Japan's Daikin to build heat pump factory in Poland -sources

Daikin Industries

06/07/2022 21:43

WARSAW, July 6 (Reuters) - Japanese air-conditioning systems
and heat pump maker Daikin's  6367.T  Polish unit will invest
over one billion zloty to build a factory producing heat pumps
near Lodz in central Poland, a source familiar with the matter
said.
    Demand for heat pumps - which rely on electricity to
transfer heat - has been booming in Europe amid soaring gas
prices, with consumers waiting months for their installation.
    In Poland, the number of heat pump devices to heat houses
nearly doubled last year to over 79,000 units.
    A Japanese company plans to build a heat pump factory, two
sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. One person said
the investor was Daikin, while a source close to the government
said the investment would exceed 1 billion zloty ($213.13
million).
    The local headquarters of Daikin in Poland could not be
reached for comment outside office hours. A spokesperson for the
Polish government and a representative for the Lodz special
economic zone (LSSE) were not immediately available for comment.
    The European Commission in May unveiled a 210 billion euro 
($213.86 billion) plan for Europe to end its reliance on Russian
fossil fuels by 2027, and to use the move away from Moscow to
speed up the transition to green energy. 
    Those investments include 56 billion euros for energy
savings and heat pumps.
    Heat pumps, sometimes described as reverse air conditioners,
use electricity to concentrate heat potential and are
comparatively more energy efficient than gas boilers.  
    Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki is due on Thursday
to hold a news conference to accompany the inauguration at the
LSSE of the largest foreign investment in the country in recent
years. No details have been given on the investor involved.
    Meeting the targets set by RepowerEU - the EU's plan
unveiled in May - would require around 20 million heat pumps to
be installed in the EU by 2026 and nearly 60 million by 2030,
according to the European Heat Pump Association.
($1 = 4.6919 zlotys)
($1 = 0.9819 euros)

 (Reporting by Marek Strzelecki and Anna Koper; Editing by Deepa
Babington)
 ((anna.koper@thomsonreuters.com; +48 22 104 25 24; Reuters
Messaging: anna.koper.reuters.com@thomsonreuters.com))