Preferential ESA member conditions extended for Poland
PR dla Zagranicy
Victoria Bieniek
12.01.2017 16:44
Polish businesses and research centres will continue to benefit from preferential conditions of European Space Agency (ESA) membership until the end of 2019 under a new agreement.
Photo: Flickr.com/Edward Webb
The agreement, signed by Poland's deputy Prime Minister and Development Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and ESA director Jan Woerner, sees preferential conditions during a transition period extended by two years.
It is the first time the ESA has decided to extend a member's transition period.
The preferential conditions see 45 percent of Poland's ESA member fees earmarked for the Polish space industry and co-funding Polish shares in projects or missions.
Development Minister Morawiecki said he would like to see broader cooperation with the ESA.
“Support so far and cooperation so far has been very effective,” Morawiecki said.
He added that, by signing the agreement, Poland had moved into a new stage of space conquest.
“The influence of the space sector on the Polish economy may be great and I believe it will be great,” Morawiecki said.
ESA director Woerner said that, thanks to its ESA membership, Poland is able to develop space technologies and take part it projects which it would not have managed on its own.
Until the end of July last year, the Polish space industry made 236 applications to the ESA, worth a total of PLN 232 million (EUR 53 million). Of them, 99 were granted close to PLN 87 million in funding. (vb)
Source: PAP