The Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency, the DZP law firm and the firm TPA Horwath have the pleasure of presenting a report on the subject of wind energy in Poland.
Over the past several years Poland has established its international position as an attractive country for investors. In the midst of a global financial crisis, the clearest indicator of that is the fact that Poland is the only European country to have avoided economic recession. Poland’s advantage has been a result of several favorable factors, such as stimulating effects of a prior tax reduction, inflow of EU funding, volume and sale activity of internal markets, the export-driving weakening of the Polish zloty, as well as a sensible national monetary, financial and economic policy.
The currently highly desirable economic stability enjoyed by Poland constitutes a positive outcome of the economic transformation that Poland has been undergoing for over twenty years. Starting off as a centrally-planned economy relying on state-owned industry and agriculture, Poland has developed a service-based economy building upon dynamically operating private small and medium-size
enterprises. Using the “backwardness advantage” to its benefit has allowed Poland to modernize a number of business sectors, along with implementing cutting-edge technologies. Such developments bring particular advantages in innovative sectors, such as e.g. wind energy industry.
The constantly improving investment attractiveness of Poland has been reflected by its increasingly high rankings in competitiveness reports of international research institutions and consulting firms. Manufacturing sector’s attractiveness for foreign investors has been acknowledged by the ranking developed by FDI Intelligence (Financial Times) which ranked Poland first in Europe and third in the world. Business competitiveness in Poland has been confirmed by the ranking developed by AT Kearney with regard to investment attractiveness of individual countries. In the latest edition of the ranking, Poland has advanced from the 22nd to 6th place among countries highly attractive for new direct investments. Renewable energy sources become increasingly popular worldwide, and through the development of wind energy Poland has a chance to achieve ecological, low-emission electricity generation, higher energy security, and to meet the EU requirements with regard to energy generation from renewable sources.
Even though the situation in Poland has improved, the condition of the transmission infrastructure and the increasingly long administrative procedures still obstruct commissioning of new wind farms. On the other hand, the need for intense development and modernization of energy infrastructure creates grounds for new investment opportunities.
Energy generation from renewable sources not only provides for the trendy, ecological, low-emission electricity but it also constitutes a factor contributing to the growing independence from fossil fuels – which, regardless of our opinion of them, are limited and slowly being depleted. And this is not just a fleeting trend – the need to use renewable energy sources has become clear even to the world’s top economic powers.
Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency is often approached by investors asking about sources of Poland’s success. The answer is simple – we have worked hard for it.
