New frontiers
An ambitious new space research and testing facility could be the centerpiece of a new technology cluster near Budapest aimed at propelling Hungarian and regional technology firms further onto the world stage.
"Hungary and part of the neighboring region offer highly skilled experts at a better price than the established space players in the US and Asia," János Solymosi, sales and marketing manager of Bonn Hungary Kft and a member of the Hungarian Space board, told BBJ. "This could bring advantages to the whole European space industry," Solymosi said. "The real challenge to the European industry comes from America and Asia."
Fostering Hungarian Talentis
Representatives of private property investors Sándor Kenyeres, Sándor S. Nagy and Endre S. Nagy started to develop a 20-year project in 2000-2001 in the Zsámbék Basin, near Budapest. The project, called the Talentis Program, aims to develop incubator houses, research and development centers, and industrial park-type facilities to attract industry to the region. The targeted industries include space technology, energy industry, environmental technology, informatics, and automotive firms.
Talentis provides the infrastructural, real-estate development, and EU-financing sides of the investment, while Bonn Hungary is responsible for providing the tenants essential for the operation of the Talentis Space Industry Technological Testing Centre, as well as hundreds of millions of forints' worth of technology, and a highly qualified workforce.
The owners of Talentis Zrt have spent Ft 5 (zł.0.076) billion to purchase 400 ha land with the capacity to house 300 projects, said Talentis CEO Ernö Takács. According to Talentis' plans, these projects will be worth ?12 (zł.45.5) billion. The developers took out Ft 16 (zł.0.24) billion, mostly in project-financing loans from banks, to invest in the Zsámbék Basin.
The ambitious plan would involve a significant amount of EU funds and government money. "We are going to tender for financing from the "New Hungary Programme" and for EU resources directly from Brussels, from the 7th Research and Development Keret Program, which provides funds, for example, for space technology research," Takács said.
Additional projects
Other projects at the park, announced previously, include the ?200 (zł.758) million Agrogate Hungary agricultural-logistical center in Herceghalom, an entertainment center in Etyek called "The Park," which is said to be a ?400 (zł.1,517) million project, and the ?300 (zł.1,138) million industrial-park project in Mány. These investments will be finished by 2010, Hungarian business portal Figyelö reported.
Budaörs-based ISC Kft and Talentis Zrt have signed an agreement under which ISC will operate an incubator center for start-up companies and research and development centers in Herceghalom, with 5,900 sqm of floor space. The value of the incubator house investment is Ft 4.2 (zł.0.064) billion. The property will be provided by Talentis, while management, legal and business services will be provided by ISC, which has been active in providing incubation services since 2004, developing the Budaörs Industrial and Technology park.
Talentis' owners' plan also includes an educational complex that would provide vocational courses for adults working in the industrial park and commuting from Budapest. Takács said this facility would house summer courses or postgraduate education from different universities. "We would like to establish courses in professions which are missing from the Hungarian educational system, like mechatronics or e-government," he said.
Testing excellence
A number of world-class firms that regularly supply solutions for the European and Indian space programs and several well-known European high-tech companies are interested in participating in the Talentis Space Industry Technological Testing Centre, according to Solymosi. "Some of them are considering locating individual R&D divisions near the Testing Centre, and thus establishing a Central-Eastern European knowledge center," he said.
German IABG, a leading international space technology company employing more than 1,000 specialists in Germany and the EU, has indicated its intention to cooperate.
The Talentis testing center could become part of a European chain and a key space technology cluster, although its firms will also be able to participate in programs outside Europe. Solymosi noted that Hungary has started negotiations to become a member of the European Space Agency (ESA) and has received the green light from the Hungarian government and the ESA.
Joining the ESA club
"Becoming a member would enable the testing center to participate in tenders issued by ESA," he said, noting that 90 percent of the money that the Hungarian state would have to pay to become a member of the agency can be claimed back if Hungary proves that an efficient and competitive space industry exists. SMEs could also benefit in the subcontracting process. Membership costs some ?5-6 (zł.19-23) million a year. Hungary is currently an affiliate member of the ESA, and pays a nearly ?1 (zł.3.8) million annual membership fee.
"The testing center would put the Hungarian space industry in a competitive position," said Solymosi, adding that it will also serve the aerospace industry. "With a 40-year space research tradition including strong references in both the academic and commercial sphere, Hungary is well placed to make a more significant contribution to the European space industry," he added.
The niches in which Hungary can contribute lie, for example, in onboard-power management, onboard-computing and data-collection systems, ground- and mission-simulation software, magnetic-field management, satellite-telecom applications, and microwave technologies, Solymosi said.
Ft 2.2 (zł.0.033) billion is needed for the testing center, eight percent of which is expected to come from private funds. In the best-case scenario, provided funding is quickly realized, work could start on the center at the end of this summer or early fall, with the first tests carried out in 2008.
Katalin Tóth, Robert Smyth
This is an edited version of a story which originally appeared in the Budapest Business Journal
