THE INVESTMENT DEVELOPMENT AND PROFESSIONAL ACTIVATION ZONE IS THE FUTURE OF BYTOM

THE INVESTMENT DEVELOPMENT AND PROFESSIONAL ACTIVATION ZONE IS THE FUTURE OF BYTOM

30.06.2021

The idea was born to establish an Investment Development and Professional Activation Zone on the premises of the former Bobrek Steelworks in Bytom. On 30 June 2021, a letter of intent in this matter was signed by the President of Bytom Mariusz Wołosz and the President of MMG Sp. z o.o. Rafał Szostok. Cheap electricity and heat supplied from the modernised KOKSOWNIA BYTOM coking plant is a real bargain for investors in the Zone.

The signing of the letter of intent is the first step to establish the Investment Development and Professional Activation Zone. The next step will be to appoint a team of experts consisting of the representatives of the company and the representatives of the city authorities, who will jointly work out the details of the preparation, establishment and operation of the Zone on the premises of the former Bobrek Steelworks.

The total potential of the Zone is as much as 150,000 sq.m. of land stretching from Konstytucji Street towards DK 88, of which 100,000 sq.m. is owned by MMG and cooperating entities and 50,000 sq.m. belongs to the city. After the area is prepared and electricity and heat generated by MMG from coke oven gas are supplied, the land will be divided into plots and sold to investors on similar terms to those applicable in the Katowice Special Economic Zone.

The site has an undeniable advantage in the form of access to a railway siding on the Bytom-Gliwice route, but its greatest value will be the possibility of using cheap heat and electricity generated by the coking plant. Consequently, the investments will allow us to maintain production activities and save jobs in the district, even after the shutdown of the current Bobrek mine.Rafał Szostok, prezes Koksownia Bytom Sp. z o.o.

Rafał Szostok, prezes Koksownia Bytom Sp. z o.o.

The letter of intent was signed on the premises of the PETRALANA S.A. mineral rock wool factory, which has been cooperating with MMG for many years as part of the Śląski Holding Przemysłowy group. The two companies together provide employment for almost 600 employees. MMG produces 73 million m3 of coke oven gas, i.e. the by-product of the production of coke (already using energy from 67% of the resources), per year. This quantity is sufficient to heat the coke oven battery and boiler house. Moreover, 8% of the pool is purchased by PETRALANA, which uses coke oven gas for the production of mineral rock wool. This is the only solution of its kind in Europe and one of the few in the world. The cooperation between these two companies inspired the stakeholders to create the greatest competitive advantage of the Investment Development and Professional Activation Zone. Once the so-called high-efficiency cogeneration system is built, MMG will recover electricity and heat from nearly 100% of the coke oven gas, supplying the surplus to investors at prices lower than grid prices.

A distinctive feature of the Investment Development and Professional Activation Zone in Bytom on the architectural map of the city will be the revitalised office building of the former Bobrek Steelworks (located at Konstytucji Street, opposite the PETRALANA factory). Office spaces, an investor service centre, a local community activation centre and a local business incubator will be established there. The first renovation works are already underway at this historic site.