The fourth edition of the Polish-Turkish Economic Forum took place in Istanbul on Wednesday, gathering officials and business representatives from both countries to tackle the topics of green technologies and energy transition.
The energy sector serves as one of the areas to further enhance the cooperation between the duo, as highlighted during the forum, taking in particular the renewable energy expansion that both countries have witnessed in recent decades.
Due to Poland holding the presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2025, the conference also embraced the EU perspective.
The forum was organized by the Polish diplomatic missions in Türkiye as well as the Polish Investment and Trade Agency (PAIH) Istanbul office, with the Foreign Economic Relations Board of Türkiye (DEIK) as the partnering institution from the Turkish side.
Organized annually in Istanbul, the forum focuses on a specific sector each year, with last year's event, for example, addressing the cybersecurity domain.
Addressing the event, Maciej Lang, ambassador of Poland to Türkiye, noted that it is being held "with the objective to foster Polish and Turkish economic cooperation, to focus on different sectors."
He expressed he was glad that this year's business meetings and discussions embrace green technologies and energy transition, adding that: "Because (it goes) without saying that the way we act today through our individual decisions, social norms and business responsibility shape the foundations of our future."
Moreover, he emphasized he was glad it also touches upon the EU perspective, recalling Poland's Presidency of the EU Council, with a strong focus on security. Moreover, he also highlighted that in the current geopolitical and geoeconomic environment, security should be viewed from the broadest perspective, including economic and energy security.
He also pointed out that Poland actively participates in international discussions on climate change and that it wants to be a "bridging country in the global green transition."
"Poland would like to be a bridging country in the global green transition with a strong focus on promoting technology, cost-effective solutions that suit all regions and countries. We strongly believe that technological innovation is a part of the global green transition, mainly by allowing transformation from carbon-intensive systems to sustainable, low-emission economies," he said.
He added that currently his country spends approximately 1.4% of its gross domestic product (GDP) on research and development.
While recalling that in Poland's energy story was "written in coal dust," the ambassador cited that today the country is investing billions in different sources of clean energy, from offshore wind farms, solar energy to battery technology and hydrogen.
He concluded by saying that the discussions held at the forum would "allow us to better understand the prospects for cooperation in the field of green technologies and energy security, and that meetings to be held would result in concrete business projects and economic initiatives."
Witold Lesniak, the consul general of Poland in Istanbul, for his part, highlighted the role of Istanbul as a "strategic hub" that "connects markets, continents and people."
"There is a huge potential for collaboration, whether in technology, infrastructure, energy solutions," he said, adding that yet only the beginning of these possibilities has been explored.
"I am very glad that today's forum with a focus on the green sector takes place in Istanbul. As an important economic and industrial center, Istanbul and its surroundings are increasingly investing in renewable energy, sustainable transportation and energy-efficient infrastructure. As Poland, we would like to contribute to these efforts with cutting-edge solutions, our sustainable, high-tech solutions for cities, industries and households," Lesniak said.
A similar view was echoed by businesspeople.
Ercan Emrah Duman, chairperson of the Türkiye-Poland Business Council at DEIK, stated that they attach great importance to the bilateral trade volume, which reached approximately $12 billion and emphasized that they fully support the common goal of increasing this to $15 billion.
Some of the panelists at the forum included Ambassador Zafer Ateş, who is also the director general of Energy, Environment and Transboundary Waters, from Türkiye's Foreign Ministry and Christian Ballaro, attache, program officer for Energy and Climate Change from the EU delegation to Türkiye.
During the forum, 10 Polish companies had the chance to present their work to attendees. A total of three panels focusing on business opportunities, innovation and Polish and Turkish experiences in the field were held as part of the forum.
