June 2015

Newsletter

No. EPBA 5/6/2015

June 2015

On May 24, 2015, Andrzej Duda won the second

round of the presidential elections in Poland, beat-

ing the current President Bronislaw Komorowski,

who was seeking reelection after five years in of-

fice. Soon after the announcement of exit poll re-

sults, Bronislaw Komorowski congratulated his

opponent, wishing him a good and fruitful presi-

dency.

Andrzej Duda's victory comes as a surprise, both

on national and international level. When his can-

didacy was announced in November 2014 by

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of right-wing Law

and Justice Party, Andrzej Duda was a relatively

unknown politician enjoying 12% recognition,

considered as a second-rank cadre of the party.

In only 6 months Duda became the most impor-

tant challenger to Mr. Komorowski, grabbing

votes outside his core electorate.

On August 6, Andrzej Duda, turning 43 this year,

will become one of the youngest leaders in the

world. He was born in Cracow, where he

completed his university degree and became

lawyer. He became engaged in politics in the 90s,

before becoming Minister in Lech Kaczynski’s

Presidential Chancellery. The new President does

not hide his conservative convictions, especially

on topics such as artificial insemination or same

sex marriage. In his entourage as well as among

his foes, he is praised for his honesty and

patriotism.

Even though Duda's victory was not important

(52% of votes), his election has already proved

to be revolutionary in Polish politics.

In fact, the elections have shown that Poles are

fed up with the Civic Platform, which has ruled

Poland since 2007.

More importantly, the first round of the presi-

dential elections showed a spectacular result of

Pawel Kukiz (20%), a popular Polish musician

without any political experience. Pawel Kukiz,

whose presidential campaign was essentially

made online, considers himself as an anti-

systemic candidate representing the frustrated

part of Polish society.

In terms of foreign policy, President Andrzej

Duda is expected to recalibrate relations with

Germany and to focus more on regional partner-

ships in Central Europe. It is likely that Poland

will put more emphasis on transatlantic alliance,

instead of relying solely on the EU. However, in

the Middle East, the Polish policy will not

change radically.

Andrzej Duda, the new President of Poland

USD 7,65

EUR 9,55

PLN 2,27

In this edition of

EPBA Newsletter

The present newsletter cov-

ers the period of May and

June 2015. May was marked

by the annual visit of EPBA

members in Poland. Our

dear readers will find at-

tached to this newsletter an

additional article summariz-

ing the trip and its meaning

to the Association. Also in

this newsletter, we are

pleased to present the

Warminsko-Mazurskie re-

gion, the forgotten province

in North-Eastern Poland.

June 2015

Electricity in Egypt: full power!

News

Source: Al-Ahram

According to El Ahram, the Egyptian cable

maker El Sewedy Electric announced its inten-

tion to develop a new solar energy power plant

located in Upper Egypt (Aswan) that would

provide 50 megawatt of energy. Earlier this

month, El Sewedy Electric said it had won a

EUR785 million share of a EUR 2 billion deal

to build a combined cycle power plant south of

Cairo, in cooperation with Siemens.

The news comes as Egypt struggles to maintain

steady power supply in order to meet growing

demand resulting from development and con-

stantly growing population. For the Egyptian

authorities, electricity remains one of the top

priorities, as their ambition is to become a ma-

jor regional player in power distribution.

During the Conference on energy held in Abu

Dhabi in January 2015, the Egyptian President

al-Sisi seized the opportunity to announce that

Egypt wanted to diversify its sources of energy.

Egypt should join the global combat against

climate change by putting a special emphasis

on developing renewable energy. In fact, Egypt

should produce 20% of clean energy by 2020.

The Egyptian authorities multiply development

projects in the energy sector. During the last

visit of the Russian President Vladimir Putin in

Egypt, both countries have agreed on tightening

cooperation in a bid to introduce nuclear power

in Egypt. In another development, the German

giant Siemens will build wind power installa-

tions, high-efficiency natural gas-fired power

plants that should add an additional 16.4 GW to

Egypt's current electrical output.

The efforts to rise and diversify electricity pro-

duction in Egypt will be tangible only in a few

years. Unfortunately, the latest terrorist attacks

on power infrastruc-

ture are an example

of challenges that

need to be faced by

the Egyptian authori-

ties.

LOT wants to develop

its activities in 2016

Source: voicesofny.org

LOT Polish Airlines Chair-

man Sebastian Mikosz an-

nounced that his company

has successfully restructured

its activities conformingly to

the EU plan. He added that

LOT will resume develop-

ment plans in 2016 by

launching new long-haul des-

tinations, e.g. Japan and

Mexico, while acquiring new

short– and medium-range

aircrafts. In parallel, the Pol-

ish Minister of Treasury has

suggested that LOT should be

privatized as soon as the

company becomes profitable.

Nile Ritz– Carlton,

Cairo

Majestic in appearance, so-

phisticated in design and

peerless in pedigree, The Nile

Ritz-Carlton Cairo marks the

return of an icon to the Egyp-

tian capital. The Nile Ritz-

Carlton, Cairo will open in

the late summer of this year.

The hotel is undergoing a

complete renovation whilst

retaining many of the original

features, reminding guests of

the cherished memories. .

The beauty and wilderness of Warmińsko-

Mazurskie region is truly astonishing for any-

body who thinks that the European continent

has been fully conquered by civilization.

Warmińsko-Mazurskie may be considered as

the gateway to the East, an introduction to lands

with endless black forests and deep lakes.

For many, this region is a perfect place for ac-

tive tourism, isolation and sailing. Its countless

lakes with thousands of islands and bays, inter-

connected by innumerable channels, are seduc-

ing the choosiest sailors. Those who do not like

water can hike in huge forests untouched by

human presence, offering complete silence and

guaranteeing splendid isolation.

For many others, this fairytale region is marked

by atrocities that occurred here only seventy

years ago. Only few months before the end of

World War II, the Red Army rushing toward

Berlin was taking his bloody revenge on Ger-

man inhabitants of this region that used to be-

long to Germany, known as Eastern Prussia.

Just after the end of the war, Warmińsko-

Mazurskie has been incorporated into new Po-

land, conformingly with decisions taken at the

Yalta conference.

Although seventy years have passed, these

events have determined the future of the region

until today. Most of the existing industrial in-

frastructure has been destroyed during the war,

just as the majority of Warmińsko-Mazurskie

cities. More importantly, due to post-war dis-

placements, with Polish settlers coming from

all over Poland, the local population has not

been able to recreate social cohesion that would

be helpful in developing the region. Instead,

Warmińsko-Mazurskie was subjected to forced

collectivization that has ruined the existing in-

frastructure.

However, in recent years Warmińsko-

Mazurskie has highly beneficiated from Po-

land’s entry into the European Union. The re-

gion is located strategically on the international

highway connecting Baltic States with the rest

of the EU. Moreover, it has received important

funding from the EU aiming at reducing ine-

qualities between European regions. Finally,

recent studies have shown that Warmińsko-

Mazurskie has a great human potential, with

high-qualified and dynamic human capital.

And, more importantly, it has the happiest

population in Poland!

Warminsko-Mazurskie, a

tale of a thousand lakes

June 2015

Polish Egyptian Cooperation

American heavy

weaponry to be

stored in Poland

In his latest declaration, the

Polish Minister of Defense

ha s s t a t e d t h a t P o l i s h

authorities were in talks

w i t h t h e i r A m e r i c a n

counterparts concerning the

plan of storing American

heavy weapons in Poland.

This decision is seen as a

m o v e b y t h e U . S . t o

r ea ssure th e i r Eas t e r n

European allies facing the

threat from Russia, in the

context o f the Ukra ine

c r i s i s . T h e R u s s i a n

Government has stated that

this move would implicate

counter-measures, such as

deploying medium-range

cruise missiles “Iskander”

in Belarus and Kaliningrad.

On April 23, the Polish Government an-

nounced the winner of the bid for delivering 50

heavy helicopters to the Polish Army. At the

end of the day, the offer of Eurocopter EC 725

“Caracal” presented by Airbus Industries for an

amount of PLN 13 bn has been chosen as the

most fitting Polish Air Forces. Thus, Airbus

beats Sikorsky’s“Black Hawk” and

AgustaWestland AW 149 that were considered

as the most probable winners.

This decision has sparked major controversy

and an outcry among political commentators.

In fact, both Sikorsky and AgustaWestland

own two major Polish aircraft factories respec-

tively in Mielec and Świdnik, where they pro-

duce the aforementioned helicopters. Before

the announcement of results, Sikorsky and

AgustaWestland had warned that choosing

“Caracal” would imply job cuts in Mielec and

in Świdnik, as well as reconsidering develop-

ment strategies in Poland. At the beginning of

June, Sikorsky announced cutting 500 jobs out

of 2200 in Mielec, as a direct result of the deci-

sion taken by the Polish Army.

Right after the announcement of the winner,

the opposition has denounced a “political deci-

sion”. According to many commentators, the

decision to choose the French helicopter was a

bargaining chip in order to convince France to

give up its contract with Russia for two mili-

tary vessels “Mistral”, even though there is no

evidence pointing at this kind of arrangement.

For the opposition, the decision was taken un-

der pressure from Berlin and Paris, trying to

weaken the transatlantic alliance between Po-

land and the U.S.. Although the Government

has denied any political factors playing in fa-

vor of Airbus, it has preferred to talk about

equilibrating alliances with E.U. countries and

the U.S.. In fact, just after the announcement of

the winning offer, Polish Army has declared its

will to buy 8 launching pads equipped with

Patriot missiles produced by the American

Raytheon, for an amount of PLN 26 bn.

Polish National Aircraft Factories (Państwowe

Zakłady Lotnicze – PZL) have a long and glo-

rious tradition. Created in 1928, the company

quickly became the European leader in build-

ing military planes and light bombers. In 1938,

PZL opened the biggest factory in Mielec

(southeastern Poland), which was considered

as the most technologically advanced in

Europe. Unfortunately, planes produced by

PZL could not compete with German war-

planes during the invasion of September 1939.

After the war, PZL was still producing planes,

under the strict supervision of the Soviet Un-

ion. Unfortunately, this meant less technologi-

cal transfer and reducing capabilities, in order

to keep Poland’s dependent from the Soviet

Union in terms of military equipment. Today,

factories in Świdnik and Mielec are producing

mainly helicopters and light aircrafts for pri-

vate users.

Source: planesspotters.net

Flying high—the Polish air industry

June 2015

The EPBA news

EPBA mission in Poland 2015

The second half of May was marked by the business trip of our members to Poland. Even though we

are sure that they will have the occasion to share their impressions personally with other EPBA

members, we would like to take the opportunity to present the main highlights of the mission.

In one week, EPBA organized two sessions of business to business meetings, during which our

members could meet directly with their Polish counterparts. Additionally, other B2B meetings were

held every day, in Warsaw and other locations.

The mission was also an opportunity for EPBA to develop further cooperation with Polish

organizations gathering businessmen interested in cooperating with Egypt. On the margins of the

PolandArabiya congress in Lodz, EPBA signed an agreement of cooperation with the Lodz Regional

Chamber of Commerce, whose aim is to promote common business opportunities.

In Warsaw, EPBA members were received at the Polish National Chamber of Commerce in

presence of deputy head Marek Kloczko, H. E. Youssef Zada, recently appointed Ambassador of the

Arab Republic of Egypt to Poland, and the representative of the Polish Ministry of Economy. The

meeting was attended by EPBA members and numerous members of the National Chamber of

Commerce. Following welcoming remarks and a brief presentation of general lines of economic

relations between Poland and Egypt, businessmen from both sides were invited to discuss in B2B

format. A similar event took place at the Business Center Club, whose representatives declared their

will to broaden cooperation with EPBA.

On Wednesday, May 20, EPBA organized a reception at the Marriott Hotel in Warsaw. The dinner

was attended by numerous business personalities and representatives of the Polish Ministry of

Foreign Affairs, who cooperate with Egypt on a regular basis. Among them was H. E. Ambassador

Youssef Zada, H.E. Ambassador Piotr Puchta, Director of the Middle Eastern department at the

Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and former Ambassador of Poland to Egypt, as well as H.E. Jan

Natkanski, former Ambassador of Poland to Egypt.

Even though this year mission was smaller than the previous one, it was not less successful. The

mission was not only an opportunity to boost direct partnership between Polish and Egyptian

businessmen, but also an occasion to broaden the EPBA network in Poland. This year, EPBA has

decided to promote membership among Polish businessmen. The possibility of being member of

EPBA sparked a broad interest, raising hopes that soon EPBA will accept first members from

Poland.

June 2015

Trade Fairs Poland

Energetab 15.09-17.09.2015

Energetab is an international power industry fair and the largest exhibition of modern

appliances, apparatus and technologies for power industry in Poland.

Warsaw Build 16.09-18.09.2015

The Warsaw Build takes place annually in Warsaw and is the most important Interna-

tional Building Materials & Equipment Exhibition in Poland.

Polagra 21.09– 21.04.2014

The Polagra Food is an international trade fair for food, which takes place once a year

in Poznan. This fair brings together producers and manufacturer with suppliers and

retailers with the aim of creating new opportunities for food manufacturers and disco-

vering market opportunities.

Trade Fairs Egypt

Sahara, 7.09-10.09.2015

Sahara is an international exhibition for agriculture and food for Africa and the Mid-

dle East and one of the longest running and best attended events in the sector.

Paper Middle East Cairo, 22.10-24.10

“Paper Middle East" will attract manufacturers, converters, distributors and traders

from all over the world to position themselves at the apex between Western and East-

ern markets.

Dear Members,

If you have any ideas or suggestions for EPBA activities, please feel

free to contact us:

PO

LA

ND