This year’s edition, the third and most successful one so far, took place in the fantastically renovated EC1 in Łódż and offered a three-day programme on a wide variety of topics, with 81 panels and 241 speakers from all over Europe. The event was organized by the Polish Alternative Fuels Association (PSPA) and hosted a record number of 1598 participants, becoming the largest-scale trade event on sustainable mobility in Poland. It effectively brought together all relevant players in the Polish mobility sector, including the automotive industry, transport companies, providers of mobility services, companies developing electromobility and policymakers from the public sector. The Netherlands’ ambassador to Poland, Daphne Bergsma, officially opened the congress, together with other dignatories, among which the mayor of Łódż, Hanna Zdanowska.

Seizing the occasion of the NMC, the Netherlands Embassy in Poland decided to offer an "Exhibition Participation Package" for the Dutch private sector, under the Support for International Business Programme of the RVO, the aim being to introduce or position Dutch business in the fastly growing Polish mobility sector. The group of company representatives from the Netherlands that applied for the package turned out to be very diverse in background, scale, branch, interest and experience in Poland, resulting in serendipitous exchanges and a remarkably good vibe. We had small and large companies on board, involved in charging infrastructure (Alfen, Fastned, Volt Time, CV Charging Europe), smart energy and mobility solutions (Brenergie, LastMileSolutions), lease (Leaseplan), automotive (DAF Trucks), energy storage (e-ATEPS, StoragePartners), IT-solutions (Sourceful) and a venture capital fund (Urban Impact Ventures). 

A total of 73 match-making meetings were held, with the invaluable suppport of Elro van den Burg of the Netherlands Polish Chamber of Commerce (NPCC). An other meet&greet-moment was the networking event hosted by the Embassy. Just before the congress, PSPA recorded a podcast in which a number of the Dutch companies presented themselves and the Economic Counsellor of the Netherlands Embassy, Sanne Kaasjager, reflected on developments and opportunities in Polish mobility. A special market survey “Poland Drives e-Mobility 2022”, commissioned by RVO and written by PSPA, provided the basis for that reflection and was also officially presented at the NMC2022. Many of the Dutch business representatives took active part in various panels. Michiel Langezaal, CEO of FastNed, made a keynote speech in the main hall. Herman Sips, representative of the Dutch ministry of Infrastructure and Water, responsible for the campaign to promote the Global MoU on electrification of heavy transport, contributed online in a highly interesting panel with representatives of leading e-truck manufacturers. The centrally-located NL Pavilion did its work by providing a “poster” for the Dutch brands and a lively meeting point. Visitors could also put on special Virtual Reality glasses with 3D-presentations of various Dutch sectors. A total of 54 people seized this new way of visualizing Dutch products and services way of doing business (and sometimes a little seasick). The abundantly present Polish media conducted 6 TV interviews with business and embassy representatives, increasing the Dutch visibility even more.

So, what are the most potential areas for cooperation and growth? The analists of PSPA concluded that for Dutch investors and providers there are four areas to look at with particular interest: electrification of heavy transport, expansion of a public and private charging infrastructure, lithium-ion battery production and mobility-as-a-service. All Dutch participants where positively surprised by the potential of the Polish market and indicated a clear interest to come back next year. The Netherlands Embassy thanks all involved, especially the NPCC, RVO, the ministry of Infrastructure & Water, and especially the representatives of the Dutch companies for their interest and enthousiastic contributions.