Austrade recently held a number of roundtables in Melbourne, Brisbane, Newcastle and Perth to update Australian SMEs and industry groups about the export opportunities in Poland’s defence and aviation sectors.
As part of the most ambitious modernisation program in the country’s history, Poland is expected to spend an estimated A$71 billion on the technical modernisation of the Polish Armed Forces until 2026. Priority areas include air and missile defence, armoured and mechanised forces, and navy and cyber defence. To achieve this, Poland is looking for foreign partners who can offer the latest, most technologically advanced solutions in these areas.
‘Although Poland may not be the first European country Australian exporters think of, its objective to equip its defence and aviation sectors with the latest technologies presents strong export opportunities,’ says Bozena Swierbutowicz, Austrade’s Business Development Manager in Poland, who led the roundtables.
There are also a number of collaboration opportunities for Australian companies in Poland’s aviation sector. Poland’s air passenger transport increased by 18% in 2018, while a new international hub airport is being considered for Warsaw in 2027. Polish SMEs are looking for best-in-class aviation technologies such as avionics, 3D printing and unmanned aerial vehicles.
During the roundtables, Austrade outlined the breadth of opportunities available to Australian SMEs which align with Polish Government, military and industry priorities, and advised on ways to enter and thrive in Poland.
Austrade also outlined how Australian SMEs can capitalise on the many support mechanisms available to them as part of the Australian Government’s Defence Export Strategy.
‘As part of the Strategy, there are a range of support mechanisms for Australian companies to help them start exporting, or export to new markets,’ says Jarrad Harvey, an Austrade Senior Defence Adviser.
‘Such mechanisms range from capitalising on the expertise of our newly appointed Defence Directors located in priority international markets, to participating on one of the many Team Defence Australia(TDA)or Austrade trade shows or missions.’
Reflecting Australian companies’ growing interest in Poland, a delegation of over 20 Australian defence companies will showcase their products, services and technologies as part of the TDA delegation to the MSPO trade show, to be held in Kielce, Poland, between 3─6 September 2019. Austrade will support TDA by delivering in-market briefings, facilitating introductions to key stakeholders, and conducting business-to-business matching.
Read about business opportunities in Poland’s aviation and defence
