VOLUME 18, NUMBER 12 • MAR 26 – APR 1, 2012 . z∏.12.50 (VAT 8% included) . ISSN 1233 7889 INDEX-RUCH-332-127 Since 1994 . Poland’s only business weekly in English

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Enter the dragonThe Sino-Polish business relationship grows stronger

12-13

Coalitioncracking?Poland’s governing parties

try to bridge the rift over

pension reform 3

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Industrial productiongrowth slowed sharplyin February

Google Street Viewlaunches in Polandahead of Euro 2012

Poland’s American football season kicks offwith a new top division

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

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

Finance & Economics . . . . . . . . . . .7

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

Opinion & Analysis . . . . . . . . .10-11

Cover Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-13

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

The List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18-19

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

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

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

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

REAL ESTATELokale Immobilia

• Z∏ote Tarasy sold

• Torus in Tri-city

• Skanska offices

15-17

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Opinion:LeszekBalcerowiczThe former finance

minister questions the

need for EU bailouts 10

In this issue

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Interview:Martin SchulzThe president of the

European Parliament

calls defending the EU

his “biggest task”

8-9

LoweredexpectationsPoland could have much less

shale gas than originally

thought 3-4

0

1,000

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3,000

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Eston

iaSp

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PolandUK

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y

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Luxem

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Malta *

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012NEWS2 www.wbj.pl

Few Poles

support

pension reform

A recent survey

conducted by pollster

CBOS indicates that 83%

of Poles oppose Prime

Minister Donald Tusk’s

plans to raise the

retirement age for men

and women to 67. Only

8% fully accept the

proposal. Poles are

especially opposed to the

idea of raising the

retirement age for

women, with a whopping

91% against the idea.

New weekly

outsells rivals

Uwa˝am Rze, a

conservative socio-

political weekly launched

in February 2011, sold an

average of 129,800 copies

in January 2012, beating

out well-established

competitors such as

Polityka, Wprost and

Newsweek, according to

wirtualnemedia.pl. The

highest-selling news

weekly was Tygodnik

Angora, which sold an

average of 369,700 copies

in January.

Food exports

on the rise

Poland exported €1.2

billion worth of food

products in January 2012,

an 8.4% y/y increase,

reported Dziennik Gazeta

Prawna. Exports over the

whole of 2012 are

expected to increase by

3% to 8%, according to

BG˚ Bank economist

Micha∏ KoleÊnikow. This

means this year’s

increase in exports will

be slower than 2011,

which saw a 11.8% rise.

Battle for

Father

Rydzyk’s

support

Poland’s main opposition

party, Law and Justice,

and parliamentary group

Solidarity Poland are

both fighting for the

support of Father

Tadeusz Rydzyk, the

controversial priest who

runs Radio Maryja and

television station

Telewizja Trwam. Both

are planning major

demonstrations in

support of Telewizja

Trwam against the

National Broadcasting

Council’s decision not to

allow the station to

broadcast digitally. They

are due to take place in

Warsaw on April 21. ●

Amber Foods Polska ................13

Apollo Tyres................................12

Apsys ..........................................16

Asseco ..........................................6

AXA Real Estate ........................15

Axtone ........................................13

Bakoma ......................................13

Bank BPH ..................................16

Bank Handlowy ............................6

Bank of China ............................12

Bank Zachodni WBK....................7

BG˚ Bank ....................................2

Bioton ........................................13

BOSE International ....................16

Bumar ..........................................3

Capital Park Group ....................17

CBRE ..........................................17

CBRE Property Fund Central

Europe ........................................15

Chevron ........................................3

Citigroup Global Markets ............7

COVEC ........................................13

Cushman & Wakefield ........15, 17

DLA Piper ..................................17

Echo Investment ........................15

eMatic ........................................23

Epstein........................................15

Euro Styl ....................................16

Europejskie Centrum

Inwestycyjne ..............................15

Gazprom ......................................5

GE Capital Real Estate ..............16

GetHouse Developer ..................15

Golub & Company......................15

Golub GetHouse ........................15

Google ..........................................5

Griffin Topco II ............................15

Grupa Black Point......................13

Guangxi LiuGong Machinery ....12

Huta Stalowa Wola ....................12

Infosys BPO Poland ..................17

ING Real Estate Development ..15

InterContinental ........................15

Irish Development Group ..........15

J.S.K. Architekci ........................17

KGHM ..................................12, 13

Kopex..........................................13

Kulczyk Silverstein Properties ..15

Lane Energy Poland ....................3

LOT ..............................................5

Makrum Development ..............17

Margaƒski & Mys∏owski Zak∏ady

Lotnicze ......................................13

Mattia Cielo ................................23

Meble Emilia ..............................15

Medusa Group............................17

Nomura ........................................3

Nowy Styl....................................13

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

OBI..............................................15

Orco Property Group..................15

PGNiG ......................................3, 5

Polfa ¸ódê ..................................13

Provident Polska........................12

PZU ..............................................6

PZU Lietuva..................................6

Real ............................................15

Selena ........................................13

Skanska Property Poland..........17

Solomon Cordwell Buenz ..........15

Sygnity ..........................................6

Tauron ..........................................3

Tebodin Poland ..........................17

Tesco ....................................15, 17

Torus ..........................................16

Unibail-Rodamco ......................15

Vanquis Bank ............................12

W.Kruk........................................13

Wacom........................................23

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

Yingke ........................................12

Anti-Semitism made the head-lines around the world lastweek following a tragic shoot-ing at a Jewish day school inToulouse, France, that left threechildren and a teacher dead.French citizen MohammedMerah, who carried out theattack, had killed three Frenchsoldiers of Arab origin just daysearlier, and was himself killedby the police on March 22 aftera prolonged standoff.

Merah allegedly said hewanted to “take revenge onthe law against the full Islamicveil [in France] and also onFrance’s participation in thewar in Afghanistan and toprotest against the situation inPalestine.”

Anti-Jewish sentiment alsoreared its ugly head in Poland,where in the night betweenMarch 18 and 19 a Jewishcemetery in the small town ofWysokie Mazowieckie, Pod-laskie voivodship, was dese-

crated. Nazi symbols and slo-gans were painted on thecemetery gate, over a memori-al to the Jewish communityand on other tombstones,reported the Foundation forthe Preservation of JewishHeritage. The foundation hadhelped renovate the cemeteryin 2006. As WBJ went to press,the case was still being investi-gated by local police.

Meanwhile, the Anti-Defamation League, a US-based NGO, released a timelyreport on March 20 whichshowed that anti-Semitic atti-tudes in 10 European coun-tries, including Poland,remain at “disturbingly highlevels.”

The results are based on asurvey of 5,000 adults in Aus-tria, France, Germany, Hun-gary, Italy, the Netherlands,Norway, Poland, Spain andthe United Kingdom. In com-parison to the previous study,

which was conducted in 2009,Hungary saw the greatestincrease in overall anti-Semitic sentiment – risingfrom 47 to 63 percent. Hun-gary (63 percent), Spain (53percent) and Poland (48 per-cent) were the three countrieswhere surveyed individualsexpressed the highest levels ofanti-Semitic attitudes.

“The survey is disturbingby the fact that anti-Semitismremains at high levels acrossthe continent and infectsmany Europeans at a muchhigher level than we see herein the United States,” saidAbraham Foxman, ADLnational director. “In Hun-gary, Spain and Poland thenumbers for anti-Semitic atti-tudes are literally off thecharts and demand a seriousresponse from political, civicand religious leaders,” headded.

Alice Trudelle

346-768 billion cubic metersis the most likely amount of recoverable shale gas

lying beneath Poland, according to the PolishGeological Institute. The figures are some 10 times

less than had been estimated by the US EnergyInformation Agency.

z∏.1.1 billionwas the value of pork imported to Poland in 2011,compared to z∏.579 million worth of Polish pork

exports.

4.6%is by how much Poland’s industrial production grew inFebruary 2012, far less than expected and much lower

than the 9 percent y/y increase in January.

€100 millionis the amount of prize money soccer teams

participating in Euro 2012 will share. Four years ago,the figure was €55 million.

“ It is difficult to expect that all data about thebodies was perfect – it is obvious in what

state the bodies were found.”Prime Minister Donald Tusk speaking to parliament prior to the exhumation last week ofthe bodies of two victims of the April 10, 2010 Smolensk airplane crash. The bodies wereexhumed due to doubts about the accuracy of the initial Russian autopsies.

Quote of the Week

Managing expectations WBJ.pl sits down with energy expert ErnestWyciszkiewicz for an in-depth discussion on what thenew, lower shale gas reserves estimates from the PolishGeological Institute mean for the industry in Poland.

On WBJ.pl

Numbers in the News

Company indexMarch/April

DATELINE

Anti-Semitism in EuropeIN THE SPOTLIGHT

Figures in focus

Asylum seekersAsylum applicants per one million inhabitants, selectedEU27 countries, 2011

Source: Central Statistical Office

MARCH

28 GREAT PLACE TO WORK GALAEvent: This event honors Polish enterprises using

unique practices and human resource man-agement programs that promote the valuesof credibility, respect, fairness, pride andcamaraderie in the relationship betweenmanagement and employees.

Location: Warsaw Stock ExchangeWeb: greatplacetowork.pl

28-30 EMERGING EUROPE 2012Event: Emerging Europe 2012 is the eighth edition

of the conference on investment and theeconomic situation in the countries of Cen-tral and Eastern Europe. Speakers willinclude Ludwik Sobolewski, president of theWarsaw Stock Exchange and prof. LeszekBalcerowicz, a former deputy prime minister,minister of finance and president of theNational Bank of Poland.

Location: Warsaw School of EconomicsWeb: emerging-europe.pl

29 CONTEPORARY ART AUCTIONLocation: DESA Unicum, Warsaw, ul. Marsza∏kowska

34-50Web: desa.pl

29-30 FACILITY MANAGEMENT & PROPERTY MANAGEMENT

Event: Now in its eighth edition, the forum will pro-vide a platform for the exchange of experi-ences, opinions and problems relating to allaspects of how buildings function.

Location: Hotel Novotel Warsaw AirportWeb: scc.com.pl

APRIL

17 CEEQA GALAEvent: The annual CEEQA Gala is firmly established

in the sector calendar as the black-tie gath-ering of the year for real estate businessleaders, and one of Europe’s premium realestate events.

Location: WarsawWeb: ceeqa.com

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*Highest in EU27

**Lowest in EU27

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 NEWS www.wbj.pl 3

Tauron lays off

1,300 workers Katowice-based energy

group Tauron will spend

the next couple of

months negotiating a

voluntary departure

program for some 1,300

workers, reported Puls

Biznesu. The move forms

part of a program to

improve efficiency within

the group, which was put

in place in 2010 and is

expected to eventually

bring z∏.1 billion in

savings. This year,

Tauron hopes to save

z∏.339 million and

improve on its results

from last year.

Aging

population

slows economyIf demographic forecasts

about Poland’s aging

population and economic

growth turn out to be

accurate, in eight years

the country’s economy

may shrink by as much as

1%, reported Parkiet.

According to analysts

from the National Bank of

Poland, raising the

retirement age may

partially alleviate the

problem of a decreased

labor supply, provided

that the health of older

people greatly improves.

Bumar CEO

dismissed

Edward Nowak has been

dismissed as CEO of the

Bumar Group, a state-

owned Polish supplier

and exporter of

armaments and military

equipment. Mariusz

Andrzejczak was

designated acting CEO

until a permanent

replacement for Mr

Nowak is found, Puls

Biznesu reported. The

official reason for the

decision has not been

given, but Polish media

have speculated that

board members were

unhappy with Mr Nowak’s

management style.

Nomura raises

Polish GDP

forecast International financial

services group Nomura

has increased its forecast

for Poland’s GDP growth

in 2012 from 2.8% to 3%.

The reason behind this is

expectations of a

stronger domestic

economy and of a rapid

growth in exports. In

comparison, the National

Bank of Poland expects

the country’s GDP to grow

by 2.5 % this year. ●

Shale gas

Industry still positiveafter lower shale gasreserves estimates

According to an eagerly antici-pated report from the PolishGeological Institute (PIG),made public on March 21,Poland’s shale gas reservesstand at between 0.35 and 0.77trillion cubic meters (tcm).That’s about 10 times less thanthe 5.3 tcm estimated by the USEnergy Information Adminis-tration (EIA) in April 2011. It isalso a figure the London-basedratings agency Fitch hasdescribed as “disappointing.”

Based on Poland’s currentannual gas consumption of 14billion cubic meters, these esti-

mates, described as “conserva-tive” by Treasury MinisterMiko∏aj Budzanowski, wouldstill be sufficient to cover Polishneeds for 25-55 years. And withPoland currently importingabout 70 percent of the gas ituses, “even if we managed toproduce 5-10 bcm a year, itwould mean a strategic shift forthe country and the region,”said Ernest Wyciszkiewicz, anenergy security expert.

‘Still a huge volume’Market players contacted byWBJ seemed to share that

opinion. “The amount ofrecoverable gas estimated inthis report is still a huge volumefor both foreign and Polishcompanies to seek to extract,”said Kamlesh Parmar, countrymanager for Lane EnergyPoland, whose parent compa-ny, 3Legs Resources, plans todrill its third well this year.

A spokesperson forPGNiG, Poland’s gas monop-oly and holder of the largestnumber of the licenses doledout so far by the EnvironmentMinistry for shale gas explo-ration, said that “even withPIG’s conservative estimates,there is a chance for a signifi-cant increase of production,and therefore shale gas explo-

ration constitutes a priority.”Currently PGNiG producesover 4.3 bcm of natural gasfrom domestic resources.

Gra˝yna Bukowska, aspokesperson for ChevronPolska Energy Resources, saidPIG’s report “does not change

Chevron’s plans in Poland. Weremain committed to explor-ing potential for natural gas onour concession areas.” The USoil giant plans to drill at leastthree exploratory wells by theend of 2012.

The ruling coalition

Pension reform revealscracks in coalitionThe ruling PO-PSLcoalition isexperiencing the mostserious face-off of itsfive-year history

Last Tuesday, a joint press con-ference during which PrimeMinister Donald Tusk andDeputy Prime Minister Walde-mar Pawlak were expected toannounce an agreement onplans to raise the retirementage in Poland was unexpected-ly called off.

Hours later, governmentspokesperson Pawe∏ GraÊ saidthat Mr Pawlak, the leader ofthe junior coalition partner,the Polish People’s Party(PSL), was “not ready” to sup-port the government’s pensionreform plans. He added thatleaders of the ruling Civic Plat-form (PO) party would meet todiscuss alternative possibilitiesfor winning support for thePM’s plans. The next day, PO’stop members met and agreedthat Mr Tusk should look forsupport for the reforms out-side of the coalition if PSL con-tinued its opposition.

All of this raised a flurry ofspeculation in the media as towhether the coalition wouldsurvive the disagreement. Theretirement-age change is MrTusk’s flagship project this par-liamentary term, and as such isa battle he can ill afford to lose.

However, since the heightof the storm, the two leaders

have met to dispel forecasts ofthe coalition’s doom andassure the public that there isstill room for compromise.

But after a Thursday meet-ing with the PM, Mr Pawlaksaid he and Mr Tusk were stilllooking for a “solution that

would be a convincing compro-mise.” When asked whether hethought the coalition wouldsurvive, he replied enigmatical-ly, “Different scenarios arepossible. In my political life,I’ve seen various scenarios.”

Sticking pointsPoland’s pension system isoutdated and losing money.Currently, men can retire atthe age of 65 and women at60, but many are allowed toretire earlier than that. Tohelp reform Poland’s publicfinances, PO wants to in-crease the retirement age forboth men and women to 67 –

by the year 2020 for men andby 2040 for women.

PSL, on the other hand,has proposed increasing theretirement age by two yearsfor both sexes over the periodup until 2020. That would putthe retirement age at 67 formen, but at just 62 forwomen.

PSL also wants partialretirement schemes forwomen aged above 60 and formen who are above 65. Theparty also wants full retire-ment benefits for people who

have lost their jobs orresigned just before reachingretirement age.

Mr Pawlak’s party has alsoproposed reducing the retire-ment age for women by threeyears per child.

Prime Minister Tusk hassaid he is ready to discusssome of the proposals, but hasrejected others outright. AsWBJ went to press, it wasunclear which of PSL’s pro-posals were on the table, withPolish media providing con-flicting reports.

What next?As of press time, it was still notclear if PO and PSL wouldreach a compromise or if MrTusk will have to look for sup-port among other parties.

Most political observersagree that the PM is deter-mined to see the reformthrough (though he mightagree to a somewhat watered-down version), but is unlikelyto break off the coalition withMr Pawlak’s party, even if PSLdoesn’t back him this timearound. Remi Adekoya

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PM Tusk (left) and Waldemar Pawlak have failed to reach agreement over pensions

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Shale gas reserves could be 10 times less than

previous estimates had indicated

“The retirement-age change is MrTusk’s flagshipproject thisparliamentaryterm, and assuch is a battlehe can ill affordto lose.”

Continued on p. 4 ➡

Despite Polish estimates of shale gas reservesthat Fitch described as “disappointing,” industryplayers still feel overwhelmingly positive

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012NEWS4 www.wbj.pl

Polish officials seize $100 million infake US bonds, detain eight suspectsPolish authorities arrestedeight people in connectionwith the discovery and seizureof $100 million in fake UStreasury bonds last week.

The suspects, three Poles,two Italians, two Ukrainiansand a Moldovan, were ques-tioned on counterfeitingcharges by the Lublin prosecu-tor’s office.

The raid was carried out byCentral Anti-Corruption Bure-

au (CBA) agents and opera-tives from BOA, Poland’s anti-terrorist unit, in mid-March inregions near to Kraków andLublin, in southeastern Poland.It was the biggest-ever seizureof fake bonds in the history ofthe CBA.

Citing a source close to thecase, the Polish Press Agencywrote that the gang had beenworking with Italian mafiaorganizations.

“The fake bonds worth $100million, they wanted to sell forseveral million z∏oty,” thesource said.

Earlier this year, Italiananti-mafia prosecutors seized$6 trillion in fake US bondsfrom three safety depositboxes in Zurich, Switzerland.At the time, the amount rep-resented half of the US’s pub-lic debt.

Gareth Price

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Bodies of two Smolenskplane crash victims exhumedTwo bodies belonging to vic-tims of the April 10, 2010Smolensk airplane crash wereexhumed last week, followingdoubts about the accuracy ofinitial Russian autopsies.

The body of former PolishDeputy Prime Minister Prze-mys∏aw Gosiewski, who wasamong the 96 who died in theSmolensk tragedy, was disin-terred at Warsaw’s PowàzkiMilitary Cemetery last Mon-day on the orders of Poland’sChief Military Prosecutor, fol-lowing a request by his widow.

Using his Polish medicalrecords as a comparison, Pol-ish medical examiners discov-

ered that Mr Gosiewski’sheight and weight had beenestimated incorrectly by Russ-ian medical officials. Rafa∏Rogalski, a plenipotentiary ofthe Smolensk victims’ families,told radio station RMF FMthat during the Polish autopsyof Mr Gosiewski’s body,“Some items were found thatshouldn’t have been there.”

On Tuesday of last week,the body of former Institute ofNational Remembrance (IPN)head Janusz Kurtyka wasexhumed at a cemetery inKraków, also due to doubtsabout the Russian autopsy.The results of the Polish

autopsy were unknown as WBJwent to press.

Speaking to parliamentwhen the decision to exhumethe two bodies became known,Prime Minister Donald Tusksaid, “I do not understand thedetermination of families toexhume the bodies of victimsof the disaster, but you have torespect their needs.”

He added that after acatastrophe like the one atSmolensk, “It is difficult toexpect that all data about thebodies was perfect – it is obvi-ous in what state the bodieswere found.”

Gareth Price

Industry still positiveafter lower shale gasreserves estimates

More data needed Both market players andexperts contacted by WBJemphasized that neither PIG’sestimates nor those of the EIAtake into account data fromwells drilled since Polandlaunched shale gas prospectingin 2010. The EIA based its esti-mates on the US experienceand prospective reserves, whilePIG used archive data collect-ed from 39 wells between 1950and 1990. “[PIG’s] are notreally results and I do not con-sider the publication to be dis-appointing. The original EIAreport was in itself an estimateonly,” said Mr Parmar.

Companies also emphasizedthat their own research carriedthe heaviest weight. “The analy-sis of the results from our ownwells will be critical,” said Jad-wiga Âwi´cicka, media relationsadviser for the Polish arm ofCanadian giant Talisman. “Webelieve that every company hadthoroughly analyzed the gaspotential prior to making aninvestment. The report has noinfluence on our plans.”

Experts agree that harderdata on Poland’s shale gasreserves will only be availablein three to four years’ time. Atthat point equally importantinformation regarding the actu-al profitability levels of produc-tion is also expected to surface.

In the meantime, technolog-ical breakthroughs could alsobe a game changer, said Grze-gorz Pytel, an energy expert.“Experience shows that typical-ly once production starts, theresults are much better than ini-tial estimates. I expect in timePolish reserves to be more than5.3 tcm. We still can expect atechnological breakthroughthat could make some optionscurrently unavailable commer-cially viable in the future. If gasprices continue to go up, it willalso change things.”

Caution prevailsDespite this generally positiveassessment, experts warnedthat for the time being, thePolish government should becareful when commenting onPIG’s comparatively low esti-mates. Any indications thatinvesting in Poland’s nascent

shale sector could prove riski-er than previously thoughtcould provide companies withstrong arguments to negotiateadvantageous production con-ditions, they said.

“Getting into assessment ofpotential reserves is anextremely risky business. In myopinion this report carries littlecredibility and weight, and issetting up the scene for Polandto lose billions in potential taxrevenues,” said Mr Pytel.

A statement from JohnPorretto, communications spe-cialist for US behemothMarathon Oil, seemed to indi-cate Mr Pytel might be on tosomething. “We believe thenew estimates of shale gaspotential reflect the level ofrisk that could be expected inthe early stages of shale gasexploration activities inPoland. It will be important forthe regulatory and fiscal termsto be established by the gov-ernment to reflect this uncer-tainty to allow for the fullpotential of the country’s pos-sible gas resources to be real-ized,” he told WBJ.

Alice Trudelle

➡ Continued from p. 3

Airlines outside thebloc are fighting theregulations, which willlikely also have anegative effect on themarket in Poland

While the inclusion of theglobal aviation industry intothe EU’s emissions tradingsystem (ETS) this past Jan-uary has sparked talk of atrade war in China, India,Russia and the US, Poland haskept a relatively low profile.But market players in thecountry are worried it couldhinder growth.

The bone of contentionSeveral international airlines,industry organizations andeven governments have madeclear that they will not acceptthe EU’s imposition of a capon CO2 emissions on interna-tional flights that arrive at ordepart from an EU airport.Currently, all airlines flying toor from the EU receive a cer-tain number of emissions per-mits. If their actual emissionsexceed that amount, they willhave to buy additional emis-sions allowances.

Although the EuropeanCourt of Justice ruled inDecember 2011 that carriersoutside the EU must abide bythe bloc’s rules, China andIndia have barred their air-lines from complying, andsimilar legislation is pendingin the US. China has also putcontracts with Airbus worthbillions of dollars on hold. ButEU Commissioner for Cli-mate Action Connie Hede-gaard has said the EU will notback down under politicalpressure and that its plan willbe replaced by a more ambi-tious global agreement.

The view from PolandPoland has not seen publiclyaired opposition like that ofBritish Airways, VirginAtlantic, Lufthansa, AirFrance, Air Berlin and Iberia,who have all come out againstthe EU plan.

LOT, the country’s flagshipcarrier, says although the costof buying extra CO2 emissionspermits could be “consider-able in relation to the compa-ny’s turnover,” it does notexpect that costs will beoffloaded onto passengers inthe near future. The main rea-

son is that a price hike wouldbe difficult to implement dueto fierce competition in themarket, the firm said. Howev-er, the airline was careful notto exclude this scenario entire-ly, citing highly volatile pricesfor CO2 emissions permits.

Warsaw Chopin Airport,which accounts for over 40percent of the country’s airtraffic, says it hasn’t seen animpact from the scheme yet.But spokesperson Przemys∏awPrzybylski said he expectedthat airlines would eventuallyincrease ticket prices and thattraffic growth would slow,although he didn’t foresee air-lines cutting their number offlights to Warsaw.

Experts from Poland’sCivil Aviation Office (CAO)were significantly more pes-simistic. In their opinion, inthe long run passengers willindeed bear a part of the costof the ETS system, which isshaping up to be “significantlyhigher” than previouslythought. This spells bad newsfor the Polish aviation mar-ket, as the uniform cost ofemission allowances acrossthe EU is expected to hitmore severely both the Polish

industry and Polish con-sumers.

Poland’s industry faces ahigher cost and more difficultaccess to capital than inWestern Europe, explainedexperts at the CAO. They alsoface increasing fuel costs,which put pressure on alreadylow profit margins. Mean-while Polish consumers, withsmaller incomes than theirWestern European counter-parts, are expected to reactstrongly to even small changesin ticket prices. CAO says a

significant decrease in thegrowth of the number of pas-sengers due to the impact of

the program in the nextdecade is now possible.

Alice Trudelle

EU regulation

Emissions rules to hamper Polish air industry?

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 BUSINESS www.wbj.pl 5

Technology

Google Street View now in PolandThe company plans tointroduce “BusinessPhotos” in the future

In anticipation of the 2012European soccer champi-onships set to be held in Polandand Ukraine, Google officiallylaunched its Google StreetView service in Poland lastweek, showcasing images of thegames’ host cities and of othercities throughout the country.While the service is not new,having been initiated in the USin 2007, the company says thattourists coming to Poland forthe games will have a familiartool at their disposal whenseeking directions or images oftourist sites and other locations.

The Street View service,which captures images from theground level, allows users tomove an icon on a computer,smartphone or tablet, allowingthem to view the area from thestreet level virtually. The com-pany reported that since lastyear the service was more fre-quently used by mobile usersthan those using a computer.Google representatives expectthat trend to continue.

Issues of privacyThe service, which first encoun-tered privacy issues concerningits photo-taking of streets andbuildings, was eventuallyapproved by the Polish Inspec-

tor General for Personal DataProtection (GIODO), the Pol-ish data protection authority.“They inspected our cars andmethods of image taking andwere satisfied with their privacyrequirements,” said MichaelValvo, manager of communica-tions and public affairs forGoogle UK.

Added measures to protectprivacy now include the optionto blur a photo or report one asa “problem,” which the compa-ny says it then removes withinhours from its service.

With privacy seemingly nolonger an issue, Google hopesimages of Poland will allowtourists to take advantage ofthe service during the games.

Host city representatives,meanwhile, said they hoped theservice would help to attracttourists even before the Euro2012 soccer championships bydrawing them to major pointsof attraction in their cities.

A grander vision But Google’s ambition goesfurther than just making it easyfor tourists to find their wayaround Poland’s larger citiesduring the tournament. “Ouraim is to bring all of Poland”into the Google Street Viewservice, Mr Valvo said. Headded that the company plansto come back to Poland formore photos “as soon as possi-ble,” but could not give a pre-

cise date on when servicethroughout all of Poland wouldbecome available.

Google’s next venture, Busi-ness Photos, which is still in itspilot stage, is currently beingtested out in Paris, the UK andthe US. According to Mr Valvo,the pilot project takes the ideaof Street View further by invit-ing customers inside businesses.Companies wishing to promotethemselves can use Google’sBusiness Photos to showcasetheir interiors directly online topotential customers. For now,however, it may still be a whilebefore the project is actuallylaunched in Poland and othercountries.

Ella Pa∏ka

Gas

PGNiG’s Q4 profitsmashes forecastsMore expensiveRussian gas importswere offset by cheaper,alternative sources

Polish state-controlled gasmonopolist PGNiG reported amuch higher-than-expectednet result for the fourth quar-ter of 2011, on the back ofcheaper alternative suppliesthat offset more expensiveimports from Russia.

PGNiG earned a profit ofz∏.302 million in the last threemonths of 2011, compared toa loss of z∏.171 million fore-cast by a Reuters poll of ana-lysts. The result neverthelessrepresented an annualized fallof 73 percent. For full-year2011, the company recorded aprofit of z∏.1.63 billion, a fallof z∏.831 million year-on-yeardue to losses incurred on gassales.

Poland, which importsaround two-third of the gas ituses, saw the price of importsrise in Q4. Roughly 90 percentof these are sourced fromRussian gas monopolyGazprom. PGNiG’s gas-importagreement with Gazprom linksthe price of gas to a nine-month moving average of oilprices, which rose 44 percenty/y in the fourth quarter,PGNiG said in a statement.

Nevertheless, the compa-ny was also able to tap into abroader and more diversifiedrange of gas-import sourcesin Q4, helping it to book aprofit. In that period PGNiGbegan importing Russian gasfrom Germany, for which itpays a lower price than fordirect imports from Russia.The company also launcheda new pipeline across thePolish-Czech border, whichprovided it with anothersource of cheaper gas.

PGNiG board memberRados∏aw Dudziƒski told jour-nalists last week that the com-pany plans to reduce gas pur-chases from Russia in 2012 to85 percent of the maximumlevel contracted with Gazprom.

The company, which hasnot revealed its dividend plansfor this year, filed a lawsuitagainst Gazprom earlier thisyear at an arbitration tribunalin Stockholm, which it hopeswill allow it to lower gas-import prices in its contractwith Gazprom.

Earlier in March, Poland’sEnergy Regulatory Officeapproved an increase in con-sumer gas prices of between 7and 10 percent, effective fromApril, following severalmonths of talks with PGNiG.

Gareth Price

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Lot says the EU’s plans could affect the firm’s turnover

Aviation represents 2 percent of global CO2 emissions. TheInternational Air Transport Association (IATA) estimates thatin 2012 airlines will emit about 650 million tons of carbon whilecarrying 2.8 billion passengers and 46 million tons of cargo. By2050, the organization calculates this will rise to 16 billion pas-sengers and 400 million tons of cargo. IATA forecasts the glob-al cost of the ETS in 2012 at €900 million and €2.8 billion in2020. IATA, which represents 240 airlines comprising 84 per-cent of global air traffic, estimates that its members recorded acombined profit of $7.9 billion for 2011, and forecasts a $3 bil-lion profit in 2012, on the back of rising oil prices. ●

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Warsaw’s Palace of Culture on Google Street View

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012BUSINESS6 www.wbj.pl

Bank Handlowy to slashworkforce and shutter branchesBank Handlowy, the Polisharm of Citigroup, hasannounced a restructuringprocess that will see the loss ofsome 590 jobs and the closureof 40 percent of the firm’sbranches in Poland.

The aim of the restructur-ing process, which will seearound 60 branches close theirdoors for good, is to save thecompany some z∏.60 million ayear, once the process is com-plete. The company expects tosave roughly half that amountin 2012, Bank Handlowy CEOS∏awomir Sikora said at apress conference last week.

In order to cover thecosts of implementing jobcuts and branch closures thecompany has set aside z∏.43million.

“The board decided tocreate a restructuringreserve of z∏.43 million,including the costs of bene-

fits for employees whoseemployment relationshipshall be resolved ... as well ascosts directly related to ourbranch network,” the bankwrote in a statement.

Mr Sikora said, however,that the bank plans to opennew stores in several major

Polish cities, adding that fur-ther details would berevealed in May this year.

For full-year 2011, BankHandlowy recorded a netprofit of z∏.721.29 million,compared to z∏.748.03 mil-lion a year earlier.

David Ingham

Stock exchanges

Deutsche Börse to appealblocked NYSE Euronext mergerThe EC says theproposed mergerwould have stymiedcompetition to anunacceptable degree

Following the European Com-mission’s decision to block amerger between DeutscheBörse and NYSE Euronext, theGerman stock exchange hassaid it plans to appeal the deci-sion to the European Court ofJustice.

If the merger had beenapproved, it would have createdthe world’s largest stockexchange.

The EC opposed the deallargely because of what it wouldhave meant for the global deriv-atives market.

“Together, the two exchan-ges control more than 90 per-cent of global trade in theseproducts. The Commission’sinvestigation showed that newcompetitors would be unlikelyto enter the market successfullyenough to pose a credible com-petitive threat to the mergedcompany,” the EC said in astatement.

Eurex and Liffe deal withderivatives and belong toDeutsche Börse and NYSEEuronext respectively. They are

also each other’s biggest rivals. According to the EC, “Eurex

and Liffe are of comparable sizein terms of their membershipbase and portfolio of contractsthey offer for trading and clear-ing, and they both focus onEuropean financial derivatives,namely European interest rateand equity derivatives.”

Both Deutsche Börse andNYSE Euronext had said that amerger would bring benefit tocustomers through greater liq-uidity and because customerswould have to provide less col-lateral for security.

Last Thursday, NYSEEuronext said it would not be

joining Deutsche Börse in itsappeal, explaining that it wasnot in the interests of sharehold-ers or of the company to beembroiled in a lengthy legal bat-tle.

“Our sole focus has returnedto executing our strategy andleveraging the significant oppor-tunities we have to grow thebusiness and continue to createlong-term value for our share-holders, customers and employ-ees,” NYSE Euronext said in astatement.

Representatives from Deu-tsche Börse could not bereached for comment.

Ella Pa∏ka

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IT

Asseco’s net profit falls, firm plans further expansionThe z∏.250 million bidfor rival Sygnity is thefirm’s final offer,Asseco’s presidentsaid last week

Poland’s largest IT company,Asseco Poland, recorded ahigher-than-forecast net profitof z∏.397 million in 2011, com-pared to z∏.414 million a yearearlier. The company attrib-utes the 4 percent year-on-year drop to lower marginsand the fact that several of thefirm’s long-term contractshave drawn to a close.

Analysts polled by Reuters

had expected a 9 percent drop,to z∏.378 million.

Asseco hopes to expand itspresence in the Polish market,having recently bid z∏.21 ashare for a 100 percent stakein rival Sygnity. That valuesthe company at z∏.250 million,an amount company presidentAdam Góral said was Asseco’sfinal offer.

“We are paying a lot forSygnity and we cannot affordmore,” he told reporters lastweek.

“Sygnity is one of three[planned] takeover projects atAsseco. It would strengthenus, but it is not the most

important one.”Several of Sygnity’s stake-

holders have, however, said

the offer price is too low. Andindeed, the company’s sharestraded at a high of 22.10 and a

low of 21.64 last week, valuingthe company higher thanAsseco’s offer.

Asseco Poland is alsoeying overseas markets, and isstill mooting the idea of a$200-$300 million listing onthe Nasdaq stock exchangeand potentially expandinginto Asia.

“We are meeting sevenbanks this week to chose oureventual partner for the Nas-daq listing,” Mr Góral said.

Asseco Poland’s manage-ment board announced in astatement that it recommendsa dividend of z∏.169 millionfor the financial year 2011,which works out at z∏.2.19 pershare.

Gareth Price

PZU plans expansion into Latviaand Estonia in H2 this year

Poland’s largest insurer, PZU,has announced plans toexpand to both Latvia andEstonia in the second half of2012.

PZU, which already ownsLithuanian insurance firmPZU Lietuva, wants toincrease its foothold in theBaltic region as part of its

2012-2014 strategy.“PZU chose Lithuania as a

country from which it willexpand further to Latvia andEstonia,” PZU Lietuva CEOMarius Jundulas said in state-ment.

“A strong position on theLithuanian market will allowus to plan operations in other

Baltic states. … Customersand business partners usePZU Lietuva services to alarge extent to develop busi-ness in Latvia and Estonia, sowe intend to provide themwith high-quality insuranceservices in these countries,”Mr Jundulas added.

The insurer has allocatedz∏.6-7 billion to make inter-national acquisitions over thenext few years. A newlyformed entity, PZU Interna-tional, is set to manage PZUGroup’s acquisition activitiesand foreign operations dur-ing this period.

In 2011, PZU made a netprofit of z∏.2.34 billion. Grosspremiums for direct and indi-rect insurance amounted toz∏.15.28 billion in 2011, anincrease of z∏.738.2 millionon figures from one year ear-lier.

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MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 FINANCE & ECONOMICS www.wbj.pl 7

Production

Industrial output growthdecelerates in FebruaryPoland’s economy isstarting to show clearsigns of slowing down

Poland’s industrial outputgrowth slowed in February,suggesting the economic slow-down in the euro zone is start-ing to take a toll on the Polisheconomy.

According to Central Sta-tistical Office data, industrialoutput growth slowed to 4.6percent year-on-year inFebruary, following growth of9 percent y/y in January. Out-put fell 1 percent on themonth.

“[This] could be partly dueto poor weather conditions butalso due to weaker economicactivity abroad,” Bank Za-chodni WBK wrote in a state-ment.

“In our view, data on out-put – similarly as earlier datafrom the labor market – indi-cate that monetary tighteningis not necessary, as activity [in]the Polish economy is waningand there are no conditionsfor inflationary pressure tobuild up,” it added.

Analysts at Citigroup Glob-al Markets wrote in a report

that the output data “could bea first sign confirming the neg-ative impact of falling orderson output growth as well as thenegative impact of a strongerz∏oty on export growth.”

The scale of the downturnin industrial production tookmany analysts by surprise,since the market had expectedgrowth to fall only slightly.

But the onset of freezingtemperatures in Februaryaffected production in theconstruction sector, wherey/y growth declined from 32

percent in January to 12 per-cent.

Marek Belka, president ofthe National Bank of Poland,has looked to calm concerns.

“Data shows that the econ-omy is slowing down, but thereis no need to raise alarm,” MrBelka told journalists.

He explained that pastexperience has often shownslowdowns in output to betemporary, citing figures fromlast summer, when decelera-tion proved to be short-lived.

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Temporary blip?Annualized growth in industrial output, February 2011-February 2012 (in %)

Source: Central Statistical Office

Development

EBRD commits €500-600million for Poland in 2012The EBRD saidfunding is lower thana year earlier, but is ata more “sustainablelevel”

The European Bank forReconstruction and Develop-ment (EBRD) will continue toprovide significant investmentfunding in 2012 for Poland,with its activities mainlyfocused on finance and energy.

Established in 1991, theEBRD helps former commu-nist countries transition to thestatus of market economies.Poland is the bank’s fourth-largest recipient with the totalvalue of EBRD-funded proj-ects in the country now stand-ing at €22.6 billion. In 2011 thebank invested €900 million inPoland, a much higher amountthan in previous years (be-tween 2005 and 2010 annualinvestment stood at between€115 million and €440 million).Last year saw an “outstandingincrease,” said the bank’s presi-dent Thomas Mirow during aconference held last week inWarsaw. He added that therewas an understanding amongPolish colleagues that this was

not a sustainable amount. Thisyear, the EBRD has ear-marked around €500-600 mil-lion for Poland.

For 2012, Mr Mirowexpects the financial and ener-gy sectors to “stand out,” withthe EBRD focused on deepen-ing Poland’s capital marketsand modernizing its energy sec-tor.

Mr Mirow said funds wouldbe directed into renewablesprojects, into increasing the dis-tribution of gas and electricity,and into increasing the efficien-cy of power generation. Fundswill also be invested in develop-ing inter-connectors linkingPoland to neighboring coun-tries.

“We agree with Polish lead-ers that Poland is a remarkablesuccess story … and that itseconomy proved much moreresilient [than expected],” MrMirow said. “We continue toexpect Poland to graduate[from EBRD aid] over time,but not in the immediatefuture,” he added.

Who will lead the EBRD?Mr Mirow, who has served aspresident of the EBRD forfour years, may stand for

reelection once his term endsin May, in what would be thefirst contest for the top job inthe bank’s history. One of theother candidates he faces is JanKrzysztof Bielecki, a formerPolish prime minister and thecurrent head of Prime MinisterDonald Tusk’s economic coun-cil. The head of Poland’s cen-tral bank, Marek Belka, sub-mitted Mr Bielecki’s nomina-tion last week.

When asked whether theEBRD, which until now hasbeen headed by French andGerman citizens, was ready tobe led by someone from a for-mer Eastern-bloc country, MrMirow said that the bank’sshareholders would have tomake that decision.

Regarding his chances for asecond term, Mr Mirow said hedid not want to speculate on“chances.”

He added that, “It’s up toshareholders to decide whetherthey prefer a continuation or areset.”

A vote to decide onEBRD’s future president isscheduled to be held atEBRD’s London headquartersbetween May 18-19.

Ella Pa∏ka

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 20128 www.wbj.pl INTERVIEW

The EU

In defense of the UnionEwa Boniecka: Your leader-ship of the European Parlia-ment has coincided with atime of financial and politicalcrisis in Europe. How do yousee the road to recovery?Martin Schulz: The currentsovereign debt crisis poses achallenge like no other in the

history of the EuropeanUnion. If it is allowed to spiralout of control, it may destroythe EU as we know it. Grow-ing poverty and unemploy-ment in some countries aredestroying confidence in poli-tics and faith in Europeanintegration.

Fortunately, there aremore and more signs that theworst is behind us. I believethat 2012 can become a break-through year in the fightagainst the crisis.

Greece and private investorsrecently signed a debt-restruc-turing agreement which pavedthe way for that country toreceive the second, €130 billion,aid package from the EU andthe International Monetary

Fund. A disorderly Greekdefault, which would have dis-astrous consequences for theeuro zone and the whole globaleconomy, has been averted.There is still much to be donebefore Greece returns to finan-cial health. I hope that a Greekgovernment that emerges fromthe coming elections will con-tinue reforms.

Secondly, yields on Italianand Spanish bonds have fallen,

removing, at least for now, athreat that those countriesmay have problems with serv-icing their debt. The euro zoneis also finishing work on thepermanent bailout fund, theEuropean Stability Mecha-nism, which will serve as a fire-wall preventing the flames ofthe crisis from spreading.

So there are reasons to beoptimistic, although there isno room for complacency.

What tools do you have atyour disposal to strengthenthe role of the European Par-liament in preventing the EUfrom dividing into a “two-speed” union?There are already areas in theEU where member statesmove at different speeds.Some countries do not belongto the Schengen Area andsome are exempt from theobligation of one day adoptingthe euro currency. But thesedifferences are not fundamen-tal and they do not threatenthe unity of the EU.

The overwhelming majori-ty in the European Parliamentis firmly against any new divi-sions in the EU. For example,I strongly oppose turning theeuro zone into some kind ofexclusive club.

The key to preserving thecoherence of the EU is to keepwhat is known in Brussels asthe community method ofdecision-making. This meansstrong involvement of theEuropean Parliament and theEuropean Commission; thismeans reconciling the inter-ests of smaller and biggercountries, basing decisions onthe principles of solidarity anddemocracy; this means placingthe common good above theinterests of the most powerful.

I must admit that I am wor-ried by what I have observed inrecent months and years. Inotice the attempts of manypoliticians, many governmentsto weaken EU institutions andto shift power towards nationalgovernments. Recently, theyare doing that under the pretextof fighting the crisis. They cre-ate new bodies – [like the] theEuropean Stability Mechanism– outside the EU framework.

Defending the EU and itspowers is perhaps my biggesttask as the president of theEuropean Parliament. I willfight for the European Parlia-ment’s right to hold otherinstitutions and governmentsaccountable. Not just toincrease the parliament’spower for power’s sake, but inorder for the EU to serve itscitizens better. If necessary, Iam ready for confrontation onthat with national leaders.

Is the fiscal treaty the onlymechanism necessary forhelping members of the eurozone to recover from thefinancial crisis?I share the view of the majori-ty in the European Parliamentthat the fiscal compact is notreally necessary. Current EUlaws on fiscal discipline aresufficient, especially after theadoption last year of the so-called six-pack that deepensmutual budget surveillanceand provides for more auto-

Martin Schulz, president of the EuropeanParliament, talks to WBJ about the road torecovery and the role of ideology in the EU

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 INTERVIEW www.wbj.pl 9

matic sanctions for those whobreak budget rules.

I also regret that the fiscalcompact is not an EU treatybut an intergovernmentalagreement. I very much hopethat in the coming years theagreement will become part ofEU legislation.

But if the treaty increasesinvestor confidence in theeuro zone, it can only be good.I understand that some coun-tries, such as Germany, need-ed the treaty as an iron-cladguarantee that fiscal rules willnever again be broken. Theyneeded this guarantee toextend more aid to othercountries in financial trouble.

The treaty does not changemuch for Poland, because itsconstitution already has a pro-vision which prevents publicdebt from exceeding 60 per-cent of gross domestic product.

How do you see the position ofcountries that have not adopt-ed the euro but have neverthe-less signed the fiscal treaty, insecuring their influence in theEU?It is good that non-euro coun-tries such as Poland havesigned the treaty. I also hopethat Poland will not abandonits efforts to join the euro zone.Despite the currency area’scurrent problems, it is stillworth [it] to adopt the euro.

I am glad non-euro signato-ries of the treaty will beallowed to attend euro-zonesummits in the majority ofcases.

How is Poland going to beaffected by changes to themechanisms of the EU?

Not much, I think. All majordecisions will still be made bybodies involving all EU mem-ber states – the EuropeanCouncil or ministerial meet-ings. The overwhelmingmajority of new laws will stillbe made [jointly] between allgovernments and the Euro-pean Parliament.

As a social democrat, in whatways do you think socialistgroups in the EU can influ-ence the policy of the bloc, oris it the case that ideology nolonger has any real meaningin the activities of the Union?I am now the president of thewhole European Parliament,

so my role within the institu-tion is different and I cannotspeak on behalf of the group.But in general, the Socialistsand Democrats are the sec-ond-biggest group in Parlia-ment and as such it has amajor influence on decision-making. For example, theSocialists had a big impact onall recent legislation related tothe crisis and the economy,such as on clearer rules ontrading derivatives, creditdefault swaps, bonuses atfinancial institutions, hedgefunds, new financial supervi-sion bodies and in many otherareas. Thanks to the position

of the Socialists, parliamentsignificantly strengthened theregulation of financial marketsto prevent [a repeat of the]excesses that led to the recentfinancial crisis. The Socialistshave had clear successes infighting financial speculation.

On a more general note, Ido not agree that ideologicalcolors are fading. On the con-trary, they are gaining impor-tance. European parties andEuropean party politics areslowly emerging. Look at theFrench presidential elections.President Sarkozy is openlysupported by his colleaguesfrom the EPP.

What happened to our Euro-pean dream of solidarity andunity? Is it over, or justpushed to one side for thetime being?I disagree that the time of soli-darity is over. We should notidealize the past by perpetuat-ing the myth of some goldenage when everything was per-fect. There have always beendisputes over the EU budgetand how to spend the money.

Solidarity in the EU doesexist. Economically poorerregions do receive tens of bil-lions of euro every year tobuild roads, clean up the envi-ronment and create jobs.Huge sums are spent on scien-tific research, education andinnovation.

Germany is sometimesaccused of lacking solidarity.But Germany provided €211billion in guarantees for theEuropean stability fund, ormore than half of the country’sbudget. This is not a negligiblesum. ●

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MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 201210 www.wbj.pl OPINION & ANALYSIS

The seemingly never-endingdebate over the euro zone’s fis-cal problems has focused exces-

sively on official bailouts, in particularthe proposed purchase of governmentbonds on a massive scale by the Euro-pean Central Bank. Indeed, we arewarned almost daily – by the Interna-tional Monetary Fund and others –that if bailout efforts are not greatlyexpanded, the euro will perish.

For some, this stance reflects thebenefits that they would gain fromsuch purchases; for others, it reflectsmistaken beliefs. Creditors obviouslysupport bailing out debtor countriesto protect themselves. Many politicalleaders also welcome official crisislending, which can ease market pres-sure on them. The media, meanwhile,always thrives on being the bearers ofbad news.

Mistaken beliefs, on the otherhand, are reflected in metaphors like“contagion” and “domino effect,”

which imply that financial marketsbecome blind, virulent, and indiscrim-inate when they are disturbed. Suchterms provoke fear that, once confi-dence in any one country is lost, allothers are in danger.

According to this logic, it followsthat only a formidable countervailingpower – such as massive official inter-vention – can halt the ravenousdynamics of financial markets.Widespread use of expressions like“aim a bazooka at the euro zone,” and“it’s them or us,” demonstrates a per-vasive Manichean view of financial-market behavior vis-à -vis govern-ments.

Markets aren’t blindBut financial markets, even when agi-tated, are not blind. They are capableof distinguishing, however imperfect-ly and belatedly, between macroeco-nomic conditions in various countries.This is why interest-rate spreads with-in the euro zone have been widening,with Germany and the Nordic coun-tries benefiting from lower borrowingcosts and the “problem” countriesbeing punished by a high-risk premi-um.

Another, related, fallacy is theassumption that reforms can reapbenefits only in the long run. This mis-conception reduces the short-termsolution to affected governments’

sharply higher borrowing costs tobailouts. In fact, properly structuredreforms have both short- and long-term effects.

For example, one does not need towait for the completion of a pensionreform to see reduced yields on gov-ernment bonds. Markets react tocredible announcements of reforms,as well as to their implementation.

The countries that have beenseverely affected by the financial crisisillustrate the impact of reform. Onegroup – Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, andLithuania (BELL) – experienced asurge in yields on their governmentbonds in 2009, followed by a sharpdecline. Another group – Portugal,Ireland, Italy, Greece, and Spain(PIIGS) – has had more mixed out-comes: yields have soared on Greekand Portuguese bonds, while Ireland’swere falling until recently.

These differences can beexplained largely by the variations inthe extent and structure of thesecountries’ reforms. Proper reformscan produce confidence and growth.Official crisis lending can buy time toprepare, and it can help to stop abanking-sector crisis, but it cannotsubstitute for reform.

Moral hazardAll bailouts can create moral hazard,because they weaken the incentive to

implement reforms that will avoid badoutcomes in the future. To someextent, official crisis lending replacesthe pressure from financial marketswith pressure from experts and credi-tor countries’ politicians.

Among the proposed euro-zonebailouts, none has come under thespotlight as much as the idea that theECB should purchase massive quanti-ties of the problem countries’ bonds.Advocates of this approach stretchthe concept of “lender of last resort”to suggest that providing liquidity tocommercial banks is the same asfunding governments. They also pres-ent the alternative to a bailout as a“catastrophe.” Finally, they cite simi-lar policies implemented by the Unit-ed States Federal Reserve, the Bankof England, and the Bank of Japan –as though merely mentioning pastexamples is evidence that ECB lend-ing will work.

These rhetorical devices must notovershadow careful analysis of thevarious options. There has been sur-prisingly little comparative analysis ofthe effects of quantitative easing(QE) in Japan, the US, and Britain.Yet the evidence indicates that QE isno free lunch. Although it may offerpotential benefits in the short run,costs and risks invariably emergelater.

In Japan, QE may have con-

tributed to delays in economic reformand restructuring, thereby weakeninglonger-term economic growth andexacerbating fiscal distress. In the US,it failed to avert the slowdown during2008-2011. In Britain, economicgrowth is even slower. And thesecountries’ QE has also fueled assetbubbles in the world economy.

Massive purchases of governmentbonds by the ECB would be the worsttype of bailout. The fact that such pur-chases are potentially unlimitedwould exacerbate the problem ofmoral hazard. It would also increasethe risk of inflation, along with othernegative economic consequences.

Moreover, such a bailout couldundermine the ECB’s trustworthinessas guardian of the euro’s stability, par-ticularly in light of the new politicalpower that it would obtain. And itwould further undermine the rule oflaw in the EU at a time when confi-dence in the Union’s governingtreaties is already fragile.

The key to resolving the euro-zonecrisis lies in properly structuredreforms in the ailing countries.Indeed, experience shows that there isno substitute. ●

Leszek Balcerowicz is a former governor of the National Bank of

Poland and deputy prime ministerCopyright: Project Syndicate, 2012

The bailout bias Leszek Balcerowicz

The slowdown of China’s econo-my has captured the headlinesin recent weeks. Whether it is a

permanent or temporary adjustment,the Chinese authorities have muchwork to do in laying the groundworkfor strong economic performance inthe medium and long term.

Despite extraordinary growthsince the start of its transition to amarket economy in 1979, China isfacing serious challenges simultane-ously: rising inequality, large andgrowing levels of environmentaldegradation, stubborn externalimbalances, and an aging society.

Fortunately, China’s 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) recognizes theneed to deepen market-orientedreform, change the country’s devel-opment model, and focus on thequality of growth, structural reforms,and social inclusion to overcome therural-urban divide and stem the risein income inequality.

In line with this bold, long-termapproach, a new report by a teamfrom the World Bank and the Devel-opment Research Center of China’sState Council, China 2030, proposesreforms that the country needs todevelop a mature, well-functioningmarket economy by 2030.

Long-term viewChina 2030 calls for structuralreforms that would redefine the roleof government, overhaul state-ownedenterprises and banks, develop theprivate sector, promote competition,

and deepen liberalization of the land,labor, and financial markets.

While providing relatively fewertangible public goods and servicesdirectly, the Chinese government willneed to provide more intangible pub-lic goods and services like rules, stan-dards, and policies. Such policies andinstitutional improvements increaseproductivity, promote competition,facilitate specialization, enhance theefficiency of resource allocation, pro-tect the environment, and reducerisks and uncertainties.

In the enterprise sector, the focuswill need to be on increasing compe-tition in all sectors, reducing barriersto entry and exit for private compa-nies, and strengthening state-ownedenterprises’ competitiveness.

In the financial sector, the bank-ing system must be commercialized,thereby gradually allowing interestrates to be set by market forces, whilecapital markets must be deepened intandem with the development of thelegal and supervisory infrastructureneeded to ensure financial stability.

In the labor market, China needsto accelerate reforms of the hukou(household registration) system toensure that, by 2030, workers canmove more freely in response to mar-ket signals. Currently, anyone whomoves to another part of the countrywithout a hukou risks losing access toeducation, social services, and thehousing market. China’s policymak-ers also need to introduce measuresto increase labor-force participation

rates, rethink wage policy, and makesocial-insurance programs portablenationwide.

Finally, farmers’ rights need to beprotected, the efficiency of land usemust be increased, and policies foracquisition of rural land for urban useshould be overhauled.

Enlightened strategyChina’s medium-term success willalso require creating an open systemin which competitive pressuresencourage Chinese companies toengage in product and process inno-vation, not only through their ownresearch-and-development efforts,but also through participation inglobal R&D networks. The priority isto increase the quality of R&D,rather than just its quantity. Policy-makers will need to focus on increas-ing the technical and cognitive skillsof university graduates, and on build-ing a few world-class research univer-sities with strong links to industry.

An enlightened strategy mustencourage China to “grow green,” asopposed to growing rapidly now andfacing massive environmental costslater. Encouraging new investmentsin low-pollution, energy- andresource-efficient industries wouldlead to greener development, spurinvestments in related upstream anddownstream manufacturing and serv-ices, and build an international com-petitive advantage in a global sunriseindustry.

China 2030 also calls for expand-

ing opportunities, promoting socialsecurity, and reducing the country’srelatively high social and economicinequality by addressing the rural-urban disparities in access to jobs,finance, and high-quality public serv-ices. Doing so will require greatersustained attention to underservedrural areas and migrant populations,and to restructuring social policies inorder to ensure secure safety nets.

Moreover, it is vital to strengthenChina’s fiscal position by mobilizingadditional revenues and ensuring thatlocal governments have adequatefinancing to meet their rising expen-diture responsibilities. Such reformscan help to ensure that budgetaryresources are available at differentlevels of government (central, provin-cial, prefectural, county, township,and village), and are commensuratewith expenditure responsibilities.

Global stakeholderLast but not least, China shouldbecome a proactive stakeholder inthe global economy. By continuing tointensify its global trade, investment,and financial links, which have servedit well over the past three decades,China would benefit from furtherspecialization, increased investmentopportunities, and higher returns tocapital, as well as mutually beneficialflows of ideas and knowledge.

China must remain committed toresuscitating the stalled Doha Roundof multilateral trade negotiations,and support a global agreement on

investment flows. Global integrationof China’s financial sector willrequire opening the capital account,which will have to be carried out

steadily and with considerable care;but it will be a key step toward inter-nationalizing the renminbi as a globalreserve currency.

With the global economy enteringa dangerous phase, China’s govern-ment will need to respond to newrisks, shocks, and vulnerabilities asthey arise. But, in doing so, it shouldadhere to the principle that policyresponses to short-term problemsmust uphold, not undermine, long-term reform priorities. ●

Justin Yifu Lin, chief economistand senior vice president for develop-ment economics at the World Bank,founded the China Center for Eco-

nomic Research at Peking University.His latest book is “Demystifying the

Chinese Economy.”Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2012.

project-syndicate.org

“China shouldbecome a proactivestakeholder in the

global economy”

“Massive purchases ofgovernment bonds bythe ECB would be theworst type of bailout”

The future of China’s growthJustin Yifu Lin

Could the coalition government disintegrate?

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 OPINION & ANALYSIS www.wbj.pl 11

Remi Adekoya

Civic Platform (PO) and the PolishPeoples’ Party (PSL) made histo-ry last year by leading the first

coalition government to last the wholefour-year parliamentary term in post-communist Poland.

The stability with which the coali-tion ruled the country from 2007 to2011 is credited by most politicalobservers as being one of the main rea-sons voters were kind to them duringlast October’s parliamentary elections.

With stability having led to success,few political observers expected muchdiscord between the coalition partnersover Prime Minister Donald Tusk’splanned pension reforms.

Of course PSL politicians, includ-ing party leader Waldemar Pawlak,had voiced doubts about Mr Tusk’sintention to raise the retirement agefor both men and women to 67. Thiswas to be expected. PSL, whose coreelectorate is made up of mostly ruralfolk, positions itself as a party that is inthe government to fight for the rightsof the common people in case PO goesoverboard with it’s economically liber-

al tendencies. PSL’s official party slo-gan, “People are most important,”sums up the idea rather succinctly.

When it comes to the proposedpension reforms, PSL’s main con-tention was with the fact that women(and especially those with children),who can currently retire at 60, wouldnot be given a fair deal under theplanned changes and should be givenmore favorable terms of retirement.

Mr Pawlak’s party provided a flurryof proposed changes, ranging fromallowing women to retire earlier basedon the number of children to whomthey had given birth (three years lessper child), to allowing women tochoose whether to stop working earlier(with a reduced pension) or at 67 (witha bigger pension).

Regardless, most commentatorswere sure the coalition partners wouldreach a compromise. But to everyone’ssurprise, no such agreement has comeabout. For the first time in five years,the coalition partners are now at animpasse. PSL is unwilling to accept thereforms as proposed, while PO is

decidedly skeptical of PSL’s solutions,and has now announced it will also belooking for support for its reforms out-side of the coalition.

New partner needed, elections?Can the coalition survive this fracas?Some are predicting that PO couldtake on a new coalition partner or callsnap elections, sending Poland into astate of political uncertainty.

Both scenarios are unlikely. Elections now would not benefit

Prime Minister Tusk, whose party wonroughly 40 percent of the vote in lastyear’s parliamentary elections. Cur-rently, PO is polling at less than 30 per-cent and would probably end up withfar fewer MPs than it has now. MrTusk will therefore do what he can toavoid snap elections.

And when it comes to forming anew coalition government, PO doesn’thave much choice over prospectivepartners. The Democratic LeftAlliance (SLD) has only 26 MPs,meaning any potential PO-SLD coali-

tion would have 232 members of par-liament – giving it just a two-votemajority. That wouldn’t make MrTusk’s life any easier.

A coalition with the conservativeLaw and Justice (PiS) is out of thequestion. The animosity between MrTusk and PiS leader Jaros∏aw Kaczyƒs-ki is simply too great. In this case it’snot a matter of “never say never in pol-itics,” it really is never.

That leaves Palikot’s Movement(RP), which has enough MPs toallow it to form a coalition with POthat would have a comfortablemajority. There are, however, a fewproblems.

RP’s leader, Janusz Palikot, cravesattention. A junior coalition partner issupposed to be in the shadows and stayquiet. That is certainly not Mr Palikot’sstyle. He would be a very difficult coali-tion partner for Mr Tusk.

Also, RP’s MPs are largelyunknown, a rag-tag army of small-townbusinessmen who are new to politicsand might not all have the most ster-ling of pasts.

So far, these new politicians havebeen able to fly somewhat below theradar: As minority opposition partymembers, the media has taken littleinterest in them. But if RP were to joinin a coalition government with PO, itsmembers would come under muchmore scrutiny – and that could lead tosome embarrassing revelations andpotentially damage Prime MinisterTusk’s standing.

Still his best optionMr Tusk would be taking the greatestrisk of his political life in forming acoalition with RP, and the prime minis-ter is not known for being a gamblingman.

And so, despite PSL’s stubbornnessover his planned pension reforms, thePM will most likely stick with the stoicand drab Mr Pawlak as a coalitionpartner, since it is simply his safestoption – at least for now. ●

Remi Adekoya is Warsaw BusinessJournal’s politics editor. Read his blog,

“The business of politics” on WBJ.pl

“Polish official shale gasestimates disappoint”read the headline that

went up on WBJ.pl last week, whenthe Polish Geological Institute finally,after several months of delay, pub-lished its official estimates ofPoland’s shale gas reserves. The Pol-ish agency predicts that there could

be 10 times less gas under Polandthan originally estimated by the USEnergy Information Agency, whichsaid Poland could have as much as 5.3trillion cubic meters – enough to lastthe country some 300 years at currentconsumption levels.

The headline garnered somestrong reactions from readers, whopointed out that industry players arenot disappointed at all. Indeed, at thelow end of the Polish institute’s esti-mates, some 346 billion cubic meters,still ensures there will be shale gas

business to be had here for at least 24years. Moreover, the US agency’sestimate was wildly optimistic tobegin with, they added. Our story (seepp. 3-4), makes the industry’s contin-ued bullishness on shale gasprospects in Poland abundantly clear.

That’s all well and good. But don’ttell that to the government, who hadplayed up the possibility of expectednear-immediate energy independ-ence, saying Poland could become a“second Norway,” and banking onshale gas revenues to plug holes in itsbudget. The “average Kowalski” waslikely hoping for better as well. Polandwill clearly need more than shale gasif it is to break the shackles of itsdependence on Russia for most of itsnatural gas needs.

But the media response to theinstitute’s low estimates was quickand fierce indeed. The data was notat all disappointing, said experts andcommentators. There is still plenty ofgas, sang the chorus. Some went asfar as to say that the lower estimateswere good news, as they wouldencourage the government to pushforward with plans for producingnuclear power in Poland by 2020.

Missing the pointIt’s good that businesses, both foreignand domestic, will continue to invest

in shale gas. Poland needs all theinvestment it can get, and any reduc-tion in Poland’s dependence on Russ-ian gas is welcome. It also needs tocontinue its plans to invest in nuclearpower, as Europe pushes to decreaseits carbon emissions by 20 percent by2020.

But pinning Poland’s energyhopes on either of these is missing thepoint. Neither is sustainable. Shalegas – as the Polish Geological Insti-tute’s estimates emphasize – is limit-ed, and even if some of the more seri-ous environmental fears are allayed,it is still a carbon-emitting fuel.Nuclear power has its obvious dan-gers, and then there is the matter ofwaste disposal. These are not prob-lems that Poland will be able to putoff forever.

Instead, both shale gas andnuclear energy should be seen as“bridge” energy sources that will buyPoland time to find more sustainablesources of energy. But that won’t beeasy. The most promising sustainableenergy technology for Poland so far iswind power – but space for turbines islimited and they currently still onlyprovide energy when the wind isblowing.

Even if those problems are solved– or if a better sustainable technologyeventually comes along – there’s still

the 800-pound gorilla in the roomthat no one seems to be talkingabout: the upgrading of Poland’selectricity infrastructure.

Short-sightedPoland produces over 90 percent ofits electrical energy from coal, andmuch of its energy transmissioninfrastructure is outdated, unableto handle the new technologyrequired for sustainable solutions.It may not be as sexy as the possibil-ity of shale-gas riches or nuclear-powered energy independence, butinvestment in upgrading Poland’senergy transmission infrastructureis what the government really needsto focus on.

The EU must help as well. TheEuropean Commission has recom-mended that a minimum of 20 per-cent of the national EuropeanRegional Development Fundresources be put towards energy effi-ciency and renewables, includinginvestment in infrastructure. Sinceno budget for the 2014-2020 periodhas been agreed upon, it’s unclearhow much that would come to forPoland, and even less clear howmuch would end up going towardsimproving transmission infrastruc-ture. What’s clear is that movingaway from a coal-based economy is

going to be expensive. The PolishChamber of Commerce found thatimplementing an EU-proposed roadmap to cut carbon emissions by 80percent from 1990 levels by 2050would cost Poland some z∏.22 billiona year from 2030.

No wonder then that Poland stoodalone in rejecting the above-men-tioned road map a few weeks ago.While there are prospects for largeamounts of investment coming in rel-atively quickly when it comes to non-sustainable sources such as shale gasand nuclear, renewables are initiallycost heavy and potentially profitableonly in the long term.

But like it or not, Poland will even-tually have to deal with the realitythat it must move towards sustainablesources of energy. It would be betterif it started now, rather than waitinguntil the environment or EU legisla-tion forces it to do so.

Unfortunately, it looks like thegovernment, and indeed society, aremore interested in focusing on thepotential profits from non-sustain-able solutions in the short to mediumterm. And that is a real disappoint-ment. ●

Andrew Kureth is Warsaw Busi-ness Journal’s editor-in-chief. Read

his blog “From the editor” on WBJ.pl.

The real disappointment about shale gas

“Poland will eventuallyhave to deal with thereality that it must movetowards sustainablesources of energy”

Andrew Kureth

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MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012COVER STORY12 www.wbj.pl

Sino-Polish business

Eastern promiseDespite a number ofhiccups, businessrelations betweenPoland and China arebeginning to blossom

Following a number of disap-pointing years, business tiesbetween China and Polandhave strengthened perceptiblyin recent months. Expectationsare that relations will continueto improve, although Polishinvestors are still not as activein the Chinese market as theycould be.

Chinese interest in the Pol-ish market was clear for all tosee in March, when two banks– the Bank of China (BoC) andthe Industrial and CommercialBank of China (ICBC) –moved closer to establishingbranches in the country. TheBoC is due to open its first Pol-ish branch in April while theICBC has received regulatorypermission to begin operationsin Poland, provided it adheresto a number of conditions. Thetwo lenders are also beingjoined in Poland by Chineselaw firm Yingke.

In mid-March, meanwhile,it was announced that Chinesesovereign wealth fund ChinaInvestment Corp had inked adeal with the Polish Informa-tion and Foreign InvestmentAgency (PAIiIZ) that couldsee it buy up a number of Pol-ish state-owned assets. ThePolish government is lookingto China as a potential sourceof funds for its asset-sale pro-gram, whose progress has beenstalled due to the euro-zonecrisis.

PAIiIZ will be looking forprojects in which China Invest-ment Corp can invest inPoland, the agency’s head, S∏a-womir Majman, told Reuters.“As for the size of their invest-ments, the sky is the limit,” headded.

Similar deals were signedwith China Development Bankand China’s National Develop-ment and Reform Commission(NDRC) during Polish Presi-dent Bronis∏aw Komorowski’sofficial state visit to China inDecember 2011.

“The deal with NDRC isespecially important, becauseit defines benchmarks forannual investments by 2015,”Mr Majman said, without elab-orating.

A momentous visitMuch was made beforehand ofMr Komorowski’s trip toChina, which it was hopedcould pave the way for anincrease in Polish businessactivity in that country and agrowth in Chinese investmentin Poland.

Following the visit, it hasbecome clear that businessrelations between Poland andChina have stepped up anoth-er level.

“It is a breakthrough,” saidRados∏aw Pyffel, head of thePoland-Asia Research Center.“[It was] the first Polish officialpresidential visit for 14 years,the first time that businessissues, and not human rightsissues, were the most impor-tant, and a strategic partner-ship deal was signed,” headded.

“The visit will be a door-

opener in Sino-Polish rela-tions,” said Tomasz Ostasze-wicz, director of the BilateralEconomic Cooperation De-partment at Poland’s Ministryof Economy.

A series of significant meet-ings, contracts and announce-ments were held and made dur-ing or immediately after MrKomorowski’s visit. Polish state-owned copper miner KGHM,for one, signed a long-term dealto sell copper cathodes to ChinaMinmetals Corporation be-tween 2012-2016. The agree-ment, signed by the heads of thetwo firms during Mr Komo-rowski’s visit, could be worth

$3.5 billion to KGHM. Since the visit, Chinese

company Guangxi LiuGongMachinery has signed a final

agreement to buy the civilianequipment construction arm ofHuta Stalowa Wola, a Polishstate-owned manufacturer of

construction machinery. Thevalue of the deal is estimated atmore than z∏.250 million.

Coming in drovesChinese companies are espe-cially interested in Poland’spower engineering, raw mate-rials, chemical and infrastruc-ture sectors. The country’s rel-atively stable macroeconomicenvironment is also provingattractive.

“Poland attracts China byhaving a stable economy in atime of crisis, an expandedlocal market and competenthuman resources,” S∏awomirMajman told WBJ.

Indian firm

may invest

€200 million

Indian tire producer

Apollo Tyres may invest

€200 million in building a

tire factory in the south of

Poland, reported Puls

Biznesu, citing an

anonymous source. The

investment may turn out

to be the largest direct

foreign investment project

in Poland this year.

WIG20 profits

rise by 40%

Companies on the blue-

chip WIG20 saw an

increase of more than

40% in y/y profits in 2011.

The 20 companies – which

include banks, utilities

and a broadcaster –

earned a total of z∏.38.6

billion, or z∏.11.5 billion

more than the previous

year. The largest

contributor to the growth

was KGHM, Europe’s

second-largest copper

miner. The company’s

z∏.11 billion profit made

up just under 30% of the

profit of all the companies

on the WIG20.

Loan market

attracts UK

bank Competition in the high-

risk loan sector is

continuing to grow in

Poland, with British

Vanquis Bank set to enter

the country’s market,

reported Gazeta

Wyborcza. Vanquis Bank

will become a direct

competitor to lender

Provident Polska, which

lent a total of z∏.1.6 billion

in 2011. ●

Joanna Sopy∏o

CO

UR

TE

SY O

F P

RE

SID

EN

T.P

L

The Polish president’s recent trip to China has been heralded as a great success for

Polish-Chinese business relations

“PresidentKomorowski’s visit

will be a door-openerin Sino-Polish

relations”

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 COVER STORY www.wbj.pl 13

Chinese firms have beenheavily involved in infrastruc-ture projects in Poland, whichis using EU funds to completesuch projects ahead of the 2012European soccer champi-onship. There have been set-backs, notably with the termi-nation of Chinese road builderCOVEC’s contract for theconstruction of two key sec-tions of Poland’s A2 highway,after its subcontractors refusedto work when they did notreceive payment on time.

Even this well-publicizeddebacle, however, hasn’tserved to discourage Chineseinvestors, whose representa-tives are visiting Poland indroves. Last year PAIiIZ host-ed over 60 delegations fromChina’s ministries and regions,and by mid-February of thisyear a total of 20 delegationshad visited Poland.

Moreover, PAIiIZ has setup a center for economic coop-eration between China andPoland, whose aim is to be thefirst point of call for Chineseinvestors in Poland.

Making the leapWhile the Sino-Polish businessrelationship has been dominat-ed by Chinese activity inPoland, more Polish firms aretrying their luck in the Chinesemarket as well.

Just a few years ago itseemed as if Polish business-people were reluctant to capi-talize on the opportunities thatmany others were benefitingfrom in China. Most appearedto prefer operating in marketscloser to home.

“[Back] then, when we wereinviting businesspeople to goto China with official delega-tions; they weren’t interested.Now we don’t have such aproblem and we even need tomake a selection,” said MrOstaszewicz of Poland’s Min-istry of Economy.

Now that many of Poland’smajor companies have man-aged to stabilize their positionsin European markets, theallure of greater profits isdrawing their attention toChina. They are also receivingsupport from the Polish gov-ernment, which is important ingaining respect from China.Chinese business cultureplaces a major emphasis onofficial relations and formalgestures, so Mr Komorowski’sDecember visit was crucial forimproving Poland’s standing inthe eyes of Chinese businessleaders. Moreover, Polish gov-ernment bodies have put on

workshops for potential Polishexporters to China, to educatethem about Chinese culture.

In other ways, Poland hasdrawn closer to China in recentyears, starting in 2008 when Pol-ish Prime Minister Donald Tuskwas chosen as one of the repre-sentatives of Europe at theAsia-Europe Meeting in Bei-jing. Then came Expo 2010 inShanghai, where Poland’s pavil-ion was visited by over eightmillion people – more than thenumber who visited the pavil-ions of Germany and the US.

On the groundNow, Polish authorities are try-ing to encourage the country’sentrepreneurs to enter theChinese market in greaternumbers. Foreign Affairs Min-

ister Rados∏aw Sikorski andEconomy Minister WaldemarPawlak will soon visit Chinawith a group of businesspeo-ple. Moreover, PAIiIZ plans tolaunch a program called“GoChina” which is aimed atencouraging Polish entrepre-neurs to invest in the world’ssecond-largest economy.

On the ground, over 200representatives of Polish firmsaccompanied Mr Komorowskion his December visit to China,where they took part in eco-nomic and investment forumsand met with their actual orpotential Chinese businesspartners.

“This visit was not onlyhelpful because we met withour Chinese counterparts, butalso because we had a chanceto exchange our thoughts withPolish businessmen [who are]thinking about investments inChina,” said Marko Dolçan,CEO of Polfa ¸ódê, a Polish

pharmaceutical company. Polfa ¸ódê first began

thinking about developing itsbusiness in China two yearsago when a Chinese entitybecame one of its stakehold-ers. The company now hasplans to start operating thereunder its Sensilab brand, sell-ing dietary supplements at thebeginning, before expanding.

“We are thinking aboutbuilding a factory in China. If itturns out to be cheaper thanproduction in Europe, we mayalso import products fromChina to Europe,” said MrDolçan.

“We’ve also met with twopotential partners whose prod-ucts we could sell in Europe,”he added.

Selena, a Polish chemicalcompany, has already expand-ed into China. “Poland used itspromotional opportunity inChina very well during Presi-dent Komorowski’s visit,” saidKrzysztof Domarecki, chair-man of the company’s supervi-sory board. “Selena has beenpresent in China for the pastfive years. As a target we planto create in China a center ofgeographical expansion for therest of Southeast Asia and thePacific region.”

Meanwhile Margaƒski &Mys∏owski Zak∏ady Lotnicze,an aviation company, has man-aged to secure a Chineseinvestor that wants to invest inthe production of its Orka air-craft, partly in Poland and part-ly in China. Production inChina is expected to increasein the future.

Other companies, such asdairy producer Bakoma andjewelry company W.Kruk,which both attended Decem-ber’s meetings, are also inadvanced negotiations withChinese partners but don’twant to reveal any details rightnow. Both say, though, thatthey have big plans for the Chi-nese market.

Cautionary talesDespite all the enthusiasm sur-rounding the development of

business relations between thetwo countries, there are signsthat the road ahead won’talways be a smooth one.

Watt, a producer of solarcollectors, has tried severaltimes to strengthen its rela-tions with Chinese companies,but without success. “Everytime we’ve tried, somethingwent wrong – whether Chinesecompanies were not trustful orthey were promising some-thing else than they were infact doing. Therefore wedecided to import only onepart for one type of collectorand not go beyond that. Wewill see what the future bringsand if we find the right partnerwe’ll consider cooperation,”said Watt spokesperson DawidMusio∏.

Moreover, several Chinesemedia outlets, including theEnglish-language China Daily,have commented on the diffi-culties of investing in Poland,such as the dense legal regula-tions and the fact that the

nearby euro zone is in a stateof crisis.

Rados∏aw Pyffel of thePoland-Asia Research Centersuggests that such worries willnot affect the largest Chinesecompanies. “We need to differ-entiate between big, state-owned Chinese companies andsmall, private business.Though the second group maybe afraid of crisis, the firstgroup’s actions are stronglyrelated to political decisions, sothey will do what the authori-ties say.”

So, while Poland and Chinafigure out how to surmount theearly, and perhaps unavoidableproblems that often come witha fast-flourishing business rela-tionship, most of the omenspoint to a bright future. Polishentrepreneurs are increasinglykeen to explore the advantagesoffered by China, while theChinese state appears to havea keenly interested eye on theopportunities afforded by thePolish market. ●

Polish exports

to Norway risePolish exports to Norway

are booming, according to

data from the Ministry of

the Economy. In 2011,

Poland exported €2.77

billion worth of products

to Norway, a 54% y/y

increase. This is the

highest increase in

exports in the history of

economic relations

between the two

countries, reported Puls

Biznesu.

Nowy Styl

wants Brazil

contractFurniture maker Nowy

Styl will take part in a

tender to become the

sole supplier of stadium

seating in 15 Brazilian

stadiums, as the South

American country begins

preparations for the 2014

World Cup. The estimated

value of this contract may

be worth approximately

$150 million, according to

Tomasz Strza∏a, the

director of Forum

Seating, a subsidiary of

Nowy Styl. The firm is

also the provider of

stadium seats for all

Polish stadiums

participating in Euro

2012. ●

“Despite all theenthusiasm ... there

are signs that the roadahead won’t always be

smooth.”

China around the world

After China finished imple-menting a number of majorinternal reforms in the 1970s,it began to expand its eco-nomic influence around theworld – first in East andSoutheast Asia. Some of themost visible Chinese invest-ments in recent years have

been made in Africa, in coun-tries such as Zambia, Kenya,Cameroon and Ethiopia,where Chinese companiesare building railways, stadi-ums and other infrastructure.China’s main markets arelocated in nearby Asian coun-tries, such as Japan and South

Korea, as well as in majorWestern countries includingthe US and Germany.

Eastern Europe has not,historically, formed a majorplank of China’s trade andinvestment activities, meaningPolish-Chinese business rela-tions require nurturing. ●

Polish firms in ChinaCompany Industry Connection to China

Amber Foods Polska restaurants in China since the end of 2011Axtone rolling stock in China since 2001 Bioton (in China as SciGen) pharma/biotech in China since 1988Grupa Black Point (in China as Eco Service China) toner/ink cartridges in China since 2010KGHM mining in China since 1998Kopex (in China as Shandong TAGAO) mining equipment in China since since 2007Margaƒski & Mys∏owski Zak∏ady Lotnicze aviation has Chinese investor since end of 2011Polfa ¸ódê pharmaceuticals in the process of entering to China Selena chemicals in China since 2007

LOKALE IMMOBILIAW a r s a w B u s i n e s s J o u r n a l ’s w e e k l y s u p p l e m e n t o n r e a l e s t a t e , c o n s t r u c t i o n a n d d e v e l o p m e n t • MAR 26 – APR 1, 2012, LI 17/12

Galeria Orkana

shopping

center on sale

The Endurance Real

Estate Fund, an entity

managed by developer

Orco Property Group, has

appointed Cushman &

Wakefield as exclusive

advisor in the sale of its

Galeria Orkana shopping

center development in

Lublin, Lubelskie

voivodship. Galeria

Orkana, which opened for

business in August 2006,

is located on Lublin’s

ul. Orkana, opposite

Tesco Extra and OBI

stores, and offers almost

8,000 sqm of leasable

retail space on two floors.

Real hyper-

markets in

Echo

Investment

mallsThe Real retail chain will

open its hypermarkets in

four of developer Echo

Investment’s malls – in

Tarnów, Jelenia Góra,

Piotrków Trybunalski and

Radom. The total value of

the contracts signed by

the two entities amounts

to €38.15 million. The

Echo Investment-Real

deals have been signed

for a period of 10 years

with the latter company

expected to take up the

leased space in the four

shopping centers in

January next year.

Carrefour hypermarkets

now operate in the malls

in question. ●

Złote Tarasy sold . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Golub GetHouse offices . . . . . .15

Meble Emilia sale . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Torus interview . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Euro Office Park lease . . . . . . .16

Property-related stocks . . . . . .16

Makrum building permit . . . . .17

Green Horizon phase II . . . . . . .17

In this issue

1716

Torus could invest up to z∏.800million in Alchemia in Gdaƒskin the next few years

Construction on the Makrummall in Bydgoszcz will launchin the upcoming months

Golub GetHouse tobuild office high-rise

Kulczyk Silverstein Propertiesinterested in Meble Emilia sale

Three entities – EuropejskieCentrum Inwestycyjne (ECI),Griffin Topco II and KulczykSilverstein Properties – havesubmitted bids for the pur-chase of an 85-percent stake inWarsaw-based furniture retail-

er Meble Emilia, the Treasurysaid in a statement last week.

The state-owned companyhas a number of properties inand around Warsaw includinga furniture store nestledbetween the city’s InterConti-

nental Hotel and the WarsawFinancial Center towers. It isexpected that the new ownerwill replace it with more prof-itable, modern commercialspace.

The Treasury will announcewhom it will invite for furthernegotiations concerning thesale this week. This is the sec-ond attempt to sell MebleEmilia – no bids were submit-ted in a tender that wasannounced in autumn lastyear. The bid price then wasover z∏.172 million.

ECI is known in Warsawfor a number of office projectsin the Mokotów district. Grif-fin Topco II is a private equityfund that belongs to OaktreeCapital Group, while KulczykSilverstein Properties is a jointventure in which Polish billion-aire Jan Kulczyk is involved.

Adam Zdrodowski

Shopping centers

Z∏ote Tarasy shopping centerin Warsaw changes handsThe transaction is partof ING’s strategy ofdecreasing its presencein the property market

ING Real Estate Developmenthas sold its stake in an entitythat owns 77 percent of theZ∏ote Tarasy retail-office com-plex in downtown Warsaw. As aresult of the transaction, thecompany is decreasing its expo-sure to the Polish propertymarket by €475 million, INGsaid in a statement.

The buyer of the stake is afund managed by AXA RealEstate and CBRE PropertyFund Central Europe, in whichUnibail-Rodamco, the currenteconomic co-owner of the mall,is a shareholder. Property FundCentral Europe remains an

economic co-owner, as well,ING said.

“This is the last step in theproject in which we wereinvolved for the last 14 years.The sale constitutes a mile-stone in ING strategy whichenvisions a decrease of thecompany’s presence in the realestate industry,” Hein Brand,president of ING Real EstateDevelopment, said in the state-ment.

Opened in February 2007,the Z∏ote Tarasy complex com-prises a total of 225,000 sqm ofspace, including 66,200 sqm and47,300 sqm of leasable retailand office space, respectively.The investment features 1,600parking spaces and is visited byover 20 million customers ayear. Adam Zdrodowski

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The Z∏ote Tarasy complex comprises a total of 255,000 sqm of space

Golub GetHouse PropertyFund FIZ, a property fundmanaged by developmentcompany Golub GetHouse(GGH), plans to build a high-rise office building in Warsawthat will stand over 80 meterstall and comprise approxi-mately 21,000 sqm of leasablespace. The fund has recentlypurchased a plot of land forthe investment on the capital’sul. Grzybowska from IrishDevelopment Group.

Originally, the seller wasplanning a residential tower inthe same location. Architectsfrom the Warsaw office ofEpstein and from Chicago-based Solomon CordwellBuenz are now working on anew architectural concept forthe skyscraper, which will bethe first investment of GolubGetHouse Property Fund FIZ.Construction is expected to

launch by the end of this year.“We anticipate that the

location on the prestigious ul.Grzybowska, near the [under-construction] Rondo Daszyƒ-skiego metro station and with-in an area which is graduallybecoming a new city center ofWarsaw, will position thedevelopment for great suc-cess,” Czarek Jarzàbek, co-owner and president of GGH,said in a statement.

Focused on the residentialand commercial propertysectors in Poland, GolubGetHouse is a joint venturecreated by Chicago-basedGolub & Company and War-saw-based GetHouse Devel-oper. Affiliates of the compa-ny were involved in the con-struction of projects includ-ing the Warsaw FinancialCenter.

Adam Zdrodowski

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Meble Emilia’s properties include a shop located

between the InterContinental Hotel (center) and the

Warsaw Financial Center (right)

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE16 www.wbj.pl

Chrzanów’s

CH Max to be

expanded

The Centrum Handlowe

Max shopping center in

Chrzanów, Silesia

voivodship, will be

expanded, with the mall’s

area expected to increase

by 5,000 sqm to a total of

14,000 sqm. The number

of stores at the facility

will increase from the

current level of over 60 to

more than 90. The

architectural concept of

the expansion has been

prepared by BOSE

International.

Construction on the

expanded mall is should

launch in Q4 this year.

Apsys-managed

malls BREEAM-

certifiedThree of the shopping

centers managed by

Apsys Polska – Centrum

Janki near Warsaw,

Korona in Wroc∏aw and

Rondo in Bydgoszcz –

have obtained BREEAM

In-Use certification that

is granted to already

existing facilities. All

three malls are owned by

GE Capital Real Estate

and are over 12 years

old. ●

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

on Mar 22 (z∏. mln)

BUDIMEX 87.40 2.22 64.00 109.20 94.60 25,530,098 2,231.33

CELTIC 17.71 7.01 15.55 22.70 21.00 34,068,252 603.35

DOMDEV 38.00 -2.19 23.50 50.80 45.90 24,670,397 937.48

ECHO 4.28 5.42 3.05 5.55 4.63 420,000,000 1,797.60

ELBUDOWA 112.00 -3.45 87.00 168.00 158.00 4,747,608 531.73

ENERGOPLD 1.95 -3.47 1.81 4.10 3.79 70,972,001 138.40

ERBUD 18.90 -12.09 14.65 41.45 48.00 12,644,169 238.97

GANT 8.00 -18.78 5.85 14.20 15.99 20,499,953 164.00

GTC 6.10 -14.21 6.10 21.79 21.08 219,372,990 1,338.18

HBPOLSKA 0.82 -21.90 0.70 2.55 2.61 210,558,445 172.66

JWCONSTR 6.10 -17.01 4.36 15.50 14.44 54,073,280 329.85

LCCORP 1.37 3.79 0.85 1.62 1.69 447,558,311 613.15

MARVIPOL 9.60 -2.04 7.22 9.95 9.24 36,923,400 354.46

MIRBUD 2.05 -6.39 1.94 4.63 4.40 75,000,000 153.75

MOSTALWAR 15.87 -17.30 15.40 45.69 47.01 20,000,000 317.40

MOSTALZAB 1.41 -10.76 1.07 2.89 2.87 149,130,538 210.27

ORCOGROUP 16.02 -5.99 14.00 40.00 32.55 17,053,866 273.20

PBG 34.35 -23.24 34.35 188.00 195.50 14,295,000 491.03

PLAZACNTR 2.75 5.36 1.80 5.15 4.00 297,174,515 817.23

POLAQUA 6.34 -10.07 4.53 18.99 19.49 27,500,100 174.35

POLIMEXMS 1.32 -14.84 1.23 3.64 3.45 521,154,076 687.92

POLNORD 15.21 -13.78 11.03 33.55 30.98 23,798,439 361.97

RANKPROGR 14.00 -17.50 8.60 16.97 10.18 37,145,050 520.03

ROBYG 1.70 17.24 1.04 2.13 1.86 257,390,000 437.56

RONSON 1.02 -11.30 0.77 1.58 1.41 272,360,000 277.81

TRAKCJA 1.25 0.00 0.65 3.72 3.61 232,105,480 290.13

ULMA 70.00 -2.64 57.00 88.00 83.30 5,255,632 367.89

UNIBEP 5.54 -5.78 4.47 8.07 8.93 33,927,184 187.96

WARIMPEX 4.15 -3.94 2.95 10.89 10.75 54,000,000 224.10

ZUE 7.80 1.96 5.07 13.60 14.00 22,000,000 171.60

Property-related stocks Bank BPH leases out entire EuroOffice Park complex in Gdaƒsk

Bank BPH has selected devel-oper Euro Styl’s plannedEuro Office Park office com-plex in Gdaƒsk as its futureheadquarters in the city. Thecompany, which currentlyemploys almost 3,000 peoplein Gdaƒsk, will be the onlyoccupier of the 19,000-sqmfacility.

“We made the decision tochoose a new headquarters inGdaƒsk because so far wehave been working in five dif-ferent locations [in the city],”said Krzysztof Nowaczewski,

vice president of the manage-ment board of Bank BPH.

Located approximatelyseven kilometers from down-town Gdaƒsk, between ul.Leszczynowa, ul. Kartuskaand ul. Armii Krajowej in thecity’s Jasieƒ district, theEuro Office Park project willcomprise three buildings,each of them five-storeystructures.

The scheme will be devel-oped in two phases with thefirst two buildings scheduledto be delivered in the third

quarter of next year. Thethird building of Euro OfficePark should be ready at thebeginning of 2014.

Present in the marketsince 2007, Euro Styl is amajor residential developer inTri-city. To date, it has com-pleted nine investments com-prising a total of over 100,000sqm of space. Last year thecompany launched OperaOffice in Gdaƒsk, its firstinvestment in the commercialproperty market.

Adam Zdrodowski

Developers

Torus sees growth potential in the Tri-city marketThe company plans toinvest up to z∏.800million in its Alchemiaoffice project inGdaƒsk

Gdaƒsk-based developer Torus,to date mostly known for itsArkoƒska Business Park officescheme in the city, is buildingthe first phase of another majorcommercial project in thequickly developing northernPolish market.

Construction on the firsttwo buildings of the company’sAlchemia multifunction facili-ty located on Al. Grunwaldzkain Gdaƒsk’s Oliwa districtlaunched in October last yearand is scheduled to finish inthe third quarter of 2013.

This phase of the develop-ment, which is expected to beLEED-certified, will deliver atotal of more than 21,000 sqmof leasable space, over 16,000sqm of which will be officeareas. A recreation area inclu-ding sports facilities will takeup 4,000 sqm.

The whole Alchemiainvestment will be much larg-er, when completed, said S∏a-womir Gajewski, president ofthe management board ofTorus. A total of seven build-ings, including six structures

standing on a joint four-storeybase and one taller stand-alone building, are being envi-sioned.

“We launched the firstphase in October; we willprobably soon officially con-firm the construction of thesecond one. If the marketallows it, seven innovativebuildings will ultimately bebuilt in this very dynamicallydeveloping research and busi-ness part of Gdaƒsk,” MrGajewski said.

He added that the value ofthe first phase of the Alchemiaproject amounts to over z∏.160million, while the cost of thewhole investment could,depending on the situation inthe market, even reach z∏.800million within the next 10-12years.

Commercialization startedjust recently, but according toMr Gajewski, tenant interestin the development is alreadystrong, and talks with a num-ber of potential occupiers areunderway. “We will certainlysign the first deals by the endof this year,” he said.

Growing marketMr Gajewski pointed out thatthe Tri-city area has seen con-siderable demand for officespace of late. Among the

major assets of the agglomera-tion he mentioned high qualityof life, relatively low costs andaccess to its highly qualifiedlabor force.

“All of this makes us drawthe attention of potentialinvestors and increasinglystrengthen our position as thethird, after Wroc∏aw andKraków, [regional] market [inPoland],” Mr Gajewski said. Headded that the number of com-panies opening their offices inthe region in on the rise.

The Tri-city region hasrecently been attracting in-vestors from the businessprocess outsourcing/shared-services center (BPO/SSC) sec-tor. Citing the example ofTorus’ Arkoƒska Business Park,Mr Gajewski also mentionedIT, R&D and financial compa-nies as some of the majorgroups of tenants in the market.

He stressed that Tri-citydevelopers have beenresponding with the delivery ofhigh-quality office space. “The

Tri-city market is dominatedby local developers who areshowing that they are not infe-rior to the international lead-ers [in the office market],” MrGajewski said.

Torus itself plans, at leastfor the time being, to solelyfocus on its home market. “Along investment process relat-ed to Alchemia is still ahead ofus. However, we are notexcluding anything,” Mr Gaj-ewski said.

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Construction on the first phase of the Alchemia office project launched in October 2011

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 LOKALE IMMOBILIA – REAL ESTATE www.wbj.pl 17

Second phase of Green Horizonoffice project in ¸ódê gets underway

Developer Skanska PropertyPoland has launched con-struction on the secondbuilding of its two-phaseGreen Horizon office com-plex in ¸ódê. When complet-ed in the second quarter of2013, the newly-launchedphase of the 33,000-sqmdevelopment will deliver14,000 sqm of leasable space.

“Green Horizon is one offive projects that we are cur-rently working on – two ofthem are being developed inWarsaw, while the remainingthree are regional invest-

ments. Skanska believes inthe potential of regionalcities, therefore we decidedto start construction of thesecond phase of Green Hori-zon,” Marcin ¸apinski,regional director at SkanskaProperty Poland, said in astatement.

Construction on the firstphase of the Green Horizoncomplex commenced in Q2last year and is scheduled tofinish in Q4 2012. The build-ing is almost fully commer-cialized with Infosys BPOPoland having leased 15,000

sqm in the project. Thebuilding’s general contrac-tor, Skanska, will also haveits offices in the scheme.

Designed by the MedusaGroup architectural studioand featuring seven-storeytall structures, the class-AGreen Horizon complex islocated at ¸ódê’s SolidarnoÊ-ci Roundabout. The facilitywill be characterized by sus-tainable building solutionsand is expected to be bothLEED- and EU GreenBuild-ing-certified.

Adam Zdrodowski

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The second phase will deliver 14,000 sqm of leasable space

Construction on Makrum shoppingcenter in Bydgoszcz set to launchMakrum Development hasreceived a building permitfor its planned Makrumshopping and entertainmentcenter in Bydgoszcz,Kujawsko-Pomorskie voivod-ship. Construction on themall is scheduled to launch inthe next few months and fin-ish in the first quarter of2014.

Makrum Development isnow working on the project’scommercialization and istalking to banks aboutfinancing for the project. Thecompany has already startedthe process of selecting ageneral contractor for thescheme.

“We are also in talks withpotential partners, which weplan to finalize along withthe selection of a generalcontractor. We plan to

launch construction withinthe next three months,”Rafa∏ Jerzy, president ofMakrum Development’s man-agement board, said in a state-ment.

With its leasable space of56,000 sqm, Makrum isexpected to be the largestretail and entertainmentscheme in the region. Theproject will include a 35,000-sqm shopping gallery, as wellas a Tesco hypermarket and aDIY store.

The investment, whichwill accommodate 180 retailand service units, has beendesigned by the J.S.K.Architekci studio. It will siton 9.6 hectares of land locat-ed at the intersection of Byd-goszcz’s ul. Kamienna and ul. Su∏kowskiego.

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Construction on the mall is due to be completed in Q1 2014

New tenant at

Eurocentrum

Office Complex

Tebodin Poland has

leased over 2,000 sqm of

office space at the

Eurocentrum Office

Complex project that

developer Capital Park

Group will build on

Al. Jerozolimskie in

Warsaw’s Ochota district.

The deal, which was

brokered by Cushman &

Wakefield, is the second

lease transaction secured

by the developer for the

investment. Imtech

leased more than 7,000

sqm of space in the

development last year.

DLA Piper in

WFC building

in WarsawLaw firm DLA Piper has

renewed and expanded

its lease agreement for

space at the Warsaw

Financial Center building

in the Polish capital.

Following a transaction

brokered by CBRE, the

tenant will occupy over

2,300 sqm in the facility.

Warsaw Financial Center

is a class-A high-rise

office building located on

ul. Emilii Plater in

downtown Warsaw. The

tower comprises 50,000

sqm of leasable office

area. ●

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MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012THE LIST18 www.wbj.pl

Financial ServicesCommercial BanksRanked by revenue from interest and fees in 2010

www.bookoflists.pl

Rank

Company nameAddressTel./FaxE-mailWeb page

Revenue frominterest andfees (z∏. mln)

Total revenue(z∏. mln)

Net profit (z∏. mln)

Gross profit onbanking

operations (z∏. mln)

Costs/Incomeratio

Currentaccounts /

Savingsaccounts /

Hard currencyaccounts

Commercialloans /

Retail loans /Mortgages

Phone banking /Online banking /

Private banking /

Debit cards

Investmentbanking / Securitiestrading /Leasing /Factoring

Own ATMs /Forex tellers

Total employees /

Year founded inPoland

Top localexecutive /

TitleCFO

1

Powszechna Kasa Oszcz´dnoÊciBank Polski SAul. Pu∏awska 15, 02-515 Warsaw22 521-8440/22 521-8470prasa@pkobp.plwww.pkobp.pl

7,502.214,296.212,366.712,178.5

7,851.815,128.613,927.013,261.6

1,838.33,216.92,305.53,120.7

5,315.610,197.68,607.09,096.7

39.9%41.7%47.9%45.8%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

26,4901919

Zbigniew Jagie∏∏oPresident

BartoszDrabikowski

2

Bank Pekao SAul. Grzybowska 53/57, 00-950 Warsaw22 656-0000/22 656-0004info@pekao.com.plwww.pekao.com.pl

4,930.09,348.09,464.011,047.0

5,332.010,192.010,527.012,122.0

1,362.02,530.02,421.03,541.0

3,772.07,218.07,053.07,834.0

48.4%50.6%52.1%48.3%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

20,5091929

Luigi LovaglioCEO

MarcoIannaccone

3

Bank Zachodni WBK SAul. Rynek 9/11, 50-950 Wroc∏aw61 856-4017/61 856-4015rzecznik.prasowy@bzwbk.plwww.bzwbk.pl

2,405.04,686.24,761.04,839.0

2,621.35,058.65,171.05,088.0

671.51,040.6939.0954.0

1,900.63,537.73,288.03,258.0

47.9%49.9%50.0%51.4%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

9,4632001

MateuszMorawiecki

President

Eamonn Crowley

4

BRE Bank SAul. Senatorska 18, 00-950 Warsaw22 829-0000/22 829-0033info@brebank.plwww.brebank.pl

2,465.74,600.54,454.04,509.0

WNDWND

5,223.05,527.0

550.5660.9131.0857.0

WNDWND

2,758.02,589.0

WNDWND54.2%55.1%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

8,0431986

CezaryStypu∏kowski

President

Karin Katerbau

5

Getin Noble Bank SA (1)

ul. Domaniewska 39B, 02-675 Warsaw22 541-5158/22 541-5159

2,293.04,109.03,538.01,809.0

3,018.04,298.03,715.01,987.0

795.0460.0314.0369.0

1,860.02,233.01,714.01,204.0

21.8%32.8%36.5%35.7%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓-

-✓

5,2002010

Krzysztof RosiƒskiPresident

Rados∏awStefurak

6

ING Bank Âlàski SAul. Sokolska 34, 40-086 Katowice801-222-222mampytanie@ingbank.plwww.ingbank.pl

2,188.04,066.04,163.04,376.0

2,244.04,141.04,276.04,414.0

446.0753.0595.0445.0

1,460.02,690.02,480.02,079.0

56.0%58.3%58.8%70.5%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

8,3981989

Ma∏gorzataKo∏akowska

President

Miros∏aw Boda

7

Bank BPH SA(2)

Al. Pokoju 1, 31-548 Kraków801-889-889www.bph.pl

1,485.03,195.03,397.02,876.0

1,496.03,261.03,448.02,940.0

104.0-135.053.0321.0

1,000.02,225.02,269.02,223.0

65.6%-68.8%-64.5%-70.05

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓-✓

✓✓

6,7571989

Richard GaskinActing President

GeorgeNewcomb

8

Bank Millennium SAul. Stanis∏awa ˚aryna 2A, 02-593 Warsaw801-331-331/22 598-2563www.bankmillennium.pl

1,603.62,985.32,950.03,060.0

1,712.13,264.53,307.03,274.0

216.4326.01.5

413.0

964.41,771.71,514.01,866.0

60.8%63.1%70.4%64.5%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

6,2511989

Bogus∏aw KottPresident

Julianna Boniuk

9

Bank Handlowy w Warszawie SA(3)

ul. Senatorska 16, 00-923 Warsaw22 657-7200/22 692-5023listybh@citi.comwww.citihandlowy.pl

1,316.02,719.02,759.03,040.0

1,486.03,199.03,325.03,493.0

333.0755.0504.0600.0

1,180.02,563.02,423.02,313.0

60.4%54.0%54.0%62.3%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

6,128(4)

1870

S∏awomir S.SikoraPresident

Witold Zieliƒski

10

Kredyt Bank SAul. Kasprzaka 2/8, 01-211 Warsaw22 634-5400/22 634-5335biuropr@kredytbank.plwww.kredytbank.pl

1,378.32,631.52,723.92,701.5

1,479.32,863.23,006.43,034.0

221.9185.934.6324.9

778.41,588.41,798.71,585.9

59.7%56.9%63.8%67.5%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

WND1990

Maciej BardanPresident

Piotr Sztrauch

11

Credit Agricole Bank Polska SAPl. Orlàt Lwowskich 1, 53-605 Wroc∏aw801-331-111/71 355-3005info@credit-agricole.plwww.credit-agricole.pl

912.91,965.1WNDWND

926.41,992.9WNDWND

64.142.7WNDWND

653.71,416.5WNDWND

62.2%55.8%WNDWND

✓✓-

✓✓✓

✓✓-✓

----

--

6,1381991

Romuald SzeligaPresident

Rados∏awKsi´˝polski

12

Bank BG˚ ul. Kasprzaka 10/16, 01-211 Warsaw22 860-4340/22 860-5900www.bgz.pl

916.21,682.31,556.01,698.4

1,004.51,882.51,862.51,963.3

60.3112.3100.6213.0

558.61,024.0933.0

1,009.0

78.1%75.2%77.0%70.8%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓-✓✓

✓-

5,5651975

Jacek BartkiewiczPresident

Geert Embrechts

13

Raiffeisen Bank Polska SAul. Pi´kna 20, 00-549 Warsaw22 585-2001/22 585-2585moje.pytania@raiffeisen.plwww.raiffeisen.pl

737.31,373.51,376.01,526.0

925.51,706.51,759.41,968.3

167.3238.2118.0315.0

613.21,143.3989.1

1,137.0

53.7%54.6%57.4%52.6%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

-✓

2,7431991

Piotr CzarneckiPresident

Piotr Konieczny

1st half of 2011 / 2010 / 2009 / 2008

Activities

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 THE LIST www.wbj.pl 19

Rank

Company nameAddressTel./FaxE-mailWeb page

Revenue frominterest andfees (z∏. mln)

Total revenue(z∏. mln)

Net profit (z∏. mln)

Gross profit onbanking

operations (z∏. mln)

Costs/Incomeratio

Currentaccounts /

Savingsaccounts /

Hard currencyaccounts

Commercialloans /

Retail loans /Mortgages

Phone banking /Online banking /

Private banking /

Debit cards

Investmentbanking / Securitiestrading /Leasing /Factoring

Own ATMs /Forex tellers

Total employees /

Year founded inPoland

Top localexecutive /

TitleCFO

14

BNP Paribas bank Polska SAul. Suwak 3, 02-676 Warsaw22 566-9000/22 566-9010info@bnpparibas.plwww.bnpparibas.pl

549.01,113.01,089.01,196.0

579.01,218.01,087.01,153.0

10.042.0

-429.078.0

379.0849.0570.0532.0

WNDWNDWNDWND

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓-✓-

✓✓

3,0041991

Frederic AmoudruPresident

Jan Bujak

15

Nordea Bank Polska SAul. Kielecka 2, 81-303 Gdynia58 669-1000/58 669-1001poczta@nordea.comwww.nordea.pl

525.4890.1803.5827.3

634.61,125.9975.2957.8

135.4259.3145.2136.4

443.6788.7593.4487.1

57.5%55.9%64.7%63.2%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓-✓

✓-✓✓

✓✓

2,2001992

S∏awomir˚ygowski

President

S∏awomirRonkowski

16

BOÂ SAAl. Jana Paw∏a II 12, 00-950 Warsaw22 850-8720/22 850-8891bos@bosbank.plwww.bosbank.pl

459.0799.0720.0710.0

508.0909.0734.0770.0

28.063.027.00.3

237.0462.0400.0367.0

76.7%76.6%83.4%77.3%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

1,7501991

Mariusz KlimczakPresident

Stanis∏awKolasiƒski

17

Bank Polskiej Spó∏dzielczoÊci SAul. P∏ocka 9/11B, 01-231 Warsaw22 539-5231/22 539-5233pr@bankbps.plwww.bankbps.pl

438.0733.0661.0725.0

493.0861.0742.0768.0

47.086.057.054.0

167.0286.0251.0223.0

63.0%68.0%71.0%71.0%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

-✓-✓

-✓✓✓

✓✓

1,1852002

Miros∏aw PotulskiPresident

Anna Zawada

18

Alior Bank SAAl. Jerozolimskie 94, 00-807 Warsaw22 555-2222/22 555-2323kontakt@alior.plwww.aliorbank.pl

440.0618.0274.065.0

636.0882.0349.065.0

51.0-93.0269.0134.0

432.0591.0143.061.0

69.0%96.0%240.0%292.0%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓-✓

-✓

3,6002008

Wojciech SobierajPresident

Niels Lundorff

19

Santander Consumer Bank SA(5)

ul. Strzegomska 42C, 53-611 Wroc∏aw71 323-6210/71 330-9910biuro@santanderconsumer.plwww.santanderconsumer.pl

843.9594.3716.7719.2

890.1635.2795.3879.8

163.826.324.5105.6

637.3341.3405.5357.0

39.0%39.0%36.0%40.0%

-✓-

✓✓-

---✓

--✓-

--

2,5632006

Piotr ˚abskiPresident

Jose LuisSanchez Diaz

20

Bank DnB NORD Polska SAul. Post´pu 15C, 02-676 Warsaw22 524-1000/22 525-1001www.dnbnord.pl

262.2488.0467.9460.9

323.0648.2529.4457.9

30.746.8-71.26.5

181.1338.0253.5241.2

64.5%68.7%85.4%90.6%

WNDWNDWND

WNDWNDWND

WNDWNDWNDWND

WNDWNDWNDWND

WNDWND

WND2002

Bartosz Chyt∏aPresident

Olaf Seidel

21

Bank Pocztowy SAul. Jagielloƒska 17, 85-959 Bydgoszcz52 349-9100/52 327-0407informacja@pocztowy.plwww.pocztowy.pl

193.1332.2305.2296.1

198.2353.0315.1306.2

8.814.45.923.2

121.6221.2221.5201.4

87.4%88.3%80.5%80.4%

✓✓-

✓✓✓

✓✓-✓

----

-✓

1,4611990

Tomasz BogusPresident

Pawe∏ Sp∏awski

22

INVEST-BANK SAul. Ostrobramska 77, 04-175 Warsaw22 514-5107/22 514-5106twoj.doradca@investbank.plwww.investbank.pl

91.0190.6214.0234.0

98.6208.7232.0256.0

1.24.42.010.0

59.0118.8139.0148.0

94.0%94.0%88.0%89.0%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓-✓

----

✓-

1,0341991

Gra˝yna NiewolikPresident

Jacek Sieniawski

23

Volkswagen Bank Polska SARondo ONZ 1, 00-124 Warsaw22 538-7000/22 538-7070info@vwbank.plwww.vwbank.pl

85.0180.0203.0212.0

111.0216.0236.0241.0

20.832.017.037.0

65.0115.0112.0109.0

81.0%57.0%62.0%62.0%

✓✓-

✓✓-

✓✓-✓

--✓-

--

3171997

Jaros∏awKonieczka

President

Bartosz Piech

24

DZ BANK Polska SAPl. Pi∏sudskiego 3, 00-078 Warsaw22 505-7000/22 505-7442info@dzbank.plwww.dzbank.pl

WND119.0108.0139.0

WND120.0114.0142.0

WND19.027.022.0

WND103.0103.0103.0

WND62.0%63.0%57.0%

✓✓✓

✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓✓✓

✓✓

1991990

Rainer FuhrmannPresident

Marcin˚ochowski

25

Wielkopolski BankSpó∏dzielczy/Bank Spó∏dzielczyul. Grochowe ¸àki 4, 61-752 Poznaƒ61 851-2504/61 852-4118neobank@neobank.plwww.neobank.pl

62.4100.177.666.3

63.9101.788.268.9

9.210.212.64.2

39.660.246.040.3

62.6%68.3%74.2%87.7%

✓✓-

✓✓✓

-✓-✓

----

✓-

5381961

Waldemar FrancikPresident

Anna Zaleska

NR

HSBC Bank Polska SAul. Marsza∏kowska 89, 00-693 Warsaw22 354-0500/22 354-0501infopolska@hsbc.comwww.hsbc.pl

WNDWNDWNDWND

WNDWNDWNDWND

WNDWNDWNDWND

WNDWNDWNDWND

WNDWNDWNDWND

-✓✓

✓--

✓✓✓✓

✓-✓✓

--

2852004

Janusz DedoPresident

Daniel M. A.Jones

Notes: NR = Not Ranked, WND = Would Not Disclose. Research for the List was conducted in November 2011. Number of employees is as of Octo-ber 2011, unless stated otherwise. All information pertains to the companies’ activities in Poland. Companies not responding to our survey are not listed.Footnotes: (1) Getin Noble Bank was created as a result of a merger of Getin Bank and Noble Bank in January 2010. Financial data for 2009 includeconsolidated data of both banks, financial data for 2008 data pertain only to Getin Bank; (2) Consolidated financial data of Bank BPH and GE MoneyBank; (3) Financial data of Grupa Kapita∏owa Banku Handlowego w Warszawie; (4) As of September 2011; (5) Financial data for 1st half of 2011 areconsolidated data of Santander Consumer Bank and AIG Bank Polska.

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

1st half of 2011 / 2010 / 2009 / 2008

Activities

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012MARKETS20 www.wbj.pl

SO

UR

CE

: W

SE

PLN-EUR

4.13

67

4.12

70

4.12

82

4.13

64

4.16

94

4.16

49

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

34

5 PLN-USD

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

3.16

88

3.13

61

3.12

88

3.11

73

3.16

80

3.14

17

3.0

3.5 PLN-GBP

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

4.98

10

4.96

57

4.96

42

4.94

43

5.00

65

4.98

37

4.8

5.2 PLN-CHF

3.42

60

3.42

05

3.42

21

3.43

06

3.45

88

3.45

48

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

33.3

3.6 PLN-RUB

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

0.10

78

0.10

72

0.10

70

0.10

68

0.10

77

0.10

71

0.10

0.12 PLN-100JPY

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

23.0

3

3.78

49

3.77

60

3.73

68

3.71

86

3.82

65

3.80

11

3.5

4.0

currency rates

Z∏oty hurt by

uncertainty

Currency report

The Long-Term RefinancingOperation (LTRO) roundsof cheap financing intro-duced by the European Cen-tral Bank, as well as goodPurchasing Managers Indexreadings have lifted indicesand helped emerging-marketcurrencies this year. Thispast week, however, curren-cies were hurt by worse-than-expected PMI reports fromeuro-zone countries andChina.

The z∏oty behaved unusu-ally, not following theEUR/USD as it normallydoes. The euro gainedthroughout the week – afterunsuccessfully trying tobreak the support at $1.3150,it rebounded to test itsmonthly high at $1.3285. Thelarge spike came on Fridayafter rumors spread aroundthe market that the People’sBank of China might de-

crease the reserve require-ment rate for banks.

The local currencyregained some groundagainst the euro and the dol-lar in the first part of theweek, but later on headedsouth. CPI inflation inPoland was lower than ex-pected, reducing the chancesof an interest-rate hike.Funds were sucked out ofemerging markets, causingthe z∏oty to depreciate, withthe EUR/PLN testing itsmonthly high at z∏.4.17. TheUSD/PLN, after climbing toz∏.3.17, retreated to z∏.3.15.After a period of consolida-tion, the CHF/PLN brokecrucial resistances andclimbed to its monthly highof z∏.3.46.

The overall outlook forthe z∏oty has not changed,with a chance for apprecia-tion. ●

Adam NarczewskiX-Trade Brokers DM SA

SO

UR

CE

: N

BP

Major indices

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

RESBUD 58.00 92.37 68.85 2.88WARFAMA 1.48 85.00 1.86 0.66IFCAPITAL 8.37 80.39 8.37 0.45BEST 32.90 49.55 36.50 4.60POLLENAE 8.69 20.86 11.29 7.19

WIG 40,834.43 (March 22 close)

Change for the week: -3.42% 52-week high: 50,371.74

Change year to March 22: 6.57% 52-week low: 36,549.47

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

PKNORLEN 37.91 2.38 58.85 30.33LOTOS 26.66 1.14 49.50 21.30PGNIG 3.88 -0.51 4.65 3.25BZWBK 230.00 -0.86 240.00 190.10CEZ 134.40 -1.54 155.00 116.10

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

DSS 4.62 -27.59 23.75 4.57CAPITAL 1.69 -24.22 2.28 0.95PBG 34.35 -23.24 191.90 33.70REINHOLD 1.02 -22.73 4.97 0.90HBPOLSKA 0.82 -21.90 2.58 0.66

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

PBG 34.35 -23.24 191.90 33.70POLIMEXMS 1.32 -14.84 3.66 1.19GTC 6.10 -14.21 21.79 6.06GETIN 2.34 -11.36 15.29 2.01BRE 284.00 -7.94 357.90 203.30

WIG20 2,261.86 (March 22 close)

Change for the week: -3.51% 52-week high: 2,932.62

Change year to March 22: 3.09% 52-week low: 2,089.84

mWIG40 2,474.87 (March 22 close)

Change for the week: -3.38% 52-week high: 2,987.72

Change year to March 22: 12.99% 52-week low: 2,076.52

sWIG80 10,174.59 (March 22 close)

Change for the week: -3.43% 52-week high: 12,932.00

Change year to March 22: 18.25% 52-week low: 8,218.71

NewConnect 42.45 (March 22 close)

Change for the week: -1.42% 52-week high: 59.10

Change year to March 22: 2.31% 52-week low: 40.00

WIG-Banki 5,837.41 (March 22 close)

Change for the week: -4.57% 52-week high: 7,387.49

Change year to March 22: 5.31% 52-week low: 4,944.19

DJIA13,046.14 (Mar 22 close)

-1.56% (for the week)

CHANGE: 5.23%

(year to Mar 22)

52-week high: 13,289.08

52-week low: 10,404.49

NASDAQ3,063.32 (Mar 22 close)

0.23% (for the week)

CHANGE: 15.65%

(year to Mar 22)

52-week high: 3,090.08

52-week low: 2,298.89

S&P5001,392.78 (Mar 22 close)

-0.70% (for the week)

CHANGE: 9.06%

(year to Mar 22)

52-week high: 1,414.00

52-week low: 1,074.77

FTSE1005,845.65 (Mar 22 close)

-1.60% (for the week)

CHANGE: 2.56%

(year to Mar 22)

52-week high: 6,103.73

52-week low: 4,791.01

DAX6,981.26 (Mar 22 close)

-2.28% (for the week)

CHANGE: 14.91%

(year to Mar 22)

52-week high: 7,600.41

52-week low: 4,965.80

NIKKEI22510,127.08 (Mar 22 close)

0.04% (for the week)

CHANGE: 18.31%

(year to Mar 22)

52-week high: 10,207.91

52-week low: 8,135.79

world stock indices

24.0

2

27.0

2

28.0

2

29.0

2

01.0

3

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

340,000

40,600

41,200

41,800

42,400

43,00024

.02

27.0

2

28.0

2

29.0

2

01.0

3

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

32,200

2,240

2,280

2,320

2,360

2,400

24.0

2

27.0

2

28.0

2

29.0

2

01.0

3

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

32,400

2,440

2,480

2,520

2,560

2,600

24.0

2

27.0

2

28.0

2

29.0

2

01.0

3

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

310,000

10,120

10,240

10,360

10,480

10,600

24.0

2

27.0

2

28.0

2

29.0

2

01.0

3

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

342.0

42.4

42.8

43.2

43.6

44.0

24.0

2

27.0

2

28.0

2

29.0

2

01.0

3

02.0

3

05.0

3

06.0

3

07.0

3

08.0

3

09.0

3

12.0

3

13.0

3

14.0

3

15.0

3

16.0

3

19.0

3

20.0

3

21.0

3

22.0

3

5,800

5,700

5,900

6,000

6,100

6,200

Other indices

The WIG

loses steam

Stocks report

Poor macroeconomic datathroughout the week, as wellas some profit-taking, werethe overriding reasons forboth the WIG and WIG20losing ground from Mondayto Friday.

The week started offpoorly, with indices through-out Europe opening lower onMonday, March 19. The situ-ation was not helped by poorindustrial production datafrom Poland for February. Itwas not until an hour beforeclosing that both the WIGand WIG20 regained somelosses, after news that theworld’s most valuable com-pany – Apple – would pay outdividends. Both indicesclosed 0.58 percent lower.

On Tuesday, concernssurrounding China’s econo-my spooked investors, aftergrowth in retail sales fromAsia’s largest economy came

in at its worst level in threeyears. Indices throughoutEurope closed lower, withthe WIG and WIG20 fallingabout 1 percent.

Wednesday started offwell, with hopes of a mini-relief rally present in theearly hours of trade. Marketbulls were unable to over-come the bears, however,with both the WIG andWIG20 finishing marginallylower.

On Thursday, a string ofpoor macroeconomic datapushed markets lower. PoorPMI data from both Chinaand the euro zone for Marchheightened worries for solidglobal growth, with both theWIG and WIG20 droppingby about 1.5 percent.

On Friday the WIGclosed 0.92 percent higher,while the WIG20 closed up0.99 percent. ●

Andrew Nawrocki WBJ market analyst

MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 SPORTS www.wbj.pl 21

American football

New gridiron season kicks off

The NAC SuperFinalVII is set to take placeat Warsaw’s NationalStadium

The Polish American FootballLeague (PLFA) began lastSaturday with the WarsawEagles taking on Koz∏y Poznaƒin the inaugural match-up ofthe newly formed Topliga.

At a promotional eventprior to the start of the new sea-son, representatives of the Pol-ish American Football Associa-tion (PZFA) were keen to stressthe progress that has beenmade since the first PLFA gameback in 2006.

J´drzej St´szewski, the pres-ident of the PLFA, told journal-ists that as far as the future forAmerican football in Poland is

concerned, “the sky’s the limit.” This year the Topliga will

comprise six teams: DevilsWroc∏aw; Koz∏y Poznaƒ; War-saw Eagles; Kraków Tigers;Seahawks Gdynia and AZSSilesia Rebels.

The top two teams from theTopliga will battle it out inSuperFinal VII, which is due totake place at Poland’s new58,500 capacity National Stadi-um, on July 15.

“Playing the Super Final atthe National Stadium will bethe next breakthrough for theLeague, after last year’s tele-vised final,” said Mr St´szewski.“The success of this event couldbring football in Poland to pre-viously unseen heights.”

The game itself will be justone of numerous attractions for

fans on the day, with a concertand picnic also due to takeplace as part of the entertain-ment package.

There are also plans toscreen the match on Polish TVbut Mr St´szewski said thePLFA was not yet ready toannounce the name of thebroadcaster. He did, however,confirm that starting next yearthe PLFA wants to show onegame a week on TV in a “gameof the week” format.

If 2011’s final is anything togo by, then fans could be in foran exciting encounter. Lastyear, The Crew Wroc∏awdefeated city rivals DevilsWroc∏aw 27-26, with the Devilsjust missing a 40-yard field goalwith the final play of the game.

David Ingham

CO

UR

TE

SY O

F M

AR

CIN

FIJ

A∏K

OW

SK

I/W

WW

.PL

FA

.PL

The Crew Wroc∏aw and Devils Wroc∏aw battle it out in last year’s SuperFinal

Cross-country skiing

Doctors operate on Kowalczykafter World Cup defeatThe Polish skier failedin her bid to win afourth consecutiveCrystal Globe

Polish cross-country skierJustyna Kowalczyk went underthe knife last week followingthe end of the FIS Cross-Country World Cup.

The three-time World Cupwinner had arthroscopic sur-gery on her troublesome kneein an attempt to cure injuryproblems that have affected herfor large parts of the season.

And although doctorsdeemed the surgery a success,Ms Kowalczyk will now haveto wait and see if she recoversin time for the start of pre-sea-son training on May 1.

“If I could change onething about this season? Forsure it would be that my kneedid not hurt me since June,and then I wouldn’t have to liedown on the operating table,”Ms Kowalczyk said prior tosurgery.

On Wednesday, followingsuccessful surgery, she added“I’ll miss the snow and skiing.Especially when I’m confinedto a hospital bed, the longing[to ski] is large.”

A few days before the oper-ation Ms Kowalczyk failed inher bid to once again takehome the Crystal Globe, thetrophy for finishing as overallleader at the end of the

World Cup season. With the final two races

taking place in Falun, Sweden,between March 16-18, the 29-year-old Pole needed some-thing close to a miracle toovercome her arch rival, Nor-way’s Marit Bjørgen.

In the penultimate race ofthe season, the 10km ClassicMass Start, Ms Kowalczyk dideverything she could to makeone last-gasp bid to wrestleback the lead from Ms Bjør-gen, winning the event in a

time of 32:03.7 minutes. But itwas all in vain, since the Nor-wegian finished in fourth placewith a time of 32:25.4, takingan unassailable 160-point leadin the standings to ensure sheclaimed the overall title withone race to go.

Ms Bjørgen then cappedoff a tremendous season withvictory in the 10km pursuit.Ms Kowalczyk, having alreadyconceded the title, finished adisappointing sixth.

David Ingham

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Poland’s Justyna Kowalczyk came in second place in

the cross-country skiing 2011/2012 World Cup

Soccer

¸ódê to get new z∏.300 mln stadium

The city’s authoritieslast week announced atender for theconstruction of theplanned 30,000 all-seater project

The mayor of ¸ódê, HannaZdanowska, announced thestart of a tender process forthe construction of a new all-seater stadium in the city. Thestadium is expected to have acapacity of between 33,000-34,000 and meet UEFA

requirements for modern soc-cer arenas.

The z∏.300 million develop-ment, which will be the newhome of Widzew ¸ódê, will bebuilt as part of a public-privatepartnership between the city’sauthorities and privateinvestors.

¸ódê authorities expect tospend around z∏.125 million onthe new development, withpart of the money set aside toimprove the transport networkaround the structure.

Offers for the tender con-

tract must be submitted byMay 7, with the final decisionset to be made by October2012.

Widzew’s new stadium isnot the only new soccerground set to be built in thecity, with local rivals ̧ KS ̧ ódêalso set to have a new 16,500-seat arena by December 2013.

A contract to build the sta-dium was signed between thecity’s authorities and a consor-tium of Budus and MostostalZabrze in February this year.

David Ingham

Fans at Widzew ¸ódê’s current stadium

Soccer

Belgian outrage at Polish elbowMarcin Wasilewskiwas likened to MikeTyson after his foul onPeter Delorge

Anderlecht defender MarcinWasilewski could face a lengthyban from Belgium’s JupilerLeague after he elbowedKoninklijke Sint-TruidenseVoetbalvereniging (STVV)player Peter Delorge during a2-2 draw last week.

The incident occurred whenthe Polish internationalknocked Mr Delorge to theground with an elbow as theball was being played into thebox from an STVV corner. Atthe time the referee, whoawarded a free kick, did noteven give the Anderlecht playera yellow card, despite many inthe stadium calling for astraight red.

The Belgian midfielder, whowas on the ground for a numberof minutes, was left with a bro-ken nose and concussion.

After the game the presi-dent of STVV, Jan-PieterMartens, said, “I hope that forthe good of soccer Wasilewskiwill be suspended for at leasteight matches. His behavior wasoutrageous. Itreminded me ofMike Tyson.”

Mr Delorge,who said he feltthe attack wasdeliberate, toldjournalists “Wasi-lewski wanted tohit me. If I had notturned a little, thenI would have suf-fered more.”

“I was uncon-scious for threeminutes. I did notfeel my arms andlegs. But luckilyonly my nose wasbroken,” headded.

Mr Wasilewskiwas himself the

victim of a horrendous foul in2009 when Benfica midfielderAxel Witsel (then of StandardLiège) broke his leg by stomp-ing on his ankle.

David Ingham

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Marcin Wasilewski

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MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012LIFESTYLE22 www.wbj.pl

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

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

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

Galeria 65 ul. Bema 65www.galeria65.com

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

Galeria Asymetria ul. Nowogrodzka 18awww.asymetria.eu

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Pracownia Galeriaul. Emilii Plater 14www.pracowniagaleria.pl

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

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

Simonis Galleryul. Burakowska 9www.simonisgallery.com

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

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

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

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

Warsaw Philharmonic ul. Jasna 5www.filharmonia.pl

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

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

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

Museums, galleries and venues in Warsaw

Chris BottiApril 7, 6 pmSala KongresowaPalace of Culture andSciencePl. Defilad 1Warsaw

Jazz musician and two-timeGrammy winner Chris Bottiwill visit the capital this Aprilfor a concert as part of his lat-est European tour. The trum-peter and composer is one ofthe best-known jazz musicians

in the world, with four of hisrecords having reached num-ber one on the Billboard jazzchart, and his total album salesstanding at more than threemillion.

Since dropping out of uni-versity in his senior year totour with Frank Sinatra, theAmerican trumpeter hasgone on to perform withsuch esteemed company asPaul Simon, Aretha Franklin, Joni Mitchell, John May-

all, and Roger Daltrey, thelead singer of legendary rockband The Who.

His latest album, “Impressions,” which features guestperformances from HerbieHancock, Mark Knopflerand Italian tenor AndreaBocelli, is due for release onApril 17. ●

David Ingham

For more information,log on to kongresowa.pl

Concert

And all that jazz

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New Sculpture?Until May 13Zach´ta NationalGallery of ArtPl. Ma∏achowskiego 3 Warsaw

A newly opened exhibition atWarsaw’s Zach´ta galleryaims to explore the relation-ship between contemporarysculpture and the differentbranches of modernist art.

The sculptures and instal-lations on show are arrangedin a way that aims to highlightartistic reactions to the tradi-tions of modernism whileidentifying different points ofinteraction between the work.

Each artist participating in

the exhibition approaches themodernist tradition from adifferent perspective. Forexample, the work of Scottishsculptor Martin Boyce makesreference to the cubist con-crete trees of the Martelbrothers, while Swiss artistMai-Thu Perretrefers to theRussian avant-garde and theemergence ofcommunes inthe 1960s, byusing man-nequins in herart work.

Other artistswhose sculp-

tures are on display includeThea Djordjadze, KasiaFudakowski and Jerzy Goliszewski. ●

David Ingham

For more information,log on to zacheta.art.pl

Exhibition

A modern relationship

16th Ludwig Van BeethovenEaster FestivalMarch 25 – April 6Various venues throughoutWarsaw

The Ludwig Van BeethovenFestival is an annual two-weekevent that sees performances ofmany of the great composer’smost famous works, as well asthe work of his contemporaries.The theme of the 16th festivalwill be “Beethoven: War andPeace,” with the performanceof Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s 1812Overture set to be one of manystandout performances.

Once again the festival’sorganizers have managed to

attract some of the greatest liv-ing classical musical talent toperform in the capital. Theyinclude Russian conductorAndrey Boreyko, classicalpianist Rudolf Buchbinder,who featured in the award-win-ning documentary “Pianoma-nia,” and Lithuanian violinistJulian Rachlin.

The festival will close with aperformance of the “Martyr-dom of Saint Sebastian,” byClaude Debussy, a piece whichfirst debuted in Paris in 1912. ●

David Ingham

For more information,log on to beethoven.org.pl

Festival

Celebrating a master

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WBJ’s restaurant review feature

India Curryul. ˚urawia 22Warsawindiacurry.pl

For those looking for anauthentic taste of Indian cuisineright in the heart of the city,India Curry is hard to beat.Located just off ul. ˚urawia,the restaurant offers great valuewith set weekday lunches, fea-turing two curried dishes, withmeat and vegetarian optionsavailable, as well as rice, naanbread and dessert, priced at justz∏.25.

As well as a set lunch menuthat changes every week, therestaurant, which has been onthe block for 12 years, also has awide variety of traditional dish-es from across Indian regionson its regular menu. With typi-cal starters such as samosa andonion bhaji, and mains includ-ing the southern Indian special-ty Chicken Chettinad or theGoan Fish Curry, there is some-thing for every palate.

Our chosen meals were theBhuna Chicken and ChickenRogan Josh, both of which were

cooked to perfection with a sub-tle blend of spices and herbs.The Rogan Josh combined car-damom, cinnamon, Indianherbs and yogurt for a spiciermix, while the Bhuna Chickenfeatured a more exotic blend oftraditional spices. The portionsizes were large, especially withthe freshly baked naan andpilau rice that came includedwith the meal.

India Curry’s desserts alsodeserve a special mention. Theice cream, which is made at therestaurant, takes close to fourhours to prepare. Rich in flavorbut delicate in its use of spices,

its flavor is delightfully unex-pected. An added pleasure wastopping off the lunch with therestaurant’s own fantastic blendof coffee.

Parking is available free ofcharge directly in front of therestaurant, making a visit thereall the more convenient. All ofwhich means, whether you arelooking for a great quality/valuebusiness lunch location or justthe perfect place to experiencethe real taste of Indian cuisine,India Curry is definitely not tobe missed. Ella Pa∏ka

Reservations: 22 438 93 50indiacurry@bojwani.pl

Spice and charm

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MARCH 26 – APRIL 1, 2012 LAST WORD www.wbj.pl 23

The coming of spring and the great upheaval Tech Eye

Spring has arrived and Techeye isdelirious with joy. Birds are starting toblossom, flowers are running to andfro whilst giggling madly, and thesweet chirping of children fills the air.The world outside our window isbeauteous.

Wait, did we say delirious with joy?Sorry, we meant to say delirious withnasty, gut-churning, public health-menacing stomach flu. While all thosewonderful, spring-tastic things were

going on outside, Techeye was busyspewing half-digested chunklets ofbread into a toilet. Mostly into a toilet.

So forgive us if this week’s columnis a little scattershot. It’s not easy towrite a coherent text in between des-perate sprints to the bathroom.

Ordinarily we’d just phone it in –

mock North Korean Retard-for-LifeKim Jong-il for 150 words or so, andtoss in a gadget or two – then cheer-fully return to hugging our artfullybespeckled toilet. Unfortunately forus, Jong-il is now taking a long dirtnap (promoted to Retard-for-the-Afterlife, presumably) and it’s consid-erably less rewarding to ridicule him.

And so, dear readers, we give up.On to the gadgets.

The first item on this week’sagenda doesn’t have a name, per se.For lack of a better descriptor, we’llcall it a shiny, extremely swankwatch/bracelet thing. It’s part of the“Iguana” collection designed by Italian bling-crafter Mattia Cielo(mattiacielo.com).

The Iguana watch/bracelet thingattracted a lot of buzz at the Basel-world watch and jewelry show earlierthis month. Details are scarce – rosegold (a gold-copper alloy) appears tobe a prime ingredient and the watchface has some sparkly diamonds in it.

Other than that, the only thing youreally need to know is that it’s expen-sive. No pricing info has beenreleased, but judging by other MattiaCielo jewelry, you can expect to spendlow to mid five figures on it.

From the wildly expensive, wemove to the Walmart-friendly. Feastyour eyes on the eSport Clip personalmedia player from Ematic(ematic.us). The eSport Clip has 4GBof flash memory (enough for about 20

hours of video), a 1.8-inch display anda five megapixel camera. The “built-inclip” is apparently a hot-selling fea-ture, allowing the user to “just attachthe device onto their clothes whileworking or exercising for a moreenjoyable experience.”

The eSport Clip is available for apaltry $22 at the aforementioned USretailer (and about $29 on Amazon).With a price point like that, this willdefinitely be the hit of the season inAppalachia – it’s the perfect gift forcoal-miner cotillions, debutant hoo-tenanties and shotgun weddings.

Last up this week is a little some-thing for the doodlers out there – theIntous5 range of professional pentablets from Wacom (wacom.com).

These aren’t tablets in the iPad senseof the word, but rather graphic inputdevices that make life easy for graphicartists, designers, photographers andother such creative types.

The Intous5 comes in three sizes,from the $229 small version (24.18square inches) to the $469 large one(102.4 square inches). Each one offersa “best-in-class 2,048 levels of penpressure,” which is astounding. Real-ly, it’s impressive enough that somemonkish aesthete out there shouldhide somewhere for the next 20 years,writing haikus extolling the virtues ofeach individual level of pen pressure.

Oh hey, look at that – the article isdone. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we’vegot a bathroom to befoul. ●

Ever reveled in the sweet chirping of children in the springtime? Let us know: techeye.wbj@gmail.com

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Mattia Cielo bracelet/watch

eSport Clip

Intous5

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

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