Czech Republic

Czechoslovakia was split into two independent states at the end of 1992 - the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic. From 1" January 1993, the Czech economy had to function separately and keep pace with the changes happening in world markets as well as changes connected with the disintegration of the Czechoslovakian Republic.

The newly established Czech Republic continued their economic transformation in the form of privatization, which proved to be very complicated, with various effects on particular sectors of the country. Aiming to stimulate the economy, in the following years the Czech Republic offered significant investment incentives and benefits to foreign investors.

On 1ª May 2004, the Czech Republic became a member of the European Union. From the economic point of view, it led to the overall improvement of the position of the Czech Republic on the international market as well as to new possibilities that would strengthen the Czech economy, such as the inflow of foreign investments, access to EU structural funds to develop various fields and regions, or the possibility for Czech citizens to move to other EU member states to work. All limits restricting trade were removed.

Today, the Czech Republic is one of the most developed industrial economies in Central and Eastern Europe. Czech industry is focused on metallurgy, engineering, car industry, electronic industry, chemistry, food and beverages processing, and production of glass, medicaments, textile and paper. Industry makes up 41% of the gross domestic product (GDP). The largest part of the country's GDP comes from the service sector (55%). The agricultural sector only contributes 5%, which is quite a low percentage.

The main agricultural products include wheat, barley, sugar cane, potatoes, fruit and hops. The most significant farm animals bred in the country are cattle, pigs and fowl.

The most important trade partners of the Czech Republic ae Germany, Slovakia, Poland, France, Austria, Italy, the Nether-lands, Russia, Great Britain, China and the USA.

Information & Communication Technology (ICT)

Introduction

The Czech Republic is one of Europe's top locations for ICT investments. Repeatedly recognised by various researchers, this fact is confirmed by the strong inflow of high-value-added projects of the world's top ICT companies and is fuelled by the country's tradition of excellence in technical fields. The list of successful investors in the country involves Microsoft, Skype, DHL, Tieto, Red Hat, SolarWinds and IBM.The Czech Republic is recognised for its long industrial tradition and it is absolutely no surprise that new technologies naturally grow in the established environment of recognised universities, institutions and research centers. Two of the world's few antivirus-software providers, AVAST and AVG, grew out of this environment. Of all the countries where the Latin alphabet is used, the Czech Republic is the only one whose domestic web search provider, Seznam.cz, is challenging Google on the local market.

The Czech ICT at a Glance

• Very good education system which serves as a basis for future skills development and produces a very capable workforce.
• The Czech Republic has a long tradition of excellence in technical fields.
• IT companies with Czech origins are renowned worldwide for their products and services (AVG Technologies, AVAST Software, Bohemia Interactive, Y-SOFT).
• Major IT companies that are successful in the Czech Republic: Microsoft, Skype, Monster Technologies, SAP, DHL, Tieto, Hewlett-Packard, SolarWinds, Red Hat and IBM.
• Creative, innovative, experienced and skilled professionals.
• The Czech Republic is one of the very few countries in the world where Google does not have a clearly dominant position on the internet search market. Its local rival is the Czech company Seznam.cz

Note: Should you be interested in more information please do not hesitate to contact us at ict@czechinvest.org

Energy & Environment

Introduction

The Czech Republic is abiding by the EU strategy for sustainable development that stands for " Smarter and Cleaner Europe". The adopted policies are supported by both the EU and national budgets and create a broad range of opportunities for investors to design, manufacture and deliver new technologies for environmental protection and energy savings for more than 700 million consumers in the European market. Technologies for reusing industrial waste in new products, increased use of renewable energy sources and support for energy savings through the introduction of new products and technologies in smart energy distribution systems are of paramount importance. The Czech Republic offers investors in these areas both technical competence and manufacturing excellence that, combined with cost effectiveness, create favorable conditions for new investments.

General characteristic of the sector

• Long tradition in design and manufacturing of technologies for the energy sector
• The first prototype of the Kaplan turbine developed and produced in Brno in 1919
• More than 10,000 students involved in energy and environment related studies every year
• Close ties between universities, research and industry
• Availability of skilled and experienced industry-specific staff at competitive prices
• Established industrial R&D, manufacturing and supply chain Supportive business environment and incentives for both
• R&D and manufacturing Trends in the energy and environment sector
• Cogeneration units
• Biomass-fired boilers
• Heat pumps
• Solar thermal collectors
• Small hydropower plants
• Smart-grids and smart-city solutions
• Energy infrastructure
• Waste-to-energy technology
• Technologies for reusing waste
• Wastewater-treatment technologies

Note: Should you be interested in more information please do not hesitate to contact us at energy@czechinvest.org

Nanotechnology & Advanced Materials

Introduction

The dynamically developing nanotechnology sector is penetrating a full range of various fields. In the Czech Republic, this primarily involves the automotive, aviation, textile and chemical industries, which have a strong tradition and most to gain from the use of nanotechnology

The absolute majority of domestic firms involved in nanotechnology are companies that need to rapidly internationalize and find business partners abroad in order to be successful. Elmarco, TESCAN ORSAY HOLDING or Contipro are great examples of such companies.

An example of successful internationalization of Czech institutions is the Memorandum on Cooperation between Czechinvest Agency and the NanoTechnology Research Association of South Korea, which was concluded in 2012. In 2011, the Technical University of Liberec signed the Agreement on Cooperation with Shinshu University in Japan.

Industry Specialization

• Industrial production of nanofibers and derivatives thereof
• Production of monocrystalline materials for electron microscopy and laser applications
• Electron lithography used mainly for holography applications
• Wound healing, tissue regeneration, targeted delivery of drugs/treatments, gene therapy, instruments for detecting damaged DNA
• Production of laser interferometers for metrology and the machine-tool and microelectronics industries
• Water treatment
• Surface and antibacterial treatments

Reasons to Invest

• World-class basic nanotechnology research
• Increasing number of research institutions, clusters and private companies working in nanotechnologies
• Excellent research and human-resources potential of Czech small and medium-size enterprises
• Primacy in industrial production of nanofibers with a broad range of applications
• Regulatory and patent environment in accordance with EU standards
• European funding and Czech investment incentives

Note: Should you be interested in more information please do not hesitate to contact us at nano@czechinvest.org

Automotive Industry

The automotive industry in the Czech Republic is one of the most developed automotive sectors in Central and Eastern Europe. Thanks to its long tradition and technical know-how, the Czech automotive sector has become an advanced automotive base with an attractive cost-output ratio.

The automotive industry is the driving force of the Czech Republic's economic revival with a strong positive influence on the country's trade balance and the creation of gross domestic product With its population of ten million, the Czech Republic occupies a remarkable position on the global scale. In 2012 it was the world's 13th largest car manufacturer, with an output of 112 cars per every 1000 inhabitants. The CR thus ranks second in the world, after Slovakia. In the same comparisons, it was the first in the world in the manufacture of buses.

Record revenues for the first time reaching nearly CZK 840 billion (approx. BUR 33.6 billion) and a number of other parameters indicate that the year 2012 was a successful one for the Czech automotive industry. The domestic automotive industry accounted for 23% of total revenues from industrial activities and for approximately 8% of the country's GDP. Of key importance for the Czech automotive industry is export.

More than 80% of the industry's output goes for export. The importance of export further increased in 2012, when the export growth rate was higher than the growth of revenues from own production. In comparison with the previous year, it rose by 8.5% and reached a historical maximum of CZK 595.0 billion (approx. EUR 23.8 billion). All the "automotive" items taken together accounted for more than 22% of Czech exports.