Summary of the ‘Why Poland now?’ conference

Date: 16 March 2022

Time: 7:30-10:50

Place: Online

Japonia Inwestycje Eng

The ‘Why Poland now? An attractive destination for energy, infrastructure and automotive projects!’ investment conference, organised by the Polish Investment and Trade Agency (PAIH) in cooperation with the Polish Embassy in Tokyo, took place on 16 March 2022.

At the conference, experts discussed investment opportunities in the fields of the energy transition, infrastructure, automotive and electromobility industries.

The speakers of the automotive sector and electromobility panel included Dr.iur. Michał Będkowski-Kozioł, LL.M.Eur.Int., Partner and Head of the Competition & Antitrust Law Practice.

“The automotive sector in Poland, as well as in the entire European Union, is currently facing challenges associated not only with overcoming the crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and the disruption of supply chains, but above all with the implementation of ambitious EU plans to build a carbon-neutral economy by 2050. These plans also extend to the automotive sector. For example, the transport sector has recently been included not only in the greenhouse gas emission trading scheme, but also in the targets for emission reductions by 2030 as part of the ‘Fit for 55’ strategy,” said Michał Będkowski-Kozioł.

Michał Będkowski-Kozioł emphasises that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine seems to have increased public acceptance for the process of phasing out fossil fuel vehicles. The EU’s climate policy serves a very important purpose, which is to increase the levels of fuel and energy security and independence from the supply of energy resources. This may generate the right political climate for the implementation of transformative measures. Our expert also stressed that in the process of shifting away from fossil fuel-powered vehicles, it will be necessary to take into account the interests of consumers, especially those who are economically more vulnerable.

“In connection with the transformation of the transport sector, Poland is facing the challenge of developing an appropriate infrastructure for charging alternative fuel vehicles, investing in R&D work in new technologies and creating an appropriate framework for private and public sector cooperation to support and stimulate this transformation. What may play a particularly significant role here is not only investments by Japanese companies, but also the cooperation in science and technology between universities and academic institutes,” concluded Michał Będkowski-Kozioł.

The following are some of the topics discussed during the conference:

  • the current economic situation and the investment environment in Poland were discussed by: Grzegorz Słomkowski, Board Member of the Polish Investment and Trade Agency, Yasuyuki Ishiga, General Director of Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), Aleksandra Durzyńska-Prochowska, Branch Manager of Fujitsu GDC Polska, and Matsuura Yuichi, General Manager at Marubeni, Chairman of Shokokai. The debate was moderated by Marek Tejchman from the Dziennik Gazeta Prawna
  • energy transition and investment processes in Poland were addressed by: Anna Moskwa, Minister of Climate and the Environment, Kobayashi Izuru, Deputy Commissioner for International Affairs at the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy (ANRE), the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and Tomoho Umeda, CEO of Hynfra. The debate was moderated by Pawel Piotrowicz – an energy market and hydrogen technology expert at TÜV.
  • the infrastructure sector and capital projects in Poland; this part of the conference featured Jakub Kapturzak, Deputy Director of the Department of Railway Transport at the Ministry of Infrastructure, Yamagami Noriyoshi, Director-General for International Affairs at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), Keita Shiratori, CEO of Kyosan Europe, and Jarosław Majchrzak, Deputy Director of the Strategy Office at PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe. The debate was moderated by Marek Tejchman, Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.
  • the automotive sector and electromobility projects in Poland; in addition to Michał Będkowski-Kozioł, the panel featured: Dariusz Mikołajczak, CEO of Toyota Motor Poland, Michał Wekiera, Executive Director/ Law, Industry, Technics at the Polish Automotive Industry Association, and Paweł Halotta, CEO of Nifco Poland. The debate was moderated by Maciej Mazur, Managing Director of the Polish Alternative Fuels Association.

“The Polish energy sector is in need of a transition to low-carbon technologies. Kochanski & Partners have been closely following the developments in the Japanese market for some time and it’s fair to say that Japanese experience in the energy and electromobility sectors could be of particular value here. The investment seminar held by the Polish Investment & Trade Agency in cooperation with the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Tokyo was an excellent opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience between the Polish and Japanese energy, infrastructure and electromobility sectors.

The Japanese have chosen a very interesting path for the transition of the automotive sector involving hybrid and hydrogen technologies, which could be an alternative for Poland, as we face significant grid limitations for the full-scale development of electromobility based on purely electric cars,” concluded Jacek Kozikowski, Partner and Head of Japan Desk.

The conference is a follow-up and implementation of the activities undertaken during Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki’s 2020 visit to Japan and the 2019 Japan-EU Economic Partnership Agreement. Kochański & Partners have built their position as a market leader serving Japanese entities in Poland for over 20 years, being also an active member of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce in Poland, and cooperating with the Polish Investment & Trade Agency in the area of Japanese investments, for which we prepared the “New opportunities for Japanese capital in Poland” report.

Our experts have also co-authored a Japanese report on the energy sector in Poland, published by Chuokeizai-Sha Inc. (link: https://www.gov-book.or.jp/book/detail.php?product_id=348636).

We encourage you to browse our Japan Desk and to contact Jacek Kozikowski directly for more information.