While the new legislation is still pending, a growing number of voices across Europe are calling for strengthening the internal market and prioritizing contractors from within the EU. National governments are increasingly encouraged to ensure that domestic companies have a fair chance to execute projects within their own countries.
“Europe has finally matured to admit that allowing non-EU companies to bid on public tenders for European projects doesn’t create fairness – it undermines the competitiveness of our businesses. We are holding Prime Minister Donald Tusk to his word, as he spoke about ‘repolonization’ at the Maritime Congress. Projects funded by the National Recovery Plan (KPO) and large-scale infrastructure undertakings set to begin soon will be a test of whether Polish firms truly get a shot,” said Hanna Mojsiuk, President of the Pomeranian Chamber of Commerce in Szczecin.
Repolonization and Supporting the European Economy
Work is underway in the Polish Parliament on an amendment that would ban companies from so-called “third countries” from participating in public tenders. This change is highly anticipated by Polish entrepreneurs, who have long had to compete not only with EU giants but also with firms from Asia, which could often offer significantly lower investment costs. As a result, Polish firms were frequently pushed into the role of subcontractors or junior partners.
Excluding contractors who are not from the EU or parties to international trade agreements is seen as a step toward strengthening the European economy and improving the competitiveness of local businesses.
“The time when Polish companies merely served as background support for foreign giants that won tenders because a ‘foreign company means quality’ is, hopefully, over. We’re hopeful that new regulations favoring domestic markets will come into effect soon, and that investors will begin paying attention to the origin of the companies or consortia bidding for public contracts,” added Mojsiuk.
Why This Is a Crucial Change for Polish Companies
“This is a matter of economic fairness,” Mojsiuk explained. “Companies from Turkey, China, or India were ‘poaching’ on the Polish market, securing lucrative public contracts and forming consortia with European firms, which gave them a leg up in the bidding process. Polish companies were treated as subcontractors. Of course, we’re not against international cooperation—specialist projects like the Polimery Police facility show that global expertise is often essential. But when it comes to tasks like road construction, Polish companies have the required competencies.”
Is It Time to Amend the Public Procurement Law?
Entrepreneurs have long advocated that non-European offers should not be considered in EU tenders. The proposed legal amendments currently refer to companies from “third countries.” However, experts stress that ensuring the health of the domestic economy and the ability of local businesses to carry out investment projects requires a closer look at who is actually bidding.
“If a Polish company is capable of completing a project and has submitted a reliable bid, there should be no question it gets priority. The Public Procurement Law emphasizes transparency and equal treatment of bidders, but given the current geopolitical context, it’s time for a revision. We’re entering a phase of major investments from the KPO, as well as in defense and infrastructure. This is a critical moment—Polish companies, or at the very least Polish-European consortia, are fully capable of delivering these projects,” said Mojsiuk.
“One clear test of whether repolonization will move from theory to practice will be the awarding of the contract for the three-stage construction of the Western Road Bypass of Szczecin. Several Polish firms have submitted bids, and we’re very interested to see how those proposals will be evaluated,” she concluded.
Source: CEO.com.pl – “Polskie firmy zyskają pierwszeństwo w przetargach”
