Czech metallurgy in the past

First of all, the basic characteristic of development of metallurgy in the former Czechoslovak Federative Republic in the past, i.e. in the period since about the seventies, is to be presented for continuity’s sake. Until that time, the metallurgical industry in post-war Czechoslovakia developed particularly in volume what has been realised by the contribution of one integrated iron and steel works in Moravia - today joint-stock company Nová hut, and of one integrated iron and steel works in Slovakia - today joint-stock company VSZ. In addition, a plant for production of tubes was erected in Southern Moravia - today joint-stock company Zelezárny Veselí and in Slovakia a plant for production of ferroalloys - today joint-stock company Oravské ferrozliatinárske závody. A network of wholesale of metallurgical material sales was successively built up wherein the former plants are today independent enterprises covered by the joint-stock company Ferona.

The system of directive planned control based, for a long time, development of metallurgy on the permanent growth of steel production volume so that some contemplations led to the target idea of yearly steel production exceeding 25 mil t. For extensive development and its form of realisation, metallurgy paid a toll which may be characterised as follows: Metallurgy in the Czechoslovak Federative Republic was overdimensioned, and in the area of original production it was too oriented at pig iron production from generally metallurgically worse treatable ores from the countries of the former Soviet Union. It was worked a with lower share of progressive technologies of production and casting steel; it was necessary to invest in finality and quality. At the steel production capacity of approx. 16 mil t, 12.1 mil t steel with 79 % of steel production using oxygen processes (52.8 % in oxygen converters) and 17 % of continuously cast steel was produced in 1991. The fuel and energy demand was higher and the labour productivity lower than in the advanced countries. Evaluation of labour productivity and total economic efficiency were, however, very distorted in comparison with abroad by including a number of servicing activities incl. operating facilities of the so-called social consumption.