The operations of the Port of Gdańsk generate, on average, more than PLN 40 billion in annual tax revenues for the state budget linked to cargo handling, according to a report by PwC Polska. This is a figure that not only impresses but also clearly demonstrates the immense importance of the country’s largest seaport to the Polish economy. However, the impact of the Port of Gdańsk extends far beyond cargo handling and transport. It also encompasses, among other things, the labour market, household incomes, and their contribution to public finances.

According to PwC Polska’s analysis, tax revenues generated from cargo handled at the Port of Gdańsk constitute a significant source of state income. In 2024 alone, they amounted to PLN 44.6 billion, representing 6.5% of total state budget revenues. To illustrate the scale, this figure is equivalent to funding the construction of approximately 100,000 social housing units. It also exceeds 70% of the annual budget of the Rodzina 800+ programme, which costs around PLN 63 billion.

Public finance revenues are also generated by business activity conducted within the Port of Gdańsk and its surrounding areas. Across Poland, these amounted to approximately PLN 8.8 billion in 2024.

“Port of Gdańsk is an economic organism closely linked to global trade, delivering tangible benefits to the residents of Gdańsk, the Pomorskie region, and the entire country in the form of substantial annual contributions to the state budget. These are funds that return to citizens through public services, investments, or social programmes, while also demonstrating that the development of port infrastructure is an investment of strategic importance,” said Dorota Pyć, President of the Port of Gdańsk.

Over 83,000 jobs supported

The latest report by PwC Polska also shows that approximately 16,000 people are employed directly by entities engaged in strictly port and operational activities at the Port of Gdańsk. More than half of these employees live in Gdańsk. Businesses operating in the port also provide jobs for residents of surrounding counties—primarily Gdańsk and Kartuzy, as well as neighbouring regions in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship.

However, the port’s real impact on employment is significantly broader than the number of people directly employed on-site. Its operations stimulate demand for other services, including transport, thereby creating additional jobs. In 2024, the activities of the Port of Gdańsk generated a total of 83,700 jobs across the national economy. This means that one in three jobs linked to the port is created outside its immediate vicinity. Moreover, as much as 5.7% of all employment in the Pomeranian Voivodeship is connected to the port—equivalent to one in twenty jobs in the region.

The port’s societal impact also extends beyond its workforce. It is estimated that its operations support the livelihoods of more than 209,000 people across Poland—comparable to the population of a large Polish city such as Częstochowa, Radom or Toruń. Income generated through port-related employment reaches nearly 70,000 households, including families with children. In 2024, the total income of these households amounted to PLN 8.1 billion. This represents a significant stimulus to consumption, driving growth in trade, services, and both local and national economies.

“The operations of the Port of Gdańsk generate employment not only directly within the port itself, but also indirectly across the entire region and the country. The hundreds of thousands of people whose livelihoods depend on our port demonstrate how deeply we are embedded in the functioning of local communities and the economy of Pomorskie and Poland as a whole,” Dorota Pyć added.

A key pillar of regional growth

The PwC Polska report outlines the port’s impact across four key areas: the labour market, value added and GDP, public finances, and foreign trade. The study applied the Leontief input-output model to capture the full scale of the Port of Gdańsk’s economic impact, estimating direct, indirect, and induced effects. The direct effect reflects the activity of companies operating within the port. The indirect effect includes their suppliers, while the induced effect arises from employee spending, which fuels consumption and further economic growth.

“Today, the Port of Gdańsk is far more than a logistics hub—it is one of the pillars of the Polish economy. Its operations strengthen the stability of public finances, increase household incomes, and stimulate the development of local communities. It is a classic example of a strong multiplier effect—where a single piece of infrastructure drives employment, income, and growth across multiple sectors of the economy,” concluded Paweł Oleszczuk, Director in the Economic Analysis Team at PwC Polska.

Often perceived merely as a cargo handling hub, the Port of Gdańsk proves in reality to be one of the foundations of the country’s economic security.