
and railway networks.The company was due to
discuss zoning plans lastweek with Piotr Grzymow-icz, the mayor of Olsztyn. Ifthe city authorities approvethe plans, the developerexpects to complete theretail facility by the fourthquarter of 2014.
Once completed thebuilding will house approxi-mately 180 stores. Tomasz
Andryszczyk, spokespersonfor Retail Provider, saidthat, “the final budget forthe investment is currentlybeing prepared and it shouldcertainly be in the [range of]eight figures.”
Retail Provider, whichpurchased the city’s bus net-work operator PKS Olsztynearlier this year in a privati-zation process, is also inpartnership talks with PKP
Olsztyn, the local railwayoperator.
“We are in the process ofcreating a modern city thatcombines transit, shoppingand entertainment facilitiesbased on the models imple-mented in Katowice and inPoznaƒ,” Mr Andryszczyksaid.
The linking of the retailcenter with the city’s transitsystems will make the for-
mer more accessible forinhabitants of the region,the developer says. The mallwill also cater to the millionsof foreign tourists who visitthe city each year, andincrease local employmentopportunities.
The scheme is planned tobe located around two kilo-meters from Olsztyn’s citycenter.
EEllllaa PPaa∏∏kkaa
UBS tower in Warsaw . . . . . . . .15
New Olsztyn mall . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Grupo Lar interview . . . . . . . . .16
GRI inteview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
Polish commercial market . . . .17
Sector analyses . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
Industrial construction . . . . . . .19
New Goodman projects . . . . . .19
Property-related stocks . . . . . .19
In this issue
Special GRI issue:WBJ discussion group: Retail, Resi, Offices, Hotels – what sector is worth looking at? Dec. 1, 10:30, Turkus Room, Hyatt Regency Warsaw
» Polish market overview» Interviews with market players» Analysis of retail, residential, office & hotel sectors
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The new building will boast 60,000 sqm
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or
New skyscraper
UBS plans 188m Warsawskyscraper to replace Ilmet
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011LLOOKKAALLEE IIMMMMOOBBIILLIIAA –– RREEAALL EESSTTAATTEE16 www.wbj.pl
Real estate in the region
PPoollaanndd ssttaannddss oouutt iinn CCEEEE
Ella Pa∏ka: New Europe 2011was originally scheduled to beheld in Budapest this year,but in the end the locationwas changed to Warsaw.Could you explain why thatdecision was made? Henri Alster: Poland is the starcountry of Central Europe andit is increasingly seen by manyas the bellwether of Centraland Eastern Europeaneconomies. It is the fastestgrowing of European eco-nomies, save perhaps forTurkey, but with a muchsounder financial underpin-ning.
Do you feel there is a renewedfocus on CEE because of thecrisis in Western Europe? Investment in some CEE
countries has resumed forgood reason, Poland and theCzech Republic among them.Others are still waiting and thewait may be longer rather thanshorter.
Do investors still view Polandas a safe haven?No country is safe today, butPoland is one of the few thatcontinues to attract investors’interest and cash.
Which countries in CEE havethe best prospects for growthin the upcoming years?It’s the usual suspects:Poland, the Czech Republic,and possibly the Baltics. Rus-sia is vulnerable because ofits dependence on high ener-gy prices. Ukrainian Presi-
dent Viktor Yanukovych isisolating Ukraine, managingto offend Russia and theWest at the same time – aunique feat. HungarianPrime Minister Viktor Orbánis chasing foreign investors
away from Hungary. There isno surprise: conservativelyrun countries that facilitatefree private-sector initiativewill benefit the most and thefuture will be more of thesame.
What else can we expect in thenext two years as the slow-down begins to affect Poland?Ironically Poland may benefit.As the failure of financialprofligacy becomes ever moreapparent, it is countries likePoland that may turn out to bethe recipients of monies run-ning away from the Mediter-ranean countries.
Which projects are more like-ly to be put on hold as a resultof the crisis, if any?The dearth of bank resourceswill impact all sectors but willlikely impact residential proj-ects more than any, as buyerswill need much more equitythan in the past.
How does Poland compare toother CEE countries? And forhow long do you believe it willremain competitive?Poland will remain competi-tive as long as its governmentcontinues to respect the matu-rity of its people and givesthem the freedom to be thebest they can be. ●
Foksal 18
commercialized
Real estate agency
Kancelaria Brochocki
NieruchomoÊci has
finished the
commercialization of the
Foksal 18 office building
in central Warsaw. The
main tenant at the
facility is H&M which has
leased over 2,300 sqm.
Other companies which
will be present in the
project include a leading
advertising agency which
has taken up 445 sqm.
Foksal 18 is a four storey
tenement house which
has undergone thorough
renovation and currently
comprises 4,080 sqm of
office and retail-
service space.
Prologis
leases
15,000 sqmIndustrial developer
Prologis has leased a
total of 15,000 sqm of
space in its several
distribution parks in
Upper Silesia to Danone
(Prologis Park Chorzów),
ThyssenKrupp
Energostal (Prologis
Park Sosnowiec), ABRA
(Prologis Park Dàbrowa)
and SDU Technika
Z∏àczeniowa (Prologis
Park B´dzin II). “Silesia
is an essential juncture
for all regional and
nationwide distribution
and we are fortunate to
have a significant
portfolio to fulfill the
distribution space needs
of our customers,” said
Micha∏ Czarnecki, vice
president of leasing and
development at Prologis
in Poland.
Ruch in
three new
locationsPress distributor Ruch
has leased a total of
24,350 sqm of
warehouse and office
space in modern
logistics parks in
Warsaw, Mys∏owice,
Silesia voivodship, and
Modlniczka,
Ma∏opolskie voivodship.
In the process of
negotiating all three
transactions the tenant
was represented by
Colliers International.
In Warsaw, Ruch has
leased 10,000 sqm of
warehouse and
2,000 sqm
of office space in
Annopol Logistics Park.
In Silesia, the company
took up 6,500 sqm at
Panattoni Park
Mys∏owice. ●
Polish residential market
SSttaabbllee iinn tthhee ssttoorrmm
Adam Zdrodowski: Could thepresent economic uncertaintyin Europe be a major threat tothe residential markets inPoland and Central andEastern Europe?Jorge Pérez de Leza: The Polishresidential market has provento be quite stable duringEurope’s first recession and Iexpect the same behavior as thesecond dip comes into force.The residential market funda-mentals in Poland are strongand the financial entities arewell capitalized, so I do not seea major decline in demandcoming.
Furthermore, the marketoffer (in terms of number ofapartments) has not outgrowndemand like in other CEE mar-kets, showing that the Polishmarket is mature and is able toadjust with the necessary speed.
Other CEE markets arebehaving worse and there willbe two speeds of recovery, forexample markets like Roma-nia and Hungary where themacro economy will recover ata slow pace and the financialsystem is loaded with over-leveraged/overpriced assets,will take a while to come back,whereas markets like the
Baltic States are already in a(slow) growth mode.
Could what is happening inEurope right now present anopportunity for investors in theresidential market?The economic uncertainty mayhelp to speed up a marketadjustment, in which assets arefinally forced to be valued atreal market prices. Initially thiswill mean market stagnationand the death of small develop-ers, but in the long run this iswhat we need to come back to arealistic market.
Do international developersview Poland as a safe market,at least in comparison to someWestern European markets?Western European markets arebehaving very differently, so ageneral comparison cannot bemade. What I can say is thatPoland is viewed as a stable andattractive market with room forgrowth. As long as financing fordevelopers and for final clientsremains available, this marketwill continue to be attractive.As an international developer Iwould like to see some adminis-trative procedures to be simpli-fied, and also an interim uncer-
tainty has just appeared withthe new “client protection law,”which immediately affects prof-itability and also has manyimplementation details that arestill unclear.
One result of the global eco-nomic crisis for Poland was theproblems of a number of otherSpanish companies which hadbought very expensive plots inWarsaw and then failed todevelop them. What are theprospects for that land?The inflation in land prices thatwe suffered in the 2006-2008period was not only due toSpanish developers, but alsodue to other international play-ers coming into the market with“deep pockets” and highgrowth expectations. Many ofthose developers have exitedthe market due to their inabilityto finance the development ofnew projects. Plots that werefinanced by banks will sooner orlater come back to the marketwith a price adjustment and willbe attractive buys.
Which cities in Poland andwhich types of residential proj-ects will be the most attractivein the near future?In general, all markets inPoland are attractive for resi-dential. However, in order to besuccessful, a local knowledgeand local presence are needed.It is not possible to run a project
in Poznaƒ sitting in an office inWarsaw. The general trend ofsmaller and more affordableapartments is true across thecountry.
Which residential projects areyou working on in Poland atthe moment and which are stillbeing planned?The focus of Grupo Lar Polo-nia is currently Warsaw, wherewe have three projects repre-senting around 800 units on saleor to be launched within thenext three months (in Bielany,Mokotów and Tarchomin), and
another 1,000 units under dif-ferent stages of development.
On its Polish website, GrupoLar says it also has some com-mercial projects in thepipeline. Can you reveal anydetails concerning those?It is too early at this stage toreveal the details, but I can saythat Grupo Lar is one of thetop five shopping center devel-opers and managers in Spainand Mexico, and we are on ourway to expanding that knowl-edge to other markets wherewe are operating. ●
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Mr Pérez de Leza does not expect a major decline in
demand
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Mr Alster says Poland is the star of the CEE region
Special GRI issue WBJ discussion group: Retail, Resi, Offices, Hotels – what sector is worth looking at? Dec. 1, 10:30, Turkus Room, Hyatt Regency Warsaw
Lokale Immobilia speaks to Jorge Pérez deLeza, managing director Europe at Spanishdeveloper Grupo Lar, about the Polishresidential market in the context of theEuropean financial crisis
Henri Alster, chairman of the Global RealEstate Institute (GRI), talks to LokaleImmobilia about the future of the real estatemarket in CEE and Poland. GRI is hostingNew Europe 2011, a real estate conference forinvestors and developers, in Warsaw onDecember 1
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 LLOOKKAALLEE IIMMMMOOBBIILLIIAA –– RREEAALL EESSTTAATTEE www.wbj.pl 17
Warsaw
apartments
19th-most
expensiveAccording to Global
Property Guide’s latest
survey, Warsaw ranks
19th in Europe in terms of
average prices for city
center homes sized 120
sqm or more. The
average price for such a
unit in Warsaw is
z∏.15,000 per square
meter. Monaco tops the
ranking as the most
expensive city in Europe,
where a square meter of
apartment space comes
in at a staggering
z∏.173,000. London and
Paris show prices of
z∏.66,800 and z∏.59,000
per square meter,
respectively.
Centauris
phase II
contractorVantage Development
and BNM have selected
Kajima as the general
contractor of the second
phase of their Centauris
residential project in
Wroc∏aw, Lower Silesia
voivodship. The project,
which will comprise 109
apartments sized 28-93
sqm, is scheduled for
completion at the turn of
2012 and 2013. Centauris
is being built in the
Krzyki-Borek
neighborhood of
Wroc∏aw, near the
intersection of ul. Âl´˝na
and ul. Armii Krajowej.
The investment is
expected to comprise 13
buildings with a total of
some 450 apartments
when completed. ●
Commercial property
A safe haven in CEE?The Polishcommercial propertymarket remainsrobust in the face ofEurope’s economictroubles
The commercial propertymarket in Poland has so farresisted the economic turmoilaffecting other parts ofEurope, and as a result thesegment is now regarded asone of the most attractive forinvestments in the CEEregion. Major commercialdevelopers active in Polandclaim the sector warrants sta-ble investment but at the sametime they also point to severalpotential dangers.
“The uncertain economicsituation is causing a return toinvestments which generatestable revenues secured bylong-term deals, and commer-cial real estate is certainly onesuch investment,” said EliAlroy, president of the super-visory board at developerGlobe Trade Centre. Headded that there is now plentyof interest in Poland fromcommercial property marketinvestors.
Key market“Poland definitely stands outin comparison to the othercountries in the region. It is astable market and the latestcrisis showed that it is moreresilient to macroeconomicturmoil than the rest of theregion’s countries due to itslarge domestic market. War-saw has the best development
prospects, both when it comesto retail and office space,” MrAlroy said.
John Banka, partner, CEEinvestment services at ColliersInternational, confirmed thisview when he told LokaleImmobilia that “Poland hasremained a key market forinvestors throughout thefinancial crisis that began inCEE with the fall of LehmanBrothers in 2008.” He addedthat despite ongoing economicconcerns, Poland – and partic-ularly Warsaw – continues toattract strong interest frominstitutional and private prop-erty investors alike.
The development market isalso active across all sectors dueto good tenant demand. “Whileoverall future growth of the Pol-ish economy – and thereforestability of the property sector –depends in large measure onprospects for the European
economy, Poland has arrived onthe European stage as a ‘core’property market and is likely toremain so into the future,” MrBanka said.
Moreover, according toJeroen van der Toolen, manag-ing director for CEE at devel-oper Ghelamco, Poland is cur-rently one of the most attrac-tive economic areas in Centraland Eastern Europe becauseof its growth potential and sta-ble economy. Despite the eco-nomic uncertainty in the eurozone, the country’s commer-cial market remains stablefrom the point of view ofdevelopers and tenants alike.
This has already beenreflected in increased leasingactivity in the Polish capital.“Warsaw invariably remainsthe strongest market inPoland, steadily developingand beating, in terms of itsgrowth dynamics, cities such as
Budapest and Prague whichmore strongly felt the resultsof the global economic crisis,”Mr van der Toolen said.
Office market growthHe went on to quote Cushman& Wakefield data saying thatthe volume of leased officespace in Warsaw amounted toover 324,000 sqm in the firsthalf of 2011, which wasapproximately 36 percentmore than the same periodaverage for the last five years.“According to forecasts, therewill be large demand for officespace in the 2013-2014 peri-od,” Mr van der Toolen said.
“That Poland is a countrywhich is worth investing in isalso testified to by the fact thatmore and more developers areinterested in the country’sregional markets,” he added.He also pointed out thatKraków and Wroc∏aw are cur-
rently said to have the bestprospects and that in additionthe Tri-city area, as well asKatowice, Poznaƒ and ¸ódêare all markets with substan-tial growth potential.
Potential hazardsAccording to Agata Brzeziƒs-ka, leasing director at retailspace provider Neinver Pols-ka, key factors which couldpotentially lead to a renewedslowdown in the Polish com-mercial market include thedecreased willingness offinancial institutions tofinance developer activityand their increasingly strictrequirements towards loan-seeking developers, which aremeant to minimize banks’investment risk.
The potential decrease inpurchasing power, currencyexchange risks and rising costsare also factors which have tobe taken into consideration.Ms Brzeziƒska noted thatdevelopers are still paying forunwise decisions they made inthe 2007-2008 period. “Thelast few years were character-ized by caution when it comesto development and this trendwill undoubtedly continue inthe near future.”
Ms Brzeziƒska added thatit is well-located projects withthe highest potential for secur-ing tenants that will have thegreatest chance of being devel-oped. Experienced developerswith a thorough know-how,necessary for coming up withthe right commercializationstrategies, will have a decisivecompetitive edge. ●
SH
UT
TE
RS
TO
CK
Warsaw has the best development prospects when it comes to commercial space,
developers say
Adam Zdrodowski
Special GRI issue WBJ discussion group: Retail, Resi, Offices, Hotels – what sector is worth looking at? Dec. 1, 10:30, Turkus Room, Hyatt Regency Warsaw
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011LLOOKKAALLEE IIMMMMOOBBIILLIIAA –– RREEAALL EESSTTAATTEE18 www.wbj.pl
Special GRI issue WBJ discussion group: Retail, Resi, Offices, Hotels – what sector is worth looking at? Dec. 1, 10:30, Turkus Room, Hyatt Regency Warsaw
Currently Poland offers more than2,000 officially licensed hotels whichprovide around 100,000 rooms. Two-and three-star properties dominatethe market, with a relatively low num-ber of one- and five- star hotels.
In the first half of 2011 two- andthree-star facilities accounted for 75percent of the hotel supply in thePolish hotel market (87 facilities). Inthis group only two hotels operateunder an international brand (Best
Western in Rzeszów and in Osjaków,¸ódzkie voivodship).
The new hotel room supply in2012 is expected to be mostly focusedon three- and four-star hotels, andcentered in Warsaw, Wroc∏aw andKraków. However, smaller cities suchas Toruƒ, Suwa∏ki and Bia∏ystok willalso see a number of additions. One-and two-star developments are notlikely to take a significant marketshare but on a positive note, this
group will comprise a substantialnumber of branded hotels. Ibis andIbis Budget (Accor) hotels will openin both Warsaw and Kraków; Cam-panile and Premier Class (Louvre) inWroc∏aw. This growing share ofbranded budget hotels in the totalhotel room supply shows that the Pol-ish market is reaching maturity.
On the investment side, hotelinvestors are taking a cautiousapproach to their purchase decisions– as is the case in other property sec-tors – focusing on well-brandedhotels with stable cash-flow andhybrid or lease contracts. The old say-
ing “location, location, location” isstill very much applicable. We antici-pate that hotels in Warsaw and inprime locations in other cities willcontinue to attract investor interest.Given the attractiveness of hotelportfolios for institutional investors,Accor/Orbis properties could be agood potential target due to thegroup’s continuing pursuit of the saleand leaseback, as well as manage-ment leaseback, strategies.
Dorota Malinowska, hospitalityconsultant, valuation & advisory,
Cushman & Wakefield
Retail marketWe believe that the retail sector willremain a very strong investment cate-gory in the Polish market in 2012. Pos-itive macroeconomic fundamentalswith a particularly strong retail salesgrowth forecast (cumulatively ap-proximately 20 percent until the endof 2015) give us reason to believe thatgood shopping centers will continueto perform and attract retailers. Fur-thermore, new international retailersare confirming their decisions toenter the Polish market or continue
expansion, providing an additionalboost to market confidence. The lat-est market entrants include GAP,Toys “R’’ Us, Jula, Desigual, BottegaVeneta, Loopy’s World, G-Star Rawand Gucci.
Within the retail sector, coreprime shopping centers remain safeand sustainable investments. Howev-er, these are the most expensivelypriced. For more opportunisticinvestors seeking higher returns,shopping centers with strong funda-
mentals but lacking professional assetmanagement, requiring capital ex-penditures, remodeling, improve-ments or offering further develop-ment potential remain the mostattractive. For this particular type ofproduct, competition amongst in-vestors continues to be strong. Inter-estingly, for the same asset variousinvestors may have different businessplans and visions.
In addition there is a group ofinvestors who are strongly interested
in acquiring less-sophisticated, single-asset let properties; in this group thefood anchor assets are the mostsought-after category.
More importantly, with the devel-opment of high street retail in Polandwe would expect more assets fromthis category to be traded in thefuture.
Agata Seku∏a, director, retailinvestment CEE,
Jones Lang LaSalle
Residential marketThere are approximately 50,000new apartments available for sale inthe five largest cities in Poland, ofwhich only 20 percent are ready tobe occupied. Many of the unsoldbut completed units are in projectswhich were designed during theboom in the real estate market.They are also large, but with onlytwo or three rooms. Amonginvestors buying for rent, these
apartments are rather less popularthan small two-room apartments.Nowadays smaller apartments arealso easier to resell than big apart-ments. In Warsaw, we can still seedemand for new, quality apart-ments located close to the largestbusiness centers. However, theseprojects are also popular amongregular investors and are sensitiveto the situation in the market.
Investors who can spend moreand can wait a bit longer often lookfor unique opportunities like a newextra floor built on top of an existingbuilding, or luxury apartments intenement houses that are being ren-ovated, located in the best locationsof a particular city. For one thing,such apartments are few in numberand despite the market situationthere is still strong demand for
them. For another thing, theseproperties are located in historicalbuildings which are always appreci-ated by investors. Last but not least,investing in such an apartmentwhile it is still being built or renovat-ed can get you a nice premium whenconstruction work comes to an end.
Artur Wach, director, Lion’s House
Office marketThe resilience that the Polish econo-my demonstrated during the globalfinancial crisis has compelled manyinvestors to treat the Polish officemarket seriously, and as a result it isnow considered as one of the coreEuropean locations for investmentafter the UK, Germany and France.
While Polish regional offices areattractive to an increasing number ofinvestors, the focus for the majority isWarsaw, due to the fact that it hasproven to be the most liquid marketsector in the entire CEE region andthe fact that the occupation rate
there is one of the best in Europe.After Warsaw’s city center, the
capital’s Mokotów business districthas proven to be the most attractiveoffice location for investors inrecent years. This is due to its prox-imity to the airport and its excellentpublic transport links. However,infrastructure improvements acrossWarsaw are not only benefitingMokotów but also helping promoteother office locations such as Wolato the west and Al. Jerozolimskie inthe Ochota district, in the south-west of the city.
The construction of the secondsubway line is helping to generatesignificant occupational interest inWola and the area immediately tothe west of Towarowa, with thedevelopments here set to be boost-ed by immediate access to the newsubway station at Rondo Da-szyƒskiego. This has already gener-ated investor interest in the newprojects currently being deliveredthere. In addition to this, the newfast-track tram link to the airportwill connect numerous office loca-tions in Ochota with the city center
and Warsaw’s Chopin Airport. Thiswill inevitably make these locationsmore attractive to office tenants.
Finally, the new S2 Warsaw andS79 north-south expressways willgreatly lessen congestion on themajor thoroughfares in the city andgive a number of schemes in Ochotaand Mokotów greater access and vis-ibility, which is vital to tenants andwill ultimately improve the city’s per-ception in the eyes of investors.
Sean Doyle, associate directorin the capital markets team at CBRE
Looking at the sector – WBJ asked the experts to explain what they see investment opportunities
Hotel market
Looking at the sectors – WBJ asked the experts to explain where they see investment opportunities
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 LLOOKKAALLEE IIMMMMOOBBIILLIIAA –– RREEAALL EESSTTAATTEE www.wbj.pl 19
Security Closing % change 52-week 52-week % change Total Marketprice (week) low high (year) shares value
on Nov 24 (z∏. mln)
BUDIMEX 69.90 -8.33 64.00 109.20 -30.10 25,530,098 1,784.55
CELTIC 18.00 -2.44 15.55 60.55 N/A 34,068,252 613.23
DOMDEV 34.20 -5.00 23.50 50.80 -18.57 24,560,222 839.96
ECHO 3.22 -5.01 3.22 5.55 -38.90 420,000,000 1,352.40
ELBUDOWA 97.95 0.98 97.00 170.00 -39.16 4,747,608 465.03
ENERGOPLD 2.30 -6.50 2.30 4.10 -36.11 70,972,001 163.24
ERBUD 16.00 -15.79 14.70 61.00 -71.88 12,644,169 202.31
GANT 6.35 -9.29 6.35 17.91 -62.97 20,499,953 130.17
GTC 8.81 -1.01 8.64 24.98 -62.98 219,372,990 1,932.68
HBPOLSKA 0.79 -13.19 0.70 3.20 -73.67 210,558,445 166.34
JWCONSTR 5.41 -10.58 5.40 17.45 -67.80 54,073,280 292.54
LCCORP 0.89 -12.75 0.85 1.69 -43.31 447,558,311 398.33
MARVIPOL 8.16 -11.50 7.22 11.99 -25.95 36,923,400 301.29
MIRBUD 2.12 -8.23 2.10 4.75 -48.29 75,000,000 159.00
MOSTALWAR 20.80 -9.53 19.70 62.95 -66.88 20,000,000 416.00
MOSTALZAB 1.29 -18.35 1.07 3.37 -57.00 149,130,538 192.38
ORCOGROUP 15.79 -0.06 15.50 40.00 -46.47 17,053,866 269.28
PBG 70.25 -11.08 56.05 223.00 -67.48 14,295,000 1,004.22
PLAZACNTR 1.99 -7.87 1.80 5.15 -56.55 297,174,515 591.38
POLAQUA 6.37 -12.38 6.37 20.60 -63.52 27,500,100 175.18
POLIMEXMS 1.36 -6.21 1.23 4.15 -66.83 521,154,076 708.77
POLNORD 15.60 -0.83 11.03 35.89 -55.43 23,798,439 371.26
RANKPROGR 8.70 -5.23 8.64 13.60 -16.75 37,145,050 323.16
ROBYG 1.12 -5.88 1.04 1.58 -41.05 257,390,000 288.28
RONSON 0.92 0.00 0.92 1.58 -38.26 272,360,000 250.57
TRAKCJA 1.28 -15.79 1.28 4.35 -70.23 232,105,480 297.10
ULMA 61.30 -0.08 57.00 88.00 -27.02 5,255,632 322.17
UNIBEP 5.25 0.77 4.47 10.30 -43.85 33,927,184 178.12
WARIMPEX 4.53 0.67 4.41 10.89 -52.81 54,000,000 244.62
ZUE 7.78 -0.26 7.45 14.90 -47.07 22,000,000 171.16
Property-related stocks
Construction market
Industrial constructionto drive growthThe sector is expectedto replace roadconstruction as thekey driving force inthe industry
New investments in the power,gas and production sectors areset to give a boost to the indus-trial construction market inPoland, with the total value ofoutput expected to rise fromlast year’s z∏.15.3 (€3.8) billionto z∏.27 (€6.7) billion in 2014,according to a recent PMRreport.
The power sector is expect-ed to be the growth engine forindustrial construction inPoland in the next few years,with planned investmentsincluding the development ofpower units at plants in Opole,Kozienice, Jaworzno, Turów,Stalowa Wola, W∏oc∏awek andOstro∏´ka. Several largeschemes in the gas sector arealso planned.
Moreover, a large numberof production plants, most ofwhich are located within specialeconomic zones, are being builtor are planned to be built. PMRnoted that special economic
zones are expected to see thevalue of new investmentincrease this year. In addition,the previous downward trend inthe number of building permitsgranted for industrial structuresseems to have been reversed,with H1 2011 having alreadyseen a 2.3 percent year-on-yearincrease.
“We expect that the industri-al construction sector will main-tain positive growth of severalpercent in 2012 and 2013 toaccelerate strongly in 2014. Theupturn will be largely driven bythe rapid delivery of the first
contracted power units,”Bart∏omiej Sosna, head con-struction analyst at PMR andauthor of the report, said in astatement.
This should have a majorimpact on the Polish construc-tion market in general. “Con-sequently, the industrial con-struction sector may reach avalue of up to z∏.27 (€6.7) bil-lion by 2014, thus taking theplace of road construction asthe key engine for the con-struction market in Poland,”Mr Sosna said.
AAddaamm ZZddrrooddoowwsskkii
Goodman to build new warehouse
projects in Poznaƒ, ¸ódê areas
Industrial developer Good-man Group will build a 30,000-sqm warehouse facility forAmica Wronki in Nieprusze-wo, Wielkopolskie voivodship.The transaction, in which thetenant was represented byJones Lang LaSalle, is one ofthe largest deals ever in thewarehouse-space market inthe Poznaƒ area.
“The undertaking which wewill carry out with Amica is oflarge significance to us. This isone of the largest warehouse
transactions concluded inPoland this year, which givesus an opportunity to have apresence in the Poznaƒ mar-ket,” B∏a˝ej Ciesielczak, coun-try manager at Goodman, saidin a statement.
In other news, Goodmanannounced it would build awarehouse in Pabianice near¸ódê for lighting equipmentproducer Philips LightingPoland. Construction on thescheme has already started,with Philips expected to occu-
py 9,200 sqm of warehouseand 300 sqm of office and staffspace at the property.
“The warehouse for PhilipsLighting at the ¸ódê LogisticsCentre is our fifth pre-com-mitted development in Polandthis year. This latest develop-ment underlies our continuedexpansion in Poland and webelieve the ¸ódê market isanother promising market forGoodman,” Mr Ciesielczaksaid.
AAddaamm ZZddrrooddoowwsskkii
CO
UR
TE
SY O
F N
BS
CO
MM
UN
ICA
TIO
NS
The Pabianice warehouse will comprise 9,500 sqm of space and will be occupied by
Philips Lighting Poland
Complex constructionson industrial sites
Industrial buildingsand warehouses
Long-distance pipelines, telecommunication and electricity lines
29% 29%
42%
Assembly line
Structure of the industrial construction market in Poland by
major types of construction, 2010
Source: PMR
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011MMAARRKKEETTSS20 www.wbj.pl
SO
UR
CE
: W
SE
PLN-EUR
4.42
83
4.4
366
4.4
447
4.4
637
4.
4855
4
.513
0
18.1
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25.1
14
5 PLN-USD
18.1
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3.27
18
3.
2984
3.2
880
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.319
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3.3
486
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.400
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3.0
3.5 PLN-GBP
18.1
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5
.182
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5.1
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5.1
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3.58
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3.58
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4.0 PLN-RUB
18.1
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0.10
60
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0.12 PLN-100JPY
18.1
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4.26
54
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5
currency rates
Currencies
tumble
Currency report
The situation in Europe is farfrom being resolved, withinvestors constantly beingbombarded with more pes-simistic news. The Fitch rat-ings agency lowered Portu-gal’s rating last week, whileMoody’s downgraded Hun-gary’s debt to junk on Thurs-day. The Hungarian down-grade in particular came as asurprise to the market sincethe previous Friday the gov-ernment had applied forfinancial aid from the IMFand the EU.
To add more tension, yieldpremiums on various govern-ment bonds kept soaring inItaly and Belgium, makingthe cost of debt in those coun-tries more expensive. Thebiggest surprise of the weekwas the failure of the German10-year bond auction, wherethe Bundesbank had tobecome a buyer of the unsold
bonds. Despite the Thanksgiving
holiday in the US on Thurs-day, volatility was high in thecurrency market. TheEUR/USD dropped from$1.35 all the way to $1.32 andwas on the path to reach$1.30. Emerging market cur-rencies were also hit hard.The z∏oty tumbled, despiteintervention by the NationalBank of Poland.
The EUR/PLN climbedall the way to z∏.4.52 while theUSD/PLN advanced fromz∏.3.30 to z∏.3.41, its highestsince June of 2010. Thatmakes it very possible that thecentral bank will interveneonce more, but next time witha larger amount. The Hun-garian forint was hit hard fol-lowing suggestions that thecountry’s minister of econo-my, György Matolcsy, couldresign. ●
Adam Narczewski, X-TradeBrokers Dom Maklerski SA
SO
UR
CE
: N
BP
Major indices
Top 5 Closing % change (week) 52-week high 52-week lowATLANTIS 1.12 103.64 1.92 0.35FON 0.42 100.00 0.85 0.15ELKOP 0.36 56.52 0.49 0.17PTI 10.64 20.36 12.00 6.51HERMAN 0.80 12.68 1.62 0.71
WIG 37,607.27 (November 24 close)
Change for the week: -5.50% 52-week high: 50,371.74
Change year to November 24: -21.07% 52-week low: 36,549.47
Top 5 Closing % change (week) 52-week high 52-week lowPGE 20.30 3.15 25.07 15.98TPSA 18.00 2.04 19.19 14.30TVN 9.70 1.25 18.53 9.00PEKAO 135.00 -0.81 189.90 115.10GTC 8.81 -1.01 25.19 8.56
Bottom 5 Closing % change (week) 52-week high 52-week lowBOMI 2.47 -26.27 9.38 2.47KGHM 126.00 -24.55 200.30 115.40WIKANA 0.45 -23.73 0.77 0.06KREZUS 6.00 -23.57 8.39 2.03MNI 1.50 -19.35 3.76 1.46
Bottom 5 Closing % change (week) 52-week high 52-week lowKGHM 126.00 -24.55 200.30 115.40LOTOS 25.01 -13.55 49.50 22.32PBG 70.25 -11.08 226.90 53.70GETIN 6.80 -9.33 15.29 6.22POLIMEXMS 1.36 -6.21 4.18 1.19
WIG20 2,164.88 (November 24 close)
Change for the week: -5.60% 52-week high: 2,932.62
Change year to November 24: -21.41% 52-week low: 2,089.84
mWIG40 2,081.49 (November 24 close)
Change for the week: -6.61% 52-week high: 2,987.72
Change year to November 24: -25.86% 52-week low: 2,081.49
sWIG80 8,513.06 (November 24 close)
Change for the week: -5.45% 52-week high: 12,932.00
Change year to November 24: -30.50% 52-week low: 8,483.22
NewConnect 41.37 (November 24 close)
Change for the week: -2.68% 52-week high: 64.07
Change year to November 24: -34.76% 52-week low: 41.56
WIG-Banki 5,254.45 (November 24 close)
Change for the week: -3.89% 52-week high: 7,387.49
Change year to November 24: -24.53% 52-week low: 4,944.19
DJIA11,257.55 (Nov 23 close)
-5.44% (for the week)
CHANGE: -2.76%
(year to Nov 23)
52-week high: 12,928.50
52-week low: 10,362.30
NASDAQ2,460.08 (Nov 23 close)
-6.80% (for the week)
CHANGE: -8.09%
(year to Nov 23)
52-week high: 2,887.75
52-week low: 2,298.89
S&P5001,161.79 (Nov 23 close)
-6.07% (for the week)
CHANGE: -7.62%
(year to Nov 23)
52-week high: 1,370.58
52-week low: 1.074.77
FTSE1005,127.60 (Nov 24 close)
-5.45% (for the week)
CHANGE: -13.09%
(year to Nov 24)
52-week high: 6,105.80
52-week low: 4,791.00
DAX5,428.15 (Nov 24 close)
-7.21% (for the week)
CHANGE: -22.16%
(year to Nov 24)
52-week high: 7,600.41
52-week low: 4,965.80
NIKKEI2258,165.18 (Nov 24 close)
-3.71% (for the week)
CHANGE: -21.13%
(year to Nov 24)
52-week high: 10,891.60
52-week low: 8,157.39
world stock indices
26.1
0
27.1
0
28.1
0
31.1
0
02.1
1
03.1
1
04.1
1
07.1
1
08.1
1
09.1
1
10.1
1
14.1
1
15.1
1
16.1
1
17.1
1
18.1
1
21.1
1
22.1
1
23.1
1
24.1
1
37,000
38,000
39,000
40,000
41,000
42,00026
.10
27.1
0
28.1
0
31.1
0
02.1
1
03.1
1
04.1
1
07.1
1
08.1
1
09.1
1
10.1
1
14.1
1
15.1
1
16.1
1
17.1
1
18.1
1
21.1
1
22.1
1
23.1
1
24.1
1
2,100
2,180
2,260
2,340
2,420
2,500
26.1
0
27.1
0
28.1
0
31.1
0
02.1
1
03.1
1
04.1
1
07.1
1
08.1
1
09.1
1
10.1
1
14.1
1
15.1
1
16.1
1
17.1
1
18.1
1
21.1
1
22.1
1
23.1
1
24.1
1
2,000
2,080
2,160
2,240
2,320
2,400
2 2 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 2
26.1
0
27.1
0
28.1
0
31.1
0
02.1
1
03.1
1
04.1
1
07.1
1
08.1
1
09.1
1
10.1
1
14.1
1
15.1
1
16.1
1
17.1
1
18.1
1
21.1
1
22.1
1
23.1
1
24.1
1
8,500
8,660
8,820
8,980
9,140
9,300
26.1
0
27.1
0
28.1
0
31.1
0
02.1
1
03.1
1
04.1
1
07.1
1
08.1
1
09.1
1
10.1
1
14.1
1
15.1
1
16.1
1
17.1
1
18.1
1
21.1
1
22.1
1
23.1
1
24.1
141.0
41.6
42.2
42.8
43.4
44.0
26.1
0
27.1
0
28.1
0
31.1
0
02.1
1
03.1
1
04.1
1
07.1
1
08.1
1
09.1
1
10.1
1
14.1
1
15.1
1
16.1
1
17.1
1
18.1
1
21.1
1
22.1
1
23.1
1
24.1
1
5,200
5,380
5,560
5,740
5,920
6,100
Other indices
Stocks continue
to slide
Stocks report
The week of November 21-25 proved once again theprecarious state of the worldeconomy. Shares on bothsides of the Atlantic were hithard as investors grewincreasingly worried that theEuropean debt crisis is slow-ly taking its toll on the worldeconomy.
Monday saw stocks hitsix-week lows with marketsthroughout Europe hit hard.The WIG fell by more than2.5 percent, with shares inKGHM losing close to 10percent, and further extend-ing the firm’s losses from theprevious week.
Continuing their recentrise were bond yields, withyields on Spanish bondsincreasing following the elec-tion of a new government inthe indebted nation.
Tuesday saw the IMFannounce a new six-month
liquidity line to help coun-tries with solid fiscal policiesthat may be at risk from theeuro-zone crisis. Despitethis, shares throughoutEurope fell further with theWIG closing flat.
On Wednesday furtherdecreases occured with theWIG falling 1.7 percent aspoor economic data in bothChina and the US dentedsentiment. Not helping thesituation was a weak Ger-man bond sale, sparkingfears that the debt crisis waseven beginning to threatenBerlin.
Thursday November 24started well, but gains weretrimmed in early afternoon,although the WIG man-aged to close 0.37 percentup. On Friday stocksreturned to the red, withthe WIG shedding 0.02 per-cent. ●
Andrew Nawrocki,WBJ market analyst
Company nameAddressTel./FaxE-mail
Web page
ATL /BTL /PR
DM /MH
Cooperating mediahouse
Creative /Production /
Media planningand buying
BTL /PR /
OtherServices offered Selected clients
Number of newbudgets gained in
2010 / 2011
Number ofemployees /Year founded
Ownership: Polish /Foreign
Top localexecutive /
Title
ABK Grupaul. Bogus∏awskiego 19/95, 01-923 Warsaw22 401-2216/22 [email protected]
✓✓✓
✓-
WND20%10%10%
40%20%
-
Marketingcommunications
agency; integratedactivities
US Pharmacia; Arval;Vattenfall; Eveline
Cosmetics
WNDWND
231991
Roman Fedorczuk -100%None
Roman FedorczukPresident
Adcon Sp. z o.o.ul. Gilarska 39, 03-589 Warsaw22 687-0511/22 [email protected]
✓✓✓
--
WNDWNDWNDWND
WNDWNDWND
WNDPolmos; Coca-Cola;
NestleWNDWND
41996
Hanna Polak-WelfleNone
Hanna WelflePresident
Agencja Reklamowa Anny TurkiewiczAl. Powstaƒców Wielkopolskich 33, 70-111 Szczecin91 812-1656/91 [email protected]
✓✓-
✓✓
WNDWNDWNDWND
WNDWNDWND
Branding services: branddesign; brand strategies;
visual identification;package design;
rebranding
Decora; Home.pl;NordGlass; Tikkurila; Zott
WNDWND
291990
Anna Turkiewicz; AndrzejTurkiewicz; Karol
Mikutowski; Micha∏Kozie∏; Arkadiusz Moroz;
Agnieszka Chaiƒska;Arkadiusz Sówka
None
Karol MikutowskiPresident
Agencja Reklamowa Orpha Sp. z o.o.Al. Jaworowa 39, 53-122 Wroc∏aw71 355-0304/71 [email protected]
✓✓-
--
WNDWNDWNDWND
WNDWNDWND
Strategic planning;design; ATL, BTL, PR
KGHM Polska Miedê;Grupa Kruk; BankGospodarstwa
Krajowego; Grupa Orbis;PGE Polska Grupa
Energetyczna
WNDWND
51991
Henryk Koczan - 50%;Beata LeÊniewska-Polak
- 50%None
Beata LeÊniewska-Polak
President
Brainul. S∏oneczna 29, 00-789 Warsaw22 845-0982/22 [email protected]
✓--
--
WND60%10%
-
20%-
10%
ATL; BTL; internet;production
ING Bank; HBO; Hoop;Leroy Merlin; Renoma;
Woseba
24
532001
Jakub Kamiƒski - 40%;Asiya Malinowska -
40%; RomanJ´drkowiak - 20%
None
Jakub Kamiƒski;Asiya MalinowskaCreative Director; Partner
Effectica Agencja Reklamowa Sp. z.o.o.ul. Âwidnicka 12-16, 50-066 Wroc∏aw71 374-6230/71 [email protected]
✓✓-
--
Brand ConnectionWNDWNDWND
WNDWNDWND
WND
Kruk; Saint-GobainPolska; Polska Sieç
Handlowa Lewiatan;Echo Investment;Western Union
48
211994
Dariusz Franckiewicz None
Dariusz FranckiewiczPresident
GPD Advertising Sp. z o.o. Sp. k.ul. Roosevelta 18, 60-829 Poznaƒ61 845-1050/61 [email protected]
WNDWNDWND
WNDWND
WND50%15%
-
35%--
WND WNDWNDWND
1001991
Mariusz Radecki -33.3%, Arkadiusz
Wróbel - 33.3%, LeszekZalewski - 33.3%
None
Leszek ZalewskiPresident
ID Agencja Reklamowaul. S´czkowa 115H/14, 03-986 Warsaw22 616-3399/22 [email protected]
WNDWNDWND
WNDWND
WND30%60%
-
WNDWNDWND
WND
Mercedes-Benz;Mercedes Leasing;
Berlin-Chemie;Nycomed; Kraft-Foods
21
WND1999
Marcin Filipowicz -100%None
Marcin FilipowiczOwner
JWT Warsaw Sp. z o.o.ul. ˚urawia 45, 00-680 Warsaw22 440-1200/22 [email protected]
✓✓-
✓-
WNDWNDWNDWND
WNDWNDWND
Full serviceNokia; Kraft; Nestle;
Unilever; BayerWNDWND
401991
NoneJWD Worldwide - 100%
Andrzej ZawadzkiCEO
Leo Burnett Sp. z o.o.ul. Wo∏oska 9, 02-583 Warsaw22 448-9800/22 [email protected]
WNDWNDWND
WNDWND
Starcom; StarLinkWNDWNDWND
WNDWNDWND
WND
Fiat Auto Poland;Procter&Gamble; PTK
Centertel; Philip Morris;Grupa ˚ywiec
WNDWND
WND1991
NonePublics Groupe Holdings
- 100%
Tomasz HiltCEO Leo Burnett Group
Poland
Mr. Bloom Sp. z o.o.ul. Grunwaldzka 22/5, 81-758 Sopot58 550-4050; 58 550-7013/58 [email protected]
✓✓✓
✓-
-WNDWNDWND
WNDWNDWND
WND
PORTA KMI Poland; ZTKruszwica; Dr. Oetker
Polska; Stena Line; IKEAGdaƒsk
47
151996
Zuzanna Horeczy - 97%None
Zuzanna HoreczyPresident
On Board Public Relations Sp. z o.o.ul. Wolska 88, 01-141 Warsaw22 321-5100/22 [email protected]
--✓
--
----
-10%
-
Corporate PR; mediarelations; crisis
management; M&A;CSR; public affairs;investor relations;
employer branding; IPO;consumer
communications
Adamed; Coca-Cola;Canal +; Douglas
Polska; AETN NetworksUK
WNDWND
Over 402000
WNDNorbert Ofmaƒski
President
San Markos Agencja Reklamowa Sp. z o.o.ul. Wolska 88, 01-141 Warsaw22 321-5100/22 [email protected]
✓✓-
--
Media OnWNDWNDWND
WNDWNDWND
Strategy & conceptdevelopment; new
product development;brand & multimedia
design; CSR concepts;experimental marketing;
corporate marketing
Kropla Beskidu; ¸aciate;Budimex
NieruchomoÊci; Vectra;RWE
WNDWND
202000
WNDMagdalena Czaja
President
StanfordPl. Przymierze 1/5, 03-944 Warsaw22 408-9328/22 [email protected]
✓✓-
--
-70%20%
-
10%--
Creative services;production management
Procter&Gamble;Kolastyna; UPS ;
Samsonite
65
41998
Mateusz Nawrot - 100%None
Mateusz NawrotOwner
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 TTHHEE LLIISSTT www.wbj.pl 21
Agency type Revenue split
Corporate Services
Advertising AgenciesListed alphabetically www.bookoflists.pl
Notes: WND = Would Not Disclose, ATL = Above The Line, BTL = Below The Line, PR = PublicRelations, DM = Direct Marketing, MH = Media House. Research for The List was done in November2011. Number of employees and ownership structure are as of October 2011. All information pertainsto the companies’ activities in Poland. Companies not responding to our survey are 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, omissionsand typographical errors may occur. Corrections or additions to The List should be sent, on official letterhead, to Warsaw Business Journal, attn. JoannaRaszka, ul. Elblàska 15/17, 01-747 Warsaw, via fax to (48-22) 639-8569, or via e-mail to [email protected]. Copyright 2011, Valkea Media SA. The List maynot be reprinted or reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission of the publisher. Reprints are available.
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011LLIIFFEESSTTYYLLEE22 www.wbj.pl
Junior BoysDecember 3, 6.30 pmStodo∏a, ul. Batorego 10WarsawCanadian electro-duo theJunior Boys are coming toPoland for the third time to
promote their latest record“It’s All True.” Their soundbrings together elements ofearly synth electronica andmore modern, chilled-outbeats. Members JeremyGreenspan and Matt Didemus
describe their new album asbeing influenced by their fasci-nation with 80s pop, FarEastern culture and film direc-tor Orson Welles. ●
For more informationlog on to stodola.pl
Concert
Back to the old school
MetronomyDecember 4, 6.30 pmStodo∏a, ul. Batorego 10WarsawMetronomy, an indie-electronicgroup from the UK, wasformed by frontman JosephMount after he became fed upwith the bands he played forbeing torn apart by arguments
over girls. Since forming in 1999the band has released threealbums, with their 2011 record“The English Riviera” beingtheir most successful, reaching17 in the UK charts.
As well as releasing originalmaterial, Mr Mount has alsoremixed tracks by numerousother artists, including The
Klaxons, Roots Manuva, LadyGaga and Kate Nash. Theirlive performances are knownfor their light shows and danceroutines, with band memberswearing lights attached totheir chests. ●
For more informationlog on to stodola.pl
Concert
Electronic time
Junior Boys
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A new restaurant review feature from WBJ
FusionAl. Jana Paw∏a II 21Warsawrestauracjafusion.pl
Fusion, located in the WestinHotel in the heart of Warsaw’scentral business district, defiesclichés about dining out inPoland.
Those who really can’t gowithout ˝urek or pierogi forone meal will find those andother traditional Polish disheson offer, but that would bemissing out on a unique culi-
nary experience. Under the energetic lead-
ership of chef Janusz Korzyƒs-ki – who prides himself onhaving introduced fusion cui-sine to Poland – Fusion is a bitof a culinary fashionista.
The cuisine combines tech-niques and ingredients used ina variety of cooking traditions,including oriental and Euro-
pean, to create single dishes.At Fusion, appetizers such asthe popular coconut milk andalmond soup with fried scallopand the beef carpaccio,wrapped around asparagusand fresh Parmesan cheese,topped with foie gras mousse,are par for the course.
The boldness of the combi-nations is matched by the ele-gance of the presentation.Although the menu includesvegetarian options and severalfish dishes for mains, Fusion is agreat place to eat red meat. Thesizable ribeye beef steak, theoriental roast duck and thelamb cutlets are all heftyenough to satisfy any meatlover. Original sides should alsoplease the gourmets.
One also shouldn’t leavewithout trying one of therestaurant’s fabulous (tastingand looking) deserts, such asthe trilogy of creme brûlée(pistachio & strawberry, gin-ger & cherry, and cinnamon &banana) or the spicy friedchocolate ice cream withSouth-American carica fruitand chili.
All this refinement comesat a price, and faced withstrong competition fromcheaper alternatives in theneighborhood, Fusion targetsupper management as itsclient base. In case your budg-et should prevent you fromtrying Mr Korzyƒski’s cre-ations on a regular basis, youcan choose the buffet (z∏.99
without limit) or log on to theakademia-kulinarna.pl blog,where together with col-leagues from Le MéridienBristol and Sheraton Hotelsacross Poland, Mr Korzyƒskianswers questions and sharesrecipes.
AAlliiccee TTrruuddeelllleeReservations: 22 450 8631
East meets West
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Goat cheese rolls
Spicy fried ice cream
Chef Janusz Korzyƒski
NOV 28 – DEC 4, 2011 LLAASSTT WWOORRDD www.wbj.pl 23
Rage, relaxation and mobile gaming
Tech Eye
Incensed. Crimson with rage. Filledwith fury to the point that it’s aboutto burst forth in a furious explosionof righteous lactation.
That pretty well describes Tech-eye’s state of being right now.
We’re not the angry type. Irritat-ed, sure; that’s pretty much ourdefault emotion. But the last timewe experienced genuine rage was inthe 9th grade, during swim class,when some punk stuck his leg outand sent us flying, face first, into theswim-team captain’s speedo. Even-tually we learned to accept our newnickname – “the Grape Snuggler” –but not before the aforementionedpunk had suffered a mysteriousoverdose of laxatives.
The current object of our ire isunlikely to find itself incontinent anytime soon, though, as it’s a mobile-
phone game. It’scalled “Defender.”
We’re not talk-ing about the two-pixel spaceshipgame from the1980s. This “De-fender” is a newishAndroid OS gamefrom DroidHen( d r o i d h e n a p p s -
3.appspot.com). You might recog-nize that developer as the creator ofsuch classics as “Fishing Diary,” “HitPenguin” and “Drag Toilet Paper.”Or you might not, because thosegames suck.
“Defender” is a different sort ofbeast. The premise is this: waves ofcute monsters toddle across thescreen, presumably with the inten-tion of gnawing your face off, andyou repel them using a giant tre-buchet (otherwise known as amedieval catapult) and a couple ofhandy spells. It’s addictive – asexpected, from a game with a gianttrebuchet – but there are twosources of irritation.
First, while “Defender” is free toplay, there’s a cash shop where youcan buy in-game currency in order toupgrade your spells and trebuchet.
The difficulty level of the game is setfiendishly high, encouraging playersto make liberal use of the cash shop.Techeye can attest that it’s possible toget to level 100 without splashingout, but it’s tiresome. And physicallypainful.
That’s the other issue. Game playnominally involves “tapping” thescreen, but this quickly devolves intoa form of corporal punishment foryour phone. By the time the fourthwave of gruntbugglies rolls out, akind of stiff-armed epileptic fitoccurs. One friend likened it to “aninterpretive dance performed by ayowling Red Bull-snorter.” Then sheasked to have a go and was politely
told to @#%$ off.The bottom line:
“Defender” is en-tertaining, but de-signed to vex youinto spending cash.Be prepared to rageat it.
After a fewrounds of sweatyphone-stabbing,Techeye likes to cooloff with something alittle less frustrating,like ZeptoLab’s“Cut the Rope” (chillingo.com).Unlike “Defender,” it’s available foriOS as well as Android phones, andthere are both free (with fewer lev-els) and paid ($0.99) versions.
“Cut the Rope” is a puzzlegame in which you make copioususe of the titular rope, along withbubbles and bellows, in order tofeed candy to a frog named OmNom. There’s no explanationgiven for all the Rube Goldbergmachinations (Techeye doesn’tspend much time in nature, but issure frogs were getting on just finewithout bubbles, bellows or ropelast we heard), so we like to pre-tend Om Nom is a benevolent
alien who kindly won’t destroy theuniverse as long as he gets fed inthe most roundabout manner pos-sible.
There’s one other game we playwhen it’s time to cool off – “Burn theCity” by JoshOClock (josho-clock.com). As with “Cut the Rope,”there are free (with ads) and paid($0.99) versions on both iOS andAndroid phones.
Game play involves guiding yourmonster’s fiery belches toward vari-ous cityscapes. There are puzzleshere and there, but mainly it’s aboutraining doom and destruction onunsuspecting civilians. Very relaxing,that. ●
Ever snuggled a grape? Let us know: [email protected]
Centre forContemporary Art atUjazdowski 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
KatarzynaNapiórkowska Art Galleryul. Âwi´tokrzyska 32, ul. KrakowskiePrzedmieÊcie 42/44and Old Town Square19/21www.napiorkowska.pl
Królikarnia NationalGalleryul. Pu∏awska 113awww.krolikarnia.mnw.art.pl
Le Guern Galleryul. Widok 8, www.leguern.pl
Museum ofIndependenceAleja SolidarnoÊci 62www.muzeumniepodleglosci.art.pl
National Museum inWarsaw Al. Jerozolimskie 3www.mnw.art.pl
Polish National Operaat Teatr 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 EthnographicMuseumul. 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 RisingMuseum ul. Grzybowska 79www.1944.pl
Wilanów PalaceMuseum and WilanówPoster Museumul. St Kostki Potockiego10/16www.milanow-palac.plwww.postermuseum.pl
Zachęta National ArtGalleryPl. Ma∏achowskiego 3www.zacheta.art.pl
Museums, galleries and venues in Warsaw
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“Defender”
“Cut the Rope”
“Burn the City”