Sir, – Regarding articles (Business, Octobder 22nd, 23rd & 25th) on the serious problems encountered by SIAC and other Irish road construction companies in Poland: first, I wish to emphasise Poland truly appreciates the presence of Irish companies in the Polish market; not least your construction firms’ valuable experience in building Irish infrastructure, which we consider a model for us to follow.
There is no doubt the road construction process is complex, time-consuming and costly; the disputes that sometimes arise are not unusual in the construction industry, especially when a contract is undertaken abroad.
I have closely monitored the dispute that led to some Irish companies withdrawing from their projects in Poland. Over the past few years I have met regularly with SIAC's chief executive Finn Lyden and discussed his impressions of conducting business in Poland. His wide experience, comprehensive knowledge and his insights on how to implement infrastructure projects were immensely valuable. As a result his observations and remarks were taken into account in the development and realisation of various investment projects in Poland. Nevertheless, I strongly disagree with Mr Lyden's statements on the Polish road construction system cited in your paper (Business, October 22nd).
According to the Report on Road Construction in Poland by PwC, due to the development of the country's road infrastructure in the years 2007–2013 Poland has gained 1,500km of motorways and expressways, representing more than a 150 per cent increase. Poland became the leader among European countries in terms of the growth dynamics of the motorway network. According to the report, currently nearly 75 per cent of expressways and motorways in Poland are completed on time. The remaining 25 per cent of projects are completed with an average delay of slightly over 10 weeks. A report from the European Court of Auditors shows the average delay in construction of express roads in the whole EU is 15 months.
As for the effectiveness with which the funds obtained from the EU are used, to date the Polish Road Construction Authority (GDDKiA) has received 77 per cent reimbursement and nearly 100 per cent of certification, which proves the extra funds granted have indeed been used correctly.
I also take issue with the following statement (Business, October 22nd) : ". . . the European Commission . . . was freezing hundreds of millions of euro in development aid for Poland, because of fears of corruption in road-building". This sentence could easily be read as implying the EC suspected the Polish state road construction system of being corrupt; this interpretation could not be further from the truth. It was the Polish state that launched a criminal investigation to avoid an attempt of price-fixing involving some of the companies bidding for road-building contracts in Poland; the EC launched its audit and two months later it confirmed there was no malfunction and the Polish government provides sufficient supervision over EU co-funded projects. The fact Poland promptly uncovered the attempt to establish the cartel illustrates the efficiency of the system and the governmental actions.
In my opinion, the nature of SIAC’s difficulties in Poland is based on a different approach and practices in state administration in both countries; the Irish approach being more flexible and able to adapt more easily to new circumstances and the Polish approach being more rigid, cost-orientated and tied to regulations.
It is difficult to say which approach is better; and I would consider it wrong to blame the “other party” for not being flexible enough or being too strict about certain issues. Both approaches are equally valid, legitimate and legal; however, they have clearly proved to be incompatible in this case.
The bottom line is that the dispute which arose between Irish companies and the Polish Road Authority has been conducted in accordance with both Polish and EU law respectively.
I believe it will be quickly resolved and will enable continuation of friendly business relations between Poland and Ireland. – Yours, etc,
MARCIN NAWROT,
Polish Ambassador,
Embassy of the Republic of
Poland, Ailesbury Road,
Ballsbridge,
Dublin 4.