Wałbrzych Special Economic Zone “INVEST-PARK” was funded in April 1997. The creation of WSEZ was dictated by a high unemployment rate in the region, which was caused by the fall of coal mines, textile and crockery industries. In 1994 the unemployment rate in Wałbrzych was close to 25%. In September 2014 it was 13,6%.
In the beginning WSEZ covered approximately 250 ha (620 acres) of land in the territories of four cities – Wałbrzych, Dzierżoniów, Kłodzko and Nowa Ruda. In 17 years of operating the territory has increased almost fifteen times and over 200 companies have invested here hiring over 51 thousand people. Just in Wałbrzych alone 7 thousand people from the region have found their jobs.
The first investor that received a permit to operate in WSEZ and that is still operating here today is a producer of decorative elements for cars – Quin Polska. The company supplies the biggest automotive concerns like Porsche, Bentley, Maybach and Mercedes.
Currently Wałbrzych Special Economic Zone covers nearly 3800 ha of investment lands in 58 locations of south west Poland. Toyota, Ronal, Mondelez, 3M or Faurecia are just some of the concerns that run their factories here. In total the companies operating in WSEZ have invested here over 25,5 billion PLN.
