Economy Ministry divided on Voest Alpine Stahl's proposed investments

Representatives of the Economy Ministry cannot reach an agreement on whether or not to support Austrian steel concern Voest Alpine Stahl's (VAS) ambitious investment plans for Poland, totalling euro800 million, which some officials argue would have a negative impact on the Polish steel sector. Deputy Minister of Economy Edward Nowak claims that Austrian investment could negatively affect Polish companies or even make their restructuring impossible. Wiktor Laszczyk, director of the Economy Ministry's department for restructuring, argues that prohibiting the investment would violate European law, impacting negatively on Poland's relations with the European Union (EU). He also disagrees with the opinion of the Chamber for Steel Industry and Trade (HIPH), which gave a poor evaluation of VAS' investment. Laszczyk claims that this investment would serve to increase employment in north-western Poland and boost Poland's foreign trade balance. It is estimated that VAS would initially employ 500-600 people and that a new steel mill would produce 1.2 million tonnes of sheet metal, mostly for export. (Puls Biznesu, pp.1, 8)