Pomeranian Special Economic Zone

The Pomeranian Special Economic Zone (PSSE) currently comprises twenty-four subzones with the total area of 1,859.2419 hectares. The PSSE extends across four provinces: Pomorskie, Wielkopolskie, Zachodniopomorskie and Kujawsko-Pomorskie, in which it covers the following areas:

• 518.8643 ha in the Pomorskie (Pomerania) Province
• 732.2391 ha in the Kujawsko-Pomorskie (Kujawy-Pomerania) Province
• 586.2502 ha in the Zachodniopomorskie (West Pomerania) Province
• 21.89 ha in the Wielkoplskie (Greater Poland) Province

Conditions of conducting business activities
The conditions of conducting business activities within the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone are set out in the act of 20 October 1994 on special economic zones (Journal of Laws No. 42/2007, Item 274, as amended), the regulation of the Council of Ministers of 5 December 2006 regarding the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone, as amended, and the regulation of the Council of Ministers of 10 October 2008 regarding state aid provided to entrepreneurs operating under a permit to conduct business activity in special economic zones (Journal of Laws No. 232/2008, Item 1548, as amended).

According to the above-referred regulations, a permit to conduct business activity within the Zone, granted by the operator of the zone on behalf of the minister in charge of economy, entitles the entrepreneur to use state aid.

The permit, granted upon a successful completion of a tendering procedure or negotiations following a public invitation to tender, specifies the objects of business activity and conditions regarding – in particular:

• The entrepreneur’s investment in the zone exceeding a specific value, and
• The entrepreneur’s employment of a specific number of employees for a specific time for the business activity conducted in the zone.

Tax exemptions
Entrepreneurs who meet the requirements specified in the permit may apply for regional aid in the form of tax exemptions due to the following:

• The costs of a new investment project, or
• The creation of new jobs.

The aid in the Zone may be provided with other forms of support for new investment projects or for the creation of new jobs, regardless of the source and form of such support, provided that the total value of support does not exceed the limit of permissible state aid.

Permit to conduct business activity in the PSSE

The permit, granted upon a successful completion of a tendering procedure or negotiations following a public invitation to tender, specifies the objects of business activity and conditions regarding in particular:

• The entrepreneur’s investment in the zone exceeding a specific value, and/or
• The entrepreneur’s employment of a specific number of employees for a specific time for the business activity conducted in the zone

State aid
Entrepreneurs conducting business activity in the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone under the above-mentioned permit, are entitled to an income tax exemption due to the following:

• The investment expenditure specified in the permit, or
• The level of employment specified in the permit,

however the extent of permissible aid is determined as a product of maximum aid intensity and the higher value of the expenditure on the new investment or the two-year cost of labour of the newly-employed personnel.

State aid in the light of current legislation:

• The state aid intensity index for the Pomorskie, Zachodniopomorskie and Kujawsko-Pomorskie provinces is 35%, and 25% in the case of the Wielkopolskie Province,
• The index for small and medium-sized enterprises is 55% and 45%, respectively (45% and 35% in the Wielkopolskie Province),
• The minimum value of investment expenditure is EUR 100,000 provided that the business activity is continued for at least 5 years, or 3 years in the case of SMEs,
• The entrepreneur’s share in the expenditure connected with a new investment project should amount to at least 25%,
• Any amounts of regional aid obtained from a number of sources, whether domestic or international, are subject to aggregation.

Assets of the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone

• It offers investors a system of tax exemptions available under the act on special economic zones and compliant with EU legislation.
• It ensures fast, professional and friendly assistance for investors at each stage of negotiations and after their admission to the Zone.
• It issues administrative decisions at first instance regarding construction law for most of the lands situated within the Zone.
• It facilitates collaboration with companies that already operate in the Zone.
• It cooperates with the regional economic, scientific and cultural environment.

On 4 December 2013, the Council of Ministers approved the Measures enhancing attractiveness of special economic zones for investors, a document providing for, among other things, a possibility of reinvestment in land which has been included in the zone as private property. It establishes the criteria to be satisfied to make a reinvestment like this possible, one of which is the reservation of the issuance of a permit only to such entrepreneurs for whom the Council of Ministers has already included private land in the zone. Furthermore, a proposed reduction of minimum investment cost and employment level thresholds may result in a larger number of investment projects and should encourage entrepreneurs to make early decisions. Find out more here

Regarding Inowrocław, on 18 March 2014 the Council of Ministers issued an amendment to the regulation on the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone, which became effective on 31 March 2014. One of the changes concerned the incorporation into the Zone of a land of 40.7572 ha situated in Inowrocław and owned by CIECH Soda Polska SA, which is extending its chemical plant, Soda-Mątwy SA in Inowrocław. The investment project will increase the production capacity of the plant and the supply of chemical products, especially soda. The value of the project is estimated at approx. PLN 140,000,000. At least 10 new jobs will be created and the loss of 1,500 jobs with the company in Inowrocław and other facilities of the CIECH Group will be prevented. The completion of the investment project is scheduled for 30 June 2016.

Contact
Pomeranian Special Economic Zone Ltd.