XVII Economic Forum in Krynica
Poland will not repeat the success of Finland or Ireland
Roland Berger discussion panel on opportunities, threats and perspectives for business in Central and Eastern Europe, which took place on the second day of XVII Economic Forum in Krynica, was a place of heated discussion on current economic situation of Poland and development opportunities of our country.
Artur Pielech, managing partner of Roland Berger in Poland, opened the panel with presentation of results of a survey conducted among executives of the biggest companies in Austria, Hungary, Czech Republic, Rumania, Croatia and Poland.
- Executives of the biggest companies in Central and Eastern Europe expect further strengthening of economic integration in our region. What is interesting, they do not anticipate further enhancement of political integration and approach with reserve to the impact of politics on economy. However, this does not necessary mean the role of the government will be limited. Managers point out to the necessity of greater involvement of governments in development of transport infrastructure. It is even more important for Poland especially in the context of coming European Football Championships in 2012 - said Artur Pielech.
The level of optimism among representatives of Polish business community – the highest among the survey participants – evoked the strongest emotions during the discussion. It turns out that Polish and Croatian executives are the biggest optimists in the region. Not all panelist shared this view. Especially professor Marek Belka was cooling this emotions.
– The government made a political decision not to enter the European Monetary Union – said prof. Marek Belka, taking part in the discussion – and by signing the Accession Treaty we were obliged to do the contrary. And I completely do not understand the attitude of the current government – added prof. Belka. He thinks that similar opportunity will not materialize in the coming 2-3 years, a notion that was also expressed by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Zyta Gilowska during the Forum. According to prof. Belka, the assumption that Poland as a new member state of EU will repeat the development scenario of Finland or Ireland is completely unfounded. – We should rather take example of Portugal and Spain. – claims Belka – The economies of these countries, especially Spain, are most similar to Polish realities.
Paweł Poncyliusz, Deputy Minister of Economy shared the views of prof. Belka regarding the continuation of good economic situation in Poland.
– Situation on internal market determines the optimism of economists forecasting the future economic situation of Poland. A threat to the development of Poland is the EU environmental policy: reduction of energy consumption and greenhouse gases emissions can negatively impact the ambitious and aggressive strategies adopted by Polish companies active not only on internal but also international markets – said Paweł Poncyliusz.
He was however skeptical regarding the "admiration" of common European currency. – Our stance is that Poland should only adapt euro when it is ready to do so. Substitution of złoty with euro should bring Poland the biggest possible benefits but currently there is no common agreement on this issue. However we do not resign from adaptation of euro. We take intensive actions to fulfill the Mastricht criteria – Deputy Prime Minister explained.
Jan Krzysztof Bielecki, CEO of Pekao S.A. who took part in the Roland Berger study also expressed his opinions in the discussion. Former Prime Minister confirmed that Poland has a lot to do regarding infrastructure, especial in the light of Euro 2012. He shared his observation from his activities in Ukraine.
– It would be truism to remind, how big the Ukrainian market is. However, a question emerges, how to gain access to that market. Even physical access is difficult. Border crossings are congested and flights between Warsaw and Kiev virtually nonexistent – Jan Krzysztof Bielecki criticized the current situation. The fact that it is easer to get to Kiev through Vienna is a sad curiosity. I see the role of the governments especially in this area. Improvement of transport infrastructure is the top priority because without it a successful business is practically not possible – Pekao S.A. CEO added.
Harry Schur, CEO of RWE Stoen, brought the attention of panelists to completely different market – Rumania, emphasizing major potential of this country. – I personally think, that Rumania is the most attractive market in our region. This country is developing fast and offers exceptional development opportunities to the investors. Accession of Rumania to European Union made this processes even more dynamic – CEO Schur stressed.
Of course, he is aware of serious deficiencies of Balkan region. Above all he brought attention to low political and economic stability and weak communication infrastructure. – I am sure, that Rumania will overcome these deficiencies quickly. Especially that the Rumanian government is very good at listening to the needs of the business community and tackling them – RWE Stoen CEO added.
The next discussant, Mirosław Kochalski, CEO of Ciech S.A., focused on examples of growth strategy of his company. – In the 90-ties Ciech concentrated its activities on soda market. We became the unquestionable leader in domestic production of this chemicals and decided to go even further. The next step was development of strong presence on the markets for organic and phosphor chemicals. Currently we strive to become an important player in the nitrogen fertilizers segment. To realize this goal we plan a major acquisition in this segment – said CEO Kochalski
CEO of Ciech has also announced changes in operating strategy of the company. In the near future the goal will be gradual scaling down of capital expenditures and slower growth of revenues and emphasis on increasing the profitability. – We want to be among the twenty biggest chemical companies in Europe and be one of the biggest chemical companies in our region. This will be achieved by growth in production capacities, acquisitions, and subsequently – improvement of financial results. Its and optimal development scenario for us – CEO Kochalski added.
The last panelist to speak, Torsten Penkuhn from BASF Polska, brought attention to legal environment determining the development of a given industry. He gave chemical industry as an example: The industry is intensively adjusting to the new requirements adopted by European Union, that is REACH directive. Ensuring an efficient chemical substance registration process in every country is becoming the biggest challenge. For the registration not to adversely impact the production processes, chemical companies have to actively cooperate with decision bodies, in this case with European Commission. I put special emphasis on showing initiative in implementation projects of REACH – said Torsten Penkuhn. – It is not about simply applying the regulations. The companies have to actively influence their shape. This was reflected in the results of the presented study that showed the necessity of cooperation of the companies vis a vis governing and administrative bodies – CEO of BASF Polska added.
(this release was prepared in cooperation with Press Office of Economic Forum)
Roland Berger discussion panel on opportunities, threats and perspectives for business in Central and Eastern Europe, which took place on the second day of XVII Economic Forum in Krynica, was a place of heated discussion on current economic situation of Poland and development opportunities of our country.
Artur Pielech, managing partner of Roland Berger in Poland, opened the panel with presentation of results of a survey conducted among executives of the biggest companies in Austria, Hungary, Czech Republic, Rumania, Croatia and Poland.
- Executives of the biggest companies in Central and Eastern Europe expect further strengthening of economic integration in our region. What is interesting, they do not anticipate further enhancement of political integration and approach with reserve to the impact of politics on economy. However, this does not necessary mean the role of the government will be limited. Managers point out to the necessity of greater involvement of governments in development of transport infrastructure. It is even more important for Poland especially in the context of coming European Football Championships in 2012 - said Artur Pielech.
The level of optimism among representatives of Polish business community – the highest among the survey participants – evoked the strongest emotions during the discussion. It turns out that Polish and Croatian executives are the biggest optimists in the region. Not all panelist shared this view. Especially professor Marek Belka was cooling this emotions.
– The government made a political decision not to enter the European Monetary Union – said prof. Marek Belka, taking part in the discussion – and by signing the Accession Treaty we were obliged to do the contrary. And I completely do not understand the attitude of the current government – added prof. Belka. He thinks that similar opportunity will not materialize in the coming 2-3 years, a notion that was also expressed by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Zyta Gilowska during the Forum. According to prof. Belka, the assumption that Poland as a new member state of EU will repeat the development scenario of Finland or Ireland is completely unfounded. – We should rather take example of Portugal and Spain. – claims Belka – The economies of these countries, especially Spain, are most similar to Polish realities.
Paweł Poncyliusz, Deputy Minister of Economy shared the views of prof. Belka regarding the continuation of good economic situation in Poland.
– Situation on internal market determines the optimism of economists forecasting the future economic situation of Poland. A threat to the development of Poland is the EU environmental policy: reduction of energy consumption and greenhouse gases emissions can negatively impact the ambitious and aggressive strategies adopted by Polish companies active not only on internal but also international markets – said Paweł Poncyliusz.
He was however skeptical regarding the "admiration" of common European currency. – Our stance is that Poland should only adapt euro when it is ready to do so. Substitution of złoty with euro should bring Poland the biggest possible benefits but currently there is no common agreement on this issue. However we do not resign from adaptation of euro. We take intensive actions to fulfill the Mastricht criteria – Deputy Prime Minister explained.
Jan Krzysztof Bielecki, CEO of Pekao S.A. who took part in the Roland Berger study also expressed his opinions in the discussion. Former Prime Minister confirmed that Poland has a lot to do regarding infrastructure, especial in the light of Euro 2012. He shared his observation from his activities in Ukraine.
– It would be truism to remind, how big the Ukrainian market is. However, a question emerges, how to gain access to that market. Even physical access is difficult. Border crossings are congested and flights between Warsaw and Kiev virtually nonexistent – Jan Krzysztof Bielecki criticized the current situation. The fact that it is easer to get to Kiev through Vienna is a sad curiosity. I see the role of the governments especially in this area. Improvement of transport infrastructure is the top priority because without it a successful business is practically not possible – Pekao S.A. CEO added.
Harry Schur, CEO of RWE Stoen, brought the attention of panelists to completely different market – Rumania, emphasizing major potential of this country. – I personally think, that Rumania is the most attractive market in our region. This country is developing fast and offers exceptional development opportunities to the investors. Accession of Rumania to European Union made this processes even more dynamic – CEO Schur stressed.
Of course, he is aware of serious deficiencies of Balkan region. Above all he brought attention to low political and economic stability and weak communication infrastructure. – I am sure, that Rumania will overcome these deficiencies quickly. Especially that the Rumanian government is very good at listening to the needs of the business community and tackling them – RWE Stoen CEO added.
The next discussant, Mirosław Kochalski, CEO of Ciech S.A., focused on examples of growth strategy of his company. – In the 90-ties Ciech concentrated its activities on soda market. We became the unquestionable leader in domestic production of this chemicals and decided to go even further. The next step was development of strong presence on the markets for organic and phosphor chemicals. Currently we strive to become an important player in the nitrogen fertilizers segment. To realize this goal we plan a major acquisition in this segment – said CEO Kochalski
CEO of Ciech has also announced changes in operating strategy of the company. In the near future the goal will be gradual scaling down of capital expenditures and slower growth of revenues and emphasis on increasing the profitability. – We want to be among the twenty biggest chemical companies in Europe and be one of the biggest chemical companies in our region. This will be achieved by growth in production capacities, acquisitions, and subsequently – improvement of financial results. Its and optimal development scenario for us – CEO Kochalski added.
The last panelist to speak, Torsten Penkuhn from BASF Polska, brought attention to legal environment determining the development of a given industry. He gave chemical industry as an example: The industry is intensively adjusting to the new requirements adopted by European Union, that is REACH directive. Ensuring an efficient chemical substance registration process in every country is becoming the biggest challenge. For the registration not to adversely impact the production processes, chemical companies have to actively cooperate with decision bodies, in this case with European Commission. I put special emphasis on showing initiative in implementation projects of REACH – said Torsten Penkuhn. – It is not about simply applying the regulations. The companies have to actively influence their shape. This was reflected in the results of the presented study that showed the necessity of cooperation of the companies vis a vis governing and administrative bodies – CEO of BASF Polska added.
(this release was prepared in cooperation with Press Office of Economic Forum)
