Investment gulf
However, though it is arguably one of the best places in Poland to live, the Tri-city region is not so popular with investors. In terms of investment attractiveness, the area ranks well below Wrocław, Kraków and Warsaw. Is the water in the Tri-city's sea of opportunities too cold for investors to take the plunge?
Poland now ranks among the most attractive investment destinations in the world, but the Pomorskie region is being left out of the boom. The value of foreign capital in the region amounts to a mere 2.2 percent of all foreign capital in Poland.
Researchers from the Gdańsk Institute for Market Economics (IBnGR) interviewed a number of investors and evaluated the efforts local authorities have been making to attract new businesses. Their results were underwhelming. Of Poland's 16 voivodships, Pomorskie ranks a mediocre seventh in terms of investment attractiveness, according to IBnGR's 2005 report.
"Pomorskie is on the periphery as far as investments in Poland are concerned," says Anna Hildebrandt, one of the authors of the report. "Everything is still in the embryonic stage."
Climate at the seaside
It is a region's local authorities that are generally responsible for creating a positive investment climate, and the IBnGR report ranks Pomorskie's local authorities ninth in terms of their efforts to attract new investors. Hildebrandt says that investors often complain that local officials are passive and do not seem to be interested in attracting new firms. Also, cooperation between the Tri-city's three municipalities is frequently considered to be poor. "One common vision is needed in order to attract investors," stresses Hildebrandt.
The cities' authorities say they want to tackle the problem. "We should think about a common promotional campaign," says the Mayor of Sopot, Jacek Karnowski, adding that the program should reach beyond the boundaries of the Tri-city. "We should be promoting Tri-city together with neighboring towns and municipalities, because investments there also work for us."
Strong cooperation between local governments is one of the aims set out in the 2020 strategy drawn up by the Marshal's office, but regional authorities would be well advised not to wait that long. The region's position in rankings of investor attractiveness are falling rather than rising, and the number of new companies with foreign capital in the region has been decreasing since 2000. Experts say this is simply because other regions have been quicker at increasing competitiveness.
To be or not to be
Local authorities are well aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the region. "Spatial planning determines investment availability," says Wiesław Bielański, Deputy Mayor of Gdańsk. With nearly 70 percent of the area covered by spatial-development plans, Tri-city is a leader in Poland. "The second element is the infrastructure. Here our position is worse," Bielański admits.
Roads are the biggest problem of the region. In the IBnGR report, Pomorskie ranked twelfth in terms of transportation infrastructure. Currently, work is being done on the A1 north-to-south highway. The opening of the 90-kilometer section between Gdańsk and Nowe Marzy is scheduled for November 2008, while the second 62-kilometer stretch, connecting Nowe Marzy with Toruń, should be ready by the end of 2010.
"A transport route with the south of Poland means 'to be or not to be' for us," says Bogusław Stasiak, Deputy Mayor of Gdynia. Anna Hildebrandt sees yet another reason for urgency: "If the east-to-west highway is built earlier than the north-to-south one, we will be cut off," she says.
There is some good news when it comes to infrastructure in the area. With entrance into the EU, Tri-city has gained a number of low-cost air connections with the rest of Europe. Lech Wałęsa airport in Gdańsk is now bulging with passengers and discussions are being held as to where to build a new one. "The army airport in Babie Doły in Gdynia could serve as a complementary airport to the one in Gdańsk," says Stasiak. Sea transport is also developing fast. Two ferries operate daily between Gdynia and Karlskrona in Sweden. There is also a ferry connection between Gdańsk and Nynashamn, a town near Stockholm.
Walking on water
Sea container cargo transport shows potential for growth as well, and the ports of Gdańsk and Gdynia have recently seen some of the biggest investments in the region. The construction of a logistics-distribution center in Gdańsk's Northern Port is worth EUR 250 (zł.1,020) million, while the Deepwater Container Terminal Gdańsk costs EUR 190 (zł.775) million and will be ready for use at the end of 2007. With these new developments, Gdańsk may become more of a hub port, similar to those of Rotterdam and Hamburg.
The building of the new terminal in Gdańsk complements the recent completion of the first phase of construction of a terminal by Hutchinson Port Holding Group China in Gdynia. Stasiak stresses that this is the jewel in the crown of foreign investments in Gdynia, which now has two terminals competing with each other. Nevertheless, he is happy to add: "To an increasing extent, the economy is based on operations other than the shipyard industry."
Education gap
The development of the R&D sector in the region and implementation of the EU's Lisbon Strategy are major priorities for regional authorities. In fact, the subregion of Gdańsk, which encompasses neighboring municipalities, ranks seventh among 40 Polish subregions in terms of investment attractiveness for advanced-technology businesses. Pomorskie boasts a large number of university graduates, and hence is very attractive for high-tech investments.
However, "a crucial limitation concerning the inflow of investments in hi-tech is the fact that technical universities' curricula do not match market requirements," Hildebrandt observes. "This a barrier on a national level. The region lacks qualified financial auditors, employees in logistics [and] experienced project managers," she says. Hildebrandt adds that more communication and cooperation between business, educational and local leaders is the key to bridging the gap.
Tourist trap
In the meantime, the service sector, especially that related to tourism, is developing rapidly. Sopot, for instance, has almost entirely based its development strategy on tourism. Most of the city's GDP comes from the tourism service sector, while the biggest investments in Sopot are investments in tourist facilities.
Bogusław Stasiak would like to see the further development of business tourism in the region. "Business tourism should be developing, we need congresses, conference centers. We are looking for these types of investors," he stresses. He admits that the chilly Baltic cannot compete with the mild Mediterranean, so foreigners should be attracted to come on their second holiday to the region. Nevertheless, the Tri-city area already proves quite popular with tourists, and the Gdańsk subregion ranks tenth out of IBnGR's 40 subregions at attracting investment in services.
Perhaps the region's biggest advantage is the size of its market. In terms of consumption, the voivodship takes third place in Poland, coming after the Silesian and Mazowieckie voivodships. Though investors are loath to steer clear of such a sea of potential customers, the region can't afford to turn away a single ship, and there is still plenty local authorities could do to make the waters more inviting.
