Speaker's presentation
1. FISCAL REPRESENTATION TO FACILITATE ACCESS TO THE POLISH MARKET
Arnaud Philibert
Business Development Representative
ASD Group, Canadian Division
2. LEGAL ASPECTS OF DOING BUSINESS IN POLAND
Xavier Van Overmeire
Regional Head of the International Trade Group
Dentons Canada
3. BUSINESS TESTIMONIALS: SUCCEEDING IN POLAND, SNC LAVALIN
Sandy Taylor
President
Power Group
SNC-Lavalin Inc.
4. BUSINESS TESTIMONIALS: SUCCEEDING IN POLAND, TERFLOTH
Patricia Cano, M.B.A.
Executive Vice-President
B.Terfloth + Cie ( Canada) Inc
5. POLISH COMPANY PROFILE : EWA BIS
President
Ewa Bis
THE ACTIVITY IN BRIEF
On December 5, the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal’s team of international trade experts, the World Trade Centre Montréal, is holding a seminar on business opportunities in Poland, from 8 am to noon at the Westin Hotel in Montréal.
For the occasion, our guest experts will speak to you about the most recent sectoral outlooks, and provide practical advice to help generate solid trade relationships and lasting business partnerships. In addition, the Polish Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland, Ms. Katarzyna Kacperczyk, will be heading a delegation of companies, most of which are active in the agri-food sector, and will provide a picture of the current economic situation in Poland.
The information acquired will help you strengthen your position and get your business off the ground in this booming market.
Preliminary program
Polish delegation members
A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO…
- Understand the business context and evolution of the Polish market
- Get expert advice
- Assess and improve your expansion strategy for this market
- Identify business opportunities for your company
- Get up to date on various sectoral prospects
- Hear testimonials from Quebec entrepreneurs who have found success on this market
WHY POLAND?
“It has been an exceptional quarter century for Poland. We have not seen such conditions in 400 years, both at the geopolitical and economic levels,” states Mariusz Jarosinski, historian and journalist with the PAP agency. An exception to the rule, Poland is in fact the only European country to have avoided a recession during the 2008-2009 financial crisis, thanks, among other things, to robust demand on its domestic market—so much so that its GDP grew 18% between 2008 and 2012.
Since the bilateral investment promotion and protection agreement came into effect in 1990, Canada and Poland have worked together to strengthen the ties that bind them. Moreover, the concentration of activities of major players such as Bombardier, Wentworth, Maple Leaf Foods, Magna, Pratt & Whitney Canada, and SNC-Lavalin in the region is prompting Canada and Quebec to closely monitor the evolution of their European counterpart’s business environment. With strong growth in the volume of bilateral trade since 2010 (annual increase of 20%), Poland is currently Canada’s second largest trade partner in Central and Eastern Europe.
| Competitive advantages: |
- Strategic geographic location
- Direct access to the Baltic Sea
- Access to vast consumer markets, like Germany
- Relaxing of regulations pertaining to commercial activities
- Growing needs for new technologies and services
- Accelerated urbanization of the population
- Increased purchasing power of the new, broader middle class
- Relatively low budget deficit (3.5% of GDP in 2014)
- National debt (which is shrinking) is among the lowest in the Euro zone
- The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the European Union will strengthen Poland’s commercial potential for Quebec’s small and medium sized businesses
|
| Agri-food: |
- Strategic geographic location
- Direct access to the Baltic Sea
- Access to vast consumer markets, like Germany
- Relaxing of regulations pertaining to commercial activities
- Growing needs for new technologies and services
- Accelerated urbanization of the population
- Increased purchasing power of the new, broader middle class
- Relatively low budget deficit (3.5% of GDP in 2014)
- National debt (which is shrinking) is among the lowest in the Euro zone
- The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the European Union will strengthen Poland’s commercial potential for Quebec’s small and medium sized businesses
|
| Infrastructure and construction: |
- Poland intends to make massive investments in reforming both its institutions and its infrastructures
- The country plans to spend 33.3 billion Euros to modernize its armed forces
- There are over 513 worksites in the capital alone, ranging from the refurbishing of water treatment plants to the building of a new subway line
- The country needs to maintain a vast modern network of close to 3,000 kilometres of highways
|
| Energy and green techs: |
- The country is scattered with energy-intensive, coal-fuelled steel mills, and still produces 87% of its electricity using fossil fuels
- Aware of the urgent need to diversify its energy sources and to increase the efficiency of its industries
- Early this year, the Polish government passed a law validating the construction of four nuclear power plants (6 GWh) by 2035
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Poland, facts and figures:
- A market of 38.5 million inhabitants
- The 6th most powerful economy in Europe and the 23rd most powerful in the world
- A GDP of $517.5 billion USD in 2013
- Expected economic growth of 3.1% in 2014 (EDC, 2014)
- Canada’s 2nd largest market in Central and Eastern Europe (Agriculture and Agri-Food, 2011)
- Institutional and financial stability
- A dense fabric of industrial and technological parks
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
Quebec businesses in the following sectors:
- Agri-food
- Aeronautics
- Construction, infrastructure, and related services
- Transportation services and infrastructure
- Renewable energy
- Petroleum and gas
- Information technology and communications
- Clean technologies and wastewater treatment
- Minerals and metals
- Pharmaceutical products
- Machines and electrical apparatuses
- Plastics
Register for this seminar to take a fresh look at this European market and seize the business opportunities it has to offer.
In collaboration with: