/інформація англійською мовою/

Investment incentives

The Economy Ministry (EM) plans to provide more than €16m in investment incentives to five companies. The state should support the construction of a plant for the production of construction parts, into which the company Pasivhaus Modul Systeme plans to invest €13.3m and create 46 new jobs. The EM proposes assistance in the form of a tax break worth €2.3m. The EM also proposes supporting Zilina based firm Monocrystalex, which wants to invest €7.1m into expanding its production at the existing plant in Medzilaborce. This should create 150 jobs. The state should provide a total of €3.5m. Assistance should also go to the producer of pressed aluminum profiles Sapa Profily. The firm would like to expand its existing plant in Ziar nad Hronom for €11.5m and create 82 jobs. The EM proposes supporting this project with €3.5m. Kosice based firm Stawi also plans to expand its operation for €3.4m. It should create 40 jobs. The state should provide a total of €1.6m to the firm. In the village of Matuskov, the company SKH plastic plans to build a new plant for the production of plastic and metal goods. The €17.2m investment should create 150 jobs. The EM proposes investment assistance worth €5.5m to the firm.

Mines as a tourist attraction

As part of a project called Dubnicky Opal that aims to build a new tourist destination, mining company Opalove bane a brusiarne from Presov will invest €1.5- 2m. The municipality wants to help out with €0.3m that it aims to gain from EU funds. The completion of infrastructure, including accommodation and restaurants, will take around two years. Our neighboring states such as Poland and Austria also use their mines as tourist destinations. After the complete launch of the project, the Slovak opal destination should create around 20 direct jobs and dozens indirectly. The plan also foresees the creation of a so-called opal town that could attract 0.5-1m of tourists to the Dubnik area each year.

Interconnection of ski centers

Inspired by the Alps, the operators of ski resorts in Slovakia want to connect their existing ski lifts and in this way they hope to attract more domestic and foreign tourists. The ski slope from Solisko should be connected all the way down to Tatranska Strba as part of a project called Riecavy. The costs should come to €20m. Connection of tracks is also planned in Donovaly. Last year Slovakia recorded a 25% slump in foreign tourism and in order to reverse this trend businesses have to invest into new projects.

Fourth carmaker?

Another carmaker wants to invest in Slovakia. The Economy Ministry informed that Chinese company JAC Motors was interested in investing here. “We are in talks with Slovak representatives on the conditions of our entry to your market. Therefore, at this stage I would not want to specify the value of the investment. It will be cars and light trucks,” said JAC Motors’ regional director, David Wang. In Slovakia three carmakers are currently active – Korean Kia, French PSA Peugeot Citroën, and German Volkswagen. Indian producer of electrical cars Reva Electric Car Company also expressed interest in investing in Slovakia.

New jobs

Austrian producer of automotive parts Miba Steeltec in Vrable will hire around 100 new employees this year. The firm, which currently employs 170 people, managed to gain a large contract from German producer of compressors Hoerbiger. Apart from Miba, firms such as Austrian machinery company Hoeckle, the companies Cesam and Kongsberg Automotive are also active in the industrial park in Vrable, employing 2,000 people. Another 700 jobs should be created by the investment of US producer of medical devices ICU Medical.

Handgun factory

Handgun producer Grand Power in Banska Bystrica plans to build a new factory this year. Including the technologies, the move should cost more than €15m. At the moment 40 employees of the firm produce pistols in a rented plant in Slovenska Lupca. Last year the firm sold more than 10,000 guns and its sales came to roughly €2.2m. This year sales should exceed €3m.

R&D investment

The company CEIT plans to invest €6.7m in Zilina into the expansion of its research and development activities. Thanks to this investment 50 new jobs should be created, of which 45 should be dedicated for university educated people. The firm focuses on projects of basic and applied research and development of FTS mobile platforms, scanning and the creation of virtual models, as well as the development and production of prototypes. According to a proposal of the Economy Ministry, the company should gain €2.5m from the state for this investment project.

Decreased price of „green“ energy

The feed-in tariffs for photovoltaic power plants will be reduced by around 10% from 2011, said head of utilities regulator URSO, Jozef Holjencik. The office will prepare the respective decree by the end of June. The tariff will thus drop from the current level of €425 per MW and will correspond to the falling costs of building PV power plants. The high price the state pays for electricity produced by PV plants will be reflected in higher electricity prices for all consumers.

The investors expect completion of highways

Foreign investors agree that the priority of the next Slovak government should be mainly the completion of highways in central and eastern Slovakia. “Investors need quality roads to do business, and the interconnection of the individual regions is very important,” stated Markus Halt, spokesman of the Slovak-German chamber of commerce and industry. He also stressed that foreign investors are against a potential change to the tax burden.

The highest growth of GDP

The European Commission (EC) forecasts the highest GDP growth to Slovakia (together with Poland) of all EU member countries for 2010, on the level of 2.7%. The EU27 should grow by 1.0% on average. The forecasts for 2011 are even more optimistic – Slovakia should grow the second fastest in the EU27 at 3.6%.

Autocluster – Western Slovakia is successful

Auto cluster – Western Slovakia gained the finances for its fourth project. The goal of the AutoNet project is to map science and research and innovation activities in Central Europe and create the infrastructure and better conditions for the inclusion of firms into development and innovation processes in the automotive sector. Nine partners from seven Central European states joined the project. Its total budget is €2.14m.

Funds for research

On April 30, the agency for the support of research and development APVV announced an appeal in which it will distribute €33m among public institutions and private firms. Business applicants must have taken part in at least one APVV research project, possibly in the position of a co-solver, over the past five years.

OECD positive perception of Slovakia

Slovakia can get out of the crisis in a healthy condition, said chief economist of rich countries club OECD Pier Carlo Padoan following a meeting with PM Robert Fico. “Slovakia is returning to economic growth on relatively healthy levels,” noted Padoan. The OECD and the European Commission see Slovakia among those state with the highest economic growth within the EU in 2010. Padoan also noted, though, that this is also an opportunity for the states to continue with fiscal consolidation. Slovakia’s consolidation plan, according to which the public finance deficit should drop to 5.5% of GDP this year and to 3% in 2012, is trustworthy, says Padoan.

Rise in electronics production

The production of TV sets or DVD and blue-ray players in Slovakia will again increase significantly this year. Last year UMC Slovakia produced 1m LCD TV sets and this year plans to make 1.5m. Also Samsung Electronic Slovakia plans to exceed its results from last year. In 1Q of 2010 the company increased output by 17% y/y. It is estimated that this year the number of TV sets produced in Slovakia could exceed 11m.

Investment seminar - EXPO Shanghai 2010

On the occasion of the World EXPO Shanghai 2010 the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency SARIO in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy of the SR (MH SR), and companies CHINACONTACT Co. Ltd., and SEBA Ltd. - Sino European Business Agency Limited organized investment seminar with the participation of 67 Chinese companies. This event presented Slovak economic and investment environment to the potential investors with the focus on the Slovak Republic as the right investment target. The seminar received a very positive response with the Chinese businessmen who also presented their interest to organize negotiations in different sectors. The next day SARIO agency had organized private consultations on Chinese investment intents. The main fields of interest were represented by the renewable energy resources, automobile industry, tourism and infrastructure.

Economic forum in Dallas

The economic forum focusing on introduction of Slovakia as a country suitable for the foreign investment took place on the occasion of the official opening of the Honorary Consulate of Slovakia in European countries, she stressed comparative advantages of Slovakia and also pointed out the positive forecasted growth of the Slovak economy for next years.

Slovak Indonesia Business Forum

As a part of the second meeting of the Slovak- Indonesian intergovernmental commission (MVK) for the economic cooperation in Bratislava, the accompanying Slovak-Indonesian Business Forum with the participation of 12 Indonesian companies and 24 Slovak business subjects took place. The business forum had been organized by the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency SARIO and SOPK Bratislava Office in close cooperation with the Ministry of Economy of the SR and the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia. SARIO agency also organized meetings of the Indonesian businessmen in six Slovak companies (Water power plant in Trencin, PIO Keramoprojekt, Nuclear power plant Jaslovské Bohunice, VUJE Trnava, SES Tlmace, Letecke opravovne, Trencin). The negotiations in the Slovak Dallas, Texas. The speeches were delivered by: the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ms. Algayerová, the Ambassador of the Slovak Republic to the U. S. Mr. Peter Burian, the Executive Director of the AmCham Slovakia Mr. Jake Slegers, the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of U.S. Steel Mr. John H. Goodish, the Vice President of the Dell Strategic Growth Mr. Kip Thompson, and Ernst&Young Partner and Location Leader Mr. Thomas Flannery. The Director of the Foreign Direct Investment Section Ms. Andrea Chovancova introduced current economic situation in Slovakia, available investment incentives for potential investors as well as other SARIO support and development activities. SARIO Cooperation Partner and the Director of Euromeney Institutional Investor, Ms. Katarina Storfer, presented Slovakia by comparing its different indicators with other Eastern and Central companies were based on the priorities of the Indonesian government for 2010 -2014, especially infrastructure, water, thermal and nuclear power plants construction as well as cement works and expansion of highways network.

Investment forum in Croatia

The representatives of the SARIO Foreign Trade Section participated at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development conference in Croatia that was accompanied by the investment forum. The representatives of the Croatian government, banks and financial institutions, ministries, agencies and private business entities participated at this event. The Host Investment Forum offered current information on the economic and investment environment and opportunities of Croatia. The panels focused on Investment opportunities in Croatia, Infrastructure Development, Environment Protection Projects, Tourism Projects. In the total over 100 projects were presented for the cooperation of domestic and foreign business subjects.