There are clear signs of a revival in the construction industry in Poland, with the leading rail freight firm PKP Cargo reporting a record rise in transport of building materials and aggregates in the first quarter of 2014.
Aggregate transport was up in particular, rising by over 80% year-on-year. However, prices have remained stable, and the aggregate industry association PZPK estimates that 60-80 million tonnes of the industry capacity of 220 million each year is currently unused.
Cement producers are also seeing rises in demand, with sales up 46% in the first four months of 2014. In the whole of the year, the cement industry association expects sales to increase by 7%, and by 2017, demand to possibly reach 19 million tonnes, matching the record year of 2011.
