Polish government has adopted recommendations on increasing the participation of domestic companies in strategic investments (tenders). The document, prepared by the Ministry of State Assets, was signed on Tuesday by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who described it as the first set of best practices in Polish history to support so-called ‘local content’.
The recommendations are intended to help companies with State Treasury shareholdings make greater use of domestic suppliers and contractors when carrying out major investment projects. Although the document is not legally binding, the Prime Minister expressed the hope that the solutions developed would also be adopted by the private sector.
The code, prepared by the Ministry of State Assets and entitled “Good practices for companies with State Treasury shareholdings to increase the domestic component in key investment processes”, was drawn up in response to changing approaches to economic policy worldwide. The Ministry points out that an increasing number of countries are actively supporting the development of their own supply chains and domestic enterprises.
The document concerns contracts awarded outside the scope of the Public Procurement Law. It also defines the concept of ‘local content’ as the value of goods and services supplied by domestic entities. For the purposes of assessment, a system of criteria and weightings has been developed to determine the extent to which a company is linked to the Polish economy.
The greatest weight was assigned to the ownership structure. The criterion of having an owner and a capital group based in Poland accounts for 25 per cent of the final assessment. Tax residence and the payment of taxes in Poland carry a weighting of 15 per cent, whilst the share of domestic revenue in the company’s operations accounts for 10 per cent. Ultimately, a company can receive a score ranging from 0 to 100 per cent, reflecting its local character.
The recommendations cover the entire investment cycle – from planning to monitoring project implementation. One of the key elements is informing the market in advance about planned procurement procedures, which is intended to give Polish companies more time to prepare tenders and build the capabilities necessary to participate in large-scale projects.
The authors of the document also encourage the organisation of information meetings and so-called ‘supplier days’. In the process of assessing contractors, it is recommended to take into account experience with similar projects and to adopt a cautious approach to bids based on a grossly low price.
These guidelines form part of a broader strategy to strengthen domestic supply chains in sectors deemed strategic, such as energy, infrastructure and defence. At the same time, the government emphasises that ‘local content’ does not mean closing the market to foreign partners, but rather making greater use of the potential of Polish companies when carrying out projects of key importance to the economy.
