Economic complements
Westbound goods now total more than $700 million and trade between the two nations had reached $1.2 billion, 3.5% of all Polish trade. Total Danish investment in Poland in 1994 was $55.1 million with 176 companies registering some Danish capital.
Economically, the two nations are suited for trade with each other. While Denmark needs raw materials like high-grade coal, Poland needs manufactured goods and technological assistance. Poland produces the basics, raw materials or components and ships them to Denmark for assembling into machinery. Danish manufacturers ship the goods back to Poland as finished products.
Polish factories also assemble Danish-designed products and find markets in both nations. For example, textiles are produced in Denmark then sent to Poland for sewing.
Growing Danish investment in Poland and bilateral trade extend to a multitude of sectors.
"I would say the most successful industry has been in building materials," said Steen Steensen, the trade attache at the Danish embassy in Warsaw. About half of Danish investment in Central Europe in the sector is in Poland.
Rockwool, producer of mineral wool for insulation, has invested $7 million and has the largest Danish building material interest in Poland. The firm works with Zaklady Cigacice in a joint venture.
Another sector in which Danish companies are heavily involved is telecommunications.
Great Northern Telegraph Company has helped TPSA, the Polish state-run telecom giant, establish 25,000 lines within Poland for international communication in what they call the north-south link. NKT Cables, a Danish wire manufacturer, produced the optical fiber cable for the project. Telekom Denmark, a private Danish firm with public shares, also is advising TPSA on phone systems. The three companies together have $26 million in equity and loans invested in Poland.
The Danish government is active in contributing to Danish companies in Eastern Europe. IO is the largest government investment fund and now has, through equity and loans, a $208 million investment in Poland, making it Poland's 10th largest foreign investor. IO has shares in 49 companies, among them Rockwool with $18.1 million invested, according to the IO 1994 annual report.
"You can't single out sectors, because we have investment in so many," said Max Kruse, the IO representative in Warsaw. IO typically invests in a variety of Danish-Polish joint ventures of all sizes.
While Rockwool employs 580, Palsgaard, a food additive company in which IO has invested $1.1 million, employs fewer than 10. Wavin Metalplast-Buk, with $17.3 million from IO, employs 425 in PVC pipe production and Inreco, with 20 employees dedicated to road maintenance, received $420,000.
To qualify for funding from IO, a Danish company needs to directly cooperate with at least one Polish firm, usually in the form of a joint venture.
Another area of special interest for the Danish government is the Polish environment. The Danes are presently funding 400 environmental projects here. With Poland wanting to join the European Union, there is plenty of work and money to be made helping the nation come in line with EU standards.
The Danish government and companies are motivated by the fact that the cost of cleaning up the Polish environment is 20 times cheaper than improvements back home. The disparity is because Polish needs are basic enough for improvements to be made cheaply. For example, FLS-Miljoe sells basic filters to Polish power plants. In Denmark, factories already have such filters.
Most of the Danish environmental assistance comes in the form of advising and expertise rather than hardware. Forty percent of this type of foreign involvement in the Polish environment is Danish.
Specific projects are organized by Danish municipalities in a twin city program. The city of Elsinor is sister to Gdansk, Alborg to Gdynia. Major projects involve sewerage treatment in the Pomeranian and Mazury districts, of special importance to Denmark because the water feeds into the Baltic sea, eventually affecting the Danish environment.
"It is natural for us to help Poland," Steensen said. "We have master plans for water treatment and there are 200 projects, all government-funded, either completed or underway in Mazury."
The Danish government is also active in providing expertise to improve the Polish industrial workplace.
For example, in Poland, factory workers work under far more dangerous conditions than their counterparts in Denmark. Danish laborers are often able to collect personal damages at a later stage, still very rare in Poland, according to Steensen at the Danish embassy in Warsaw. Danish law firms, with expertise in such litigation are working for Polish labor unions.
The diversity of Danish investment in Poland involves public and private companies of all sizes, with the majority employing up to 500 employees, thereby mirroring Danish investment worldwide.
Poland remains the focus in the region. "Since we realized the potential of the domestic market, we have used Poland as a base for more regional investments and promotion," Steensen said. He predicts growth in the food processing sector after privatization plans of the agricultural industry become more certain.
"In 1990 Danes saw a lack of local financing, a lack of a banking sector and a lack of legislation" Steensen said. "We were not convinced that Poland had overcome the transition. But now we're seeing a breakthrough. The negative attitudes and misunderstandings toward the Polish economy are being cleared away. The economic performance is convincing here."
Economically, the two nations are suited for trade with each other. While Denmark needs raw materials like high-grade coal, Poland needs manufactured goods and technological assistance. Poland produces the basics, raw materials or components and ships them to Denmark for assembling into machinery. Danish manufacturers ship the goods back to Poland as finished products.
Polish factories also assemble Danish-designed products and find markets in both nations. For example, textiles are produced in Denmark then sent to Poland for sewing.
Growing Danish investment in Poland and bilateral trade extend to a multitude of sectors.
"I would say the most successful industry has been in building materials," said Steen Steensen, the trade attache at the Danish embassy in Warsaw. About half of Danish investment in Central Europe in the sector is in Poland.
Rockwool, producer of mineral wool for insulation, has invested $7 million and has the largest Danish building material interest in Poland. The firm works with Zaklady Cigacice in a joint venture.
Another sector in which Danish companies are heavily involved is telecommunications.
Great Northern Telegraph Company has helped TPSA, the Polish state-run telecom giant, establish 25,000 lines within Poland for international communication in what they call the north-south link. NKT Cables, a Danish wire manufacturer, produced the optical fiber cable for the project. Telekom Denmark, a private Danish firm with public shares, also is advising TPSA on phone systems. The three companies together have $26 million in equity and loans invested in Poland.
The Danish government is active in contributing to Danish companies in Eastern Europe. IO is the largest government investment fund and now has, through equity and loans, a $208 million investment in Poland, making it Poland's 10th largest foreign investor. IO has shares in 49 companies, among them Rockwool with $18.1 million invested, according to the IO 1994 annual report.
"You can't single out sectors, because we have investment in so many," said Max Kruse, the IO representative in Warsaw. IO typically invests in a variety of Danish-Polish joint ventures of all sizes.
While Rockwool employs 580, Palsgaard, a food additive company in which IO has invested $1.1 million, employs fewer than 10. Wavin Metalplast-Buk, with $17.3 million from IO, employs 425 in PVC pipe production and Inreco, with 20 employees dedicated to road maintenance, received $420,000.
To qualify for funding from IO, a Danish company needs to directly cooperate with at least one Polish firm, usually in the form of a joint venture.
Another area of special interest for the Danish government is the Polish environment. The Danes are presently funding 400 environmental projects here. With Poland wanting to join the European Union, there is plenty of work and money to be made helping the nation come in line with EU standards.
The Danish government and companies are motivated by the fact that the cost of cleaning up the Polish environment is 20 times cheaper than improvements back home. The disparity is because Polish needs are basic enough for improvements to be made cheaply. For example, FLS-Miljoe sells basic filters to Polish power plants. In Denmark, factories already have such filters.
Most of the Danish environmental assistance comes in the form of advising and expertise rather than hardware. Forty percent of this type of foreign involvement in the Polish environment is Danish.
Specific projects are organized by Danish municipalities in a twin city program. The city of Elsinor is sister to Gdansk, Alborg to Gdynia. Major projects involve sewerage treatment in the Pomeranian and Mazury districts, of special importance to Denmark because the water feeds into the Baltic sea, eventually affecting the Danish environment.
"It is natural for us to help Poland," Steensen said. "We have master plans for water treatment and there are 200 projects, all government-funded, either completed or underway in Mazury."
The Danish government is also active in providing expertise to improve the Polish industrial workplace.
For example, in Poland, factory workers work under far more dangerous conditions than their counterparts in Denmark. Danish laborers are often able to collect personal damages at a later stage, still very rare in Poland, according to Steensen at the Danish embassy in Warsaw. Danish law firms, with expertise in such litigation are working for Polish labor unions.
The diversity of Danish investment in Poland involves public and private companies of all sizes, with the majority employing up to 500 employees, thereby mirroring Danish investment worldwide.
Poland remains the focus in the region. "Since we realized the potential of the domestic market, we have used Poland as a base for more regional investments and promotion," Steensen said. He predicts growth in the food processing sector after privatization plans of the agricultural industry become more certain.
"In 1990 Danes saw a lack of local financing, a lack of a banking sector and a lack of legislation" Steensen said. "We were not convinced that Poland had overcome the transition. But now we're seeing a breakthrough. The negative attitudes and misunderstandings toward the Polish economy are being cleared away. The economic performance is convincing here."
