Import Dependence and Strategic War Planning–The German Iron and Steel Industry, 1933–1945

Abstract

In this paper I analyse the import dependence of the German steel industry between 1933 and 1945 and its strategic implications. After the First World War, the steel industry was faced with the loss of iron ore deposits in Lorraine. Steel producers replaced these ores by increasing imports. The industry was also dependent on imported alloying metals such as nickel and chromium. Taken together, this reliance on imports made the industry strategically vulnerable. Army officers drew up plans to expand domestic mining to build up strategic reserves. However, as most German ore deposits were of poor quality, private steel companies did not increase production significantly. The Nazi government forced the expansion of domestic mining to ensure supplies in the event of a blockade. This policy led to the creation of the Reichswerke ‘Hermann Göring’. In the early years of the Second World War, domestic iron ore was successfully used when imports temporarily declined. After the occupation of France, the industry was again able to rely on ores from Lorraine, so that iron ore was no longer a limiting factor. Non-ferrous metals remained scarce, but the industry was able to use substitutes so that steel production was not significantly affected.