Winter weather has high price tag

19th February 2010

© Godai, www.wikipedia.pl The severe weather could affect growth this year Share:

This winter's low temperatures and heavy snowfall have cost the Polish economy as much as PLN 1.5 bln, with bad weather hampering transport and construction work grinding to a halt nationwide.

Economists surveyed by Gazeta Wyborcza estimated that this year's harsh winter could shave as much as 0.5 percent – or PLN 1.5 bln – from 2010 GDP.

Home builders have been among the hardest hit by the freeze. The GUS report showed that work was started on 4,450 flats in January, little more than half the number from one year ago and a quarter less than in December 2009. In addition, 11,600 flats were completed, some 30 percent less than last year.

According to the Central Statistics Office (GUS), overall construction activity fell by 15.3 percent in January, even as overall industrial production rose 8.5 percent over last year's sharp decline.

Although some of the slowdown can be attributed to the economic downturn, bad weather clearly had a major effect, causing delays in new investments and halts or slowdowns in construction work.

"We weren't caught off guard by the snow and cold, but we expected this winter to be milder," explained Krzysztof Woch of Hydrobudowa Polska, which is building stadiums for Euro 2012. "Most of our projects are highly dependent on the weather. When the weather is a few degrees below zero, we can continue work, but when it reaches minus 20, almost everything has to be halted," he added.


The weather has also caused problems in terms of transportation. Most cities have already spent most or all of the money budgeted this year for snow removal. Warsaw has spent more than PLN 100 mln to clear its streets.

In the private sector, companies have had to allocate extra money to clear snow from private roadways and parking lots. Transport firms meanwhile have faced increased costs for maintenance and fuel due to the low temperatures and slower driving conditions

Even rail service has been affected. Passengers have experienced frustrating delays and PKP has spent an additional PLN 5.5 mln due to the cold. "These are costs related to de-icing power lines and using more expensive diesel locomotives in place of electric ones, Michal Wrzosek of PKP told Gazeta Wyborcza.

But not all businesses are suffering. Salt producers have seen sales rise by 20 percent, and mines and energy producers are enjoying a high demand for goal and gas. "We are currently selling twice as much coal to individual buyers as last year," Zbigniew Madej of Kompania Weglowa told the paper.


Although the snowfall and cold have been both troublesome and expensive, more potential problems await once the weather gets warmer. Snow and icicles falling from rooftops and a danger of flooding will both pose their own problems once the first big thaw arrives.