On the road to a green economy - a summary of the Industry in Transition Congress

More than a thousand people attended the European Industry and Energy Congress Industry in Transition in Katowice. So the beginning of June at the International Congress Center was full of important discussions, fruitful meetings and bold declarations of cooperation.  All this to ensure that the Polish economy will make the transition to the industry of the future as quickly and easily as possible.

The two-day congress, organized by the Katowice Chamber of Commerce, featured not only entrepreneurs, but also the most important Polish decision-makers responsible for the direction in which the Polish economy and industry are moving.  The head of the Ministry of Industry, located in Silesia, asked the audience, entrepreneurs, to give her their opinions and expectations.

We want to carve out productivity, such as in the steel industry, where predictable growth is 3-5 percent in Europe - said Marzena Czarnecka, Minister of Industry.

An example of the industry's transformation can be seen in the letter of intent signed by two important steel companies during Industry in Transition.
 
Polish steel wants to arm Polish military
 
Owned by the state-owned Węglokoks - Walcowania Blach Batory sp. z o. o. and the privately-owned, part of Cognor Holding SA - Cognor SA HSJ Branch in Stalowa Wola, want to jointly pursue the production of components and materials used in the armaments industry. The cooperation will be supported by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Katowice and the Industrial Development Agency SA.
 
We want other companies that can contribute their know-how and production potential to the development of the defense sector to join the agreement - encouraged Michał Dąbrowski, president of the Industrial Development Agency JSC.

Economic discussions
 
The halls of the MCK in Katowice were packed tightly with those interested in the transformation that has been taking place in the Polish economy for several decades.
 
The Industry in Transition Congress is a unique initiative that has attracted outstanding experts, industry leaders and representatives of public administration. We have a unique opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience on a regular basis, which not only strengthens the position of our region on the industrial map of Europe, but also contributes to the dynamic development of my capital group in the region and Poland as a whole - praised Jakub Chełstowski, president of the Silesia Financial Association Capital Group.
 
The Silesian region and Katowice are an ideal place for such deliberations and debates, because it is there that the changes taking place in the Polish economy can be seen, as if through a lens.

Today Katowice has more of a meetings industry than coal and steel, but it's a good way to go. A HUB of new technologies and gaming industry is being built in the place of KWK Wieczorek. We have places waiting for new investors and huge potential, we can't waste it - noted Katowice Mayor Marcin Krupa.

The development and transformation of the region is helped not only by the concentration of industrial enterprises, but also by the multitude of universities, students and cooperation between science and business. This is a very important issue today, as the changing economy also requires a change in education and the acquisition of new skills.

Today, a construction engineer is no longer a person who only knows how to build. She should be able to build efficiently, energy-efficiently, quickly and with as little effort and resources as possible, eliminating waste - explained Dariusz Kolasa, technical director of the General Construction Directorate of Strabag Ltd.

At the threshold of the green transformation
 
Silesia will also be the main arena where the next stages of the transformation will play out.
 
We stand on the threshold of a green revolution that will transform our country - said Tomasz Zjawiony, president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Katowice.
 
Today, the most visible efforts in implementing the green transition are investments in Poland's energy sector - moving away from coal to renewable energy sources, investing in photovoltaic farms and wind-generated energy. Shortly after the Industry in Transition was completed, the cornerstone act of a key investment in the sector was laid in Gdańsk - a factory to produce the towers needed to generate electricity from coastal winds. The Industrial Development Agency was involved in the project, along with a Spanish investor, because wind energy can permanently change Poland's energy mix and significantly facilitate the move away from coal as the main fuel used to generate most of the electricity produced in Poland today.

Meteorological studies show that the wind in the Baltic Sea blows as intensely for more than 350 days a year. There is a stable supply of wind, which means a stable possibility of obtaining energy. We can count on electricity from the sea being supplied and obtained in large quantities - explained Włodzimierz Pomierny, manager of the Offshore Wind Energy Project at the Industrial Development Agency.

Aranda, a company belonging to the IDA group, is involved in a consortium planning to build wind towers.
 
Progress in this area, representatives of the Baltic Industrial Group said at the Katowice congress, is crucial for the Polish energy industry.GP Baltic already has experience in building a supply chain for offshore wind energy - it is involved in building the supply chain of the first wind farm in Poland.
This is a new opening and an important moment.

We hope that there is no more chance to stop this process. Wind power can seriously change the energy mix in favor of green energy - according to Magdalena Czuba-Wąsowska, vice chairwoman of the board of Baltic Industrial Group.

Transportation a serious challenge
 Wind power specialists are working to facilitate the transmission of wind energy, but the new fuels also intrigue transportation specs. Poland today is the third producer in Europe of the so-called "gray hydrogen" used in industry. A serious challenge for the transformation of the Polish economy is the transition to so-called green hydrogen. It could be used not only in industry, but in many other fields to enable zero-emission by 2050. Green hydrogen could help decarbonize the Polish economy at every stage of transportation.

Green hydrogen is seen as offering great hope for application at every stage of logistics. It could make it possible to replace diesel locomotives with hydrogen. Green hydrogen is therefore an energy store, the golden grail we are constantly looking for - said Jakub Styczeń, president of Euroterminal Sławków.

Resources, resources...
 
Resources must not be forgotten, warned participants in a discussion on strengthening Poland's participation in the market for raw materials critical to the European Union economy. The occasion for - probably the first panel on this topic in Poland - was the entry into force of a new EU regulation - the Critical Raw Materials Act. The law, which was prepared rather quickly, may need to be amended, however, because, as the panelists noted, among the dozens of raw materials listed in it, one that is also important for the Polish economy is missing: tin. It is considered a critical raw material by the US and many Asian economies.

As a business community, we are pleased that the act was implemented just one year after the first proposal. The rush was probably caused by business dissatisfaction, mining companies from Europe and was in response to a similar act passed in America, but many provisions are unclear and some raw materials considered strategic and critical were left out.

We are watching closely how this act will be implemented at the national level, but I also hope that it will enable the European Investment Bank to finance certain investments, which has so far looked at some industrial projects quite critically - assessed Aleksandra Cholewa, director of investment and development at Luma Holding LTD.

The European Congress of Industry and Energy Industry in Transition is a new event on the congress map of Poland. The congress is organized by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Katowice, organizer of, among others, the European Congress of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and the European Steel Congress.