The £ód¼ Special Economic Zone, which has been running for 10 years, ranks among the most successful SEZs in Poland. In August it welcomed its 100th investor. By the end of the year, the number of permits issued to companies wanting to operate in the zone is expected to reach 115, with total investment amounting to 400 million euros.

"More than 60 percent of the companies that have received permits for operation in the £ód¼ SEZ are small and medium-sized investors, but we have also attracted some real giants," said the zone's president Marek Cie¶lak. He added that the zone's managers had applied for an expansion of the area covered by the zone to more than 900 hectares.

Province Governor Helena Pietraszkiewicz says zone investors have helped reduce unemployment in the region. "Owing to the latest batch of permits, 500 new jobs will be created in the zone," she said. "Opening up to investors means opening up our region to the world."

Marek Kapu¶ciński, CEO of Procter & Gamble Operations Polska Sp. z o.o., said that all investors, regardless of their size, tend to be guided in their investment decisions by factors such as partnership, professionalism and good cooperation with local authorities. "We have found all that in the £ód¼ SEZ," he said.

Among investors active in the zone, Libner Polska Sp. z o.o. is building a factory in Kutno near £ód¼ to make truck bodies and detachable trailers as well as related assembly kits. The firm chose Kutno because of its "central location in Poland and the proximity of major roads," said company president Francois Libner. "Besides, the city offered us very good terms and the local officials were very helpful."

Kutno Mayor Zbigniew Pruszyński said, "We realize that investors are the most important. We offer them incentives such as attractive land prices, local tax exemptions and the necessary infrastructure. They can start construction and production right away." With the city's 8-9 percent unemployment rate, all new jobs are welcome in Kutno, Pruszyński added.

Kutno joined the SEZ in 2001, but the first project started there in 2004. Six new production plants now operate in the area.

Procter&Gamble Operations Polska Sp. z o.o. has promised to hire 210 workers in its new cosmetics factory to be built in Aleksandrów £ódzki by the end of 2012. The company will invest more than zl.138 million in the project.

With this project in mind, Procter&Gamble is in talks with PPHU Jacek Sukiennik, a Polish-owned company that produces styrofoam packaging for consumer electronics and household appliances. "They produce packaging and we need it, so it is worth talking shop," said Procter&Gamble's Kapu¶ciński.

Dariusz Winnicki of Sukiennik said he hopes to strike a deal with Procter&Gamble. "Our packaging for high-quality cosmetics should satisfy the producer's requirements, especially as we have adequate production capacity," he said.

The new factory in Aleksandrów £ódzki is Procter & Gamble's third project in Poland. All are located within the £ód¼ SEZ. "The world's biggest safety razor factory is already in operation here, and we also produce diapers in the £ód¼ zone," said Kapu¶ciński. "Our new plant in Aleksandrów £ódzki will be among the biggest in the global cosmetics industry."

Maria Sondej