The briefing
Car-workers here were given a fillip at the expense of their Italian counterparts, when Fiat announced it was locating the production of its new mid-range car in the Upper Silesian town of Tychy. Fiat employees were extremely put out by the decision to make the estimated €570 million investment here, and violent protests ensued.
Taking a less optimistic view of the future was French car-maker Renault, which announced that it hopes to sustain its 10% share of the automobile market in 2003. In an apparent effort not to appear slow on the investment front, the company also said it plans to construct a new showroom and company headquarters in Warsaw - an investment worth a modest €3 million (zł. 12 million).
Not satisfied with all this construction activity by car-makers, the government has presented PSA Peugeot-Citroen with proposals to encourage it to construct a car assembly plant in Poland. However, the company's acquiescence is far from assured since a decision will largely depend on infrastructure concerns and the amount of public funds forthcoming to back the investment.
The consortium of Rotch Energy and PKN Orlen started due diligence on Rafineria Gdańska, even as another informal offer for the refinery was being placed by Russia's Lukoil and Konsorcjum Gdańskie. Press reports suggest that the new offer is higher than the Rotch-Orlen bid.
Lucent Technologies has been brought in by Polkomtel to develop the fibre-optic cable network for its Plus GSM network. No figure was given for the value of the contract, but Polkomtel is likely to have to fork out a sizable amount, since laying 1,000 kilometres of fibre optics is estimated to cost €50 million.
There was some bright news for shareholders in leading aluminium group Kęty, which announced that, against a background of rising profits, it is likely to be able to double its dividend, slash its debts and set aside more money for expansion. The company anticipates that sales and net earnings will grow by more than 20% next year.
Just four bids were received for the 51% to 65% stake that was put up for sale in liquid fuels storage company Naftobazy. Several dozen oil companies had been sent details of the offer, but most were apparently unimpressed.
BBC Worldwide announced that the new Polish language BBC Prime will make its debut on January 16. The channel will be available on cable.
The Polish Press Agency recorded a net loss of zł. 700,000 in the third quarter. Its financial difficulties look likely to cost PAP a new headquarters since Bank Pekao has already declined to grant it a loan to cover the construction work. The media misery extended also to the newspapers, with the Friday edition of Życie being cancelled. Journalists arrived at work to find the telephones had been cut off. They had earlier threatened to strike in protest at not receiving their salaries.
Apparently oblivious to the media woes, G+J Polska in conjunction with Conde Nast of France have announced plans for a new luxury women's magazine. The launch of Glamour is planned for the spring, and circulation is expected to be around 200,000.
Ambitious investment plans by French hypermarket chain E. Leclerc seem to have foundered, with the revelation that building work for the year is well behind schedule. The company had been planning to construct more than 2,000 square metres of additional supermarket space, but so far this year not a single new supermarket has been completed, although work has begun on two.
BB Investment, fresh from its recent debut on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, is looking forward to spending some of the €40 million it is earning by selling a stake in outdoor advertiser AMS. Company officials were understandably coy about the investment plans, although there was mention of the IT and alternative energy sectors.
Three companies are in the running for the tender to supply two jets for use by state officials. The government has set aside the princely sum of zł.12 million for the purchase; the three interested parties are Dassault of France, Bombadier of Canada and Gulfstream of the US.
A total ban on evictions proposed by the government would deprive bailiffs of the power to throw people out of their homes until a creditor or gmina could give assurances that they had an alternative roof over their heads. At present the law protects only certain groups of tenants from eviction, such as the chronically ill, the unemployed and families with small children.
Two doctors in the city of Lód were charged with deliberately allowing 18 patients to die. Investigative journalists had alleged that ambulance crews sold details of the dead to the highest bidders from funeral parlours. Prosecutor Jolanta Badziak said the investigation into medical staff and ambulance records would continue, after a mid-year report uncovered 270 "questionable deaths."
It took national football team coach Zbigniew Boniek just six months to realize that he was not up to the job, having taken over from the hapless Jerzy Engel in the wake of the country's miserable performance in the World Cup. Sports fans can only hope that with the national football team in such a shambles, Adam Małysz can produce another season the country can be proud of.
Taking a less optimistic view of the future was French car-maker Renault, which announced that it hopes to sustain its 10% share of the automobile market in 2003. In an apparent effort not to appear slow on the investment front, the company also said it plans to construct a new showroom and company headquarters in Warsaw - an investment worth a modest €3 million (zł. 12 million).
Not satisfied with all this construction activity by car-makers, the government has presented PSA Peugeot-Citroen with proposals to encourage it to construct a car assembly plant in Poland. However, the company's acquiescence is far from assured since a decision will largely depend on infrastructure concerns and the amount of public funds forthcoming to back the investment.
The consortium of Rotch Energy and PKN Orlen started due diligence on Rafineria Gdańska, even as another informal offer for the refinery was being placed by Russia's Lukoil and Konsorcjum Gdańskie. Press reports suggest that the new offer is higher than the Rotch-Orlen bid.
Lucent Technologies has been brought in by Polkomtel to develop the fibre-optic cable network for its Plus GSM network. No figure was given for the value of the contract, but Polkomtel is likely to have to fork out a sizable amount, since laying 1,000 kilometres of fibre optics is estimated to cost €50 million.
There was some bright news for shareholders in leading aluminium group Kęty, which announced that, against a background of rising profits, it is likely to be able to double its dividend, slash its debts and set aside more money for expansion. The company anticipates that sales and net earnings will grow by more than 20% next year.
Just four bids were received for the 51% to 65% stake that was put up for sale in liquid fuels storage company Naftobazy. Several dozen oil companies had been sent details of the offer, but most were apparently unimpressed.
BBC Worldwide announced that the new Polish language BBC Prime will make its debut on January 16. The channel will be available on cable.
The Polish Press Agency recorded a net loss of zł. 700,000 in the third quarter. Its financial difficulties look likely to cost PAP a new headquarters since Bank Pekao has already declined to grant it a loan to cover the construction work. The media misery extended also to the newspapers, with the Friday edition of Życie being cancelled. Journalists arrived at work to find the telephones had been cut off. They had earlier threatened to strike in protest at not receiving their salaries.
Apparently oblivious to the media woes, G+J Polska in conjunction with Conde Nast of France have announced plans for a new luxury women's magazine. The launch of Glamour is planned for the spring, and circulation is expected to be around 200,000.
Ambitious investment plans by French hypermarket chain E. Leclerc seem to have foundered, with the revelation that building work for the year is well behind schedule. The company had been planning to construct more than 2,000 square metres of additional supermarket space, but so far this year not a single new supermarket has been completed, although work has begun on two.
BB Investment, fresh from its recent debut on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, is looking forward to spending some of the €40 million it is earning by selling a stake in outdoor advertiser AMS. Company officials were understandably coy about the investment plans, although there was mention of the IT and alternative energy sectors.
Three companies are in the running for the tender to supply two jets for use by state officials. The government has set aside the princely sum of zł.12 million for the purchase; the three interested parties are Dassault of France, Bombadier of Canada and Gulfstream of the US.
A total ban on evictions proposed by the government would deprive bailiffs of the power to throw people out of their homes until a creditor or gmina could give assurances that they had an alternative roof over their heads. At present the law protects only certain groups of tenants from eviction, such as the chronically ill, the unemployed and families with small children.
Two doctors in the city of Lód were charged with deliberately allowing 18 patients to die. Investigative journalists had alleged that ambulance crews sold details of the dead to the highest bidders from funeral parlours. Prosecutor Jolanta Badziak said the investigation into medical staff and ambulance records would continue, after a mid-year report uncovered 270 "questionable deaths."
It took national football team coach Zbigniew Boniek just six months to realize that he was not up to the job, having taken over from the hapless Jerzy Engel in the wake of the country's miserable performance in the World Cup. Sports fans can only hope that with the national football team in such a shambles, Adam Małysz can produce another season the country can be proud of.
