SCIENTIFIC - CHEMISTRY ECONOMIC - CHEMICAL INDUSTRY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000700220150-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 12, 2003
• Sequence Number: 150
• Publication Date: April 14, 1953
• Content Type: REPORT

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Approved For Release 2003/09/03 : CIA-RDP80-00809A000700220150-6
CENTRAL IN._ erLr~~ mom.
COUNTRY
SUBJECT
HOW
PUBLISHED
WHERE
PUBLISHED
DATE
PUBLISHED
LANGUAGE
GDR; German Federal Republic
Scientific - Chemistry
Economic - Chemical industry
Monthly periodical
Berlin/Leipzig
Jan 1952
THIS DOCUMENT CON ISMS INIONNATION AIVICTIN. TN/ NATIONAL CV[NSC
Of THI YNITID STATE! WITHIN THE ^EANINS 01 [SIIONAN[ ACT IO
Y. t C, TI AND !l. Al ASE.EED, ITS TSAN$NIS1ION ON TNT NII[TION
01 ITS CO NT[NTI IN ANT NANN[N TO Al YNAYTNONISfD 11S1ON IS ISO.
NI SITED IT LAN IS EINOOYCTION Of THIS NON. IS INO NI SITE D.
DATE DIST. /
Apr 1953
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
P70BLEMS AND IMPORTANCE OF CHEMISTRY
IN THE GDR 1951-1955 FIVE-YEAR PLAN
Prof Dr H. Bertsch
Berlin.
~ormnent: The following information is based on a talk give:,
by Dr Bertsch at a conference of German chemists held in Leipzig on
17-20 October 1951, as reported in the Berlin/Leipzig monthly peri-
odical, Chemische Technik, Vol IV, No 1, January 1952]
The following important points were considered prior to the establishment
of a Five-Year Plan for the chemical industry:
1 No teaching, research, development, and industrial activity are to be
ailnwed which can serve, directly or indirectly, war preparation and the creation
of a war potential Therefore, in the chemical industry of the German Democratic
Republic, no plants are to be found for the production of poison gases, military
axp o_ivee or ammunition, or rocket and jet fuels; in short, no plants connected
any sinister activities are permitted in our science and industry.
This obligation is taken very seriously on our side. It is known, for
ina Lance, that we are destroying a large amount of the chlorine we are producing,
ui.til we find a way. by a concerted effort, to utilize these quantities of chlo-
r:n in industry for peaceful purposes.
2 There is an unflinching belief in the restoration of German unity. In
considering expansion of our production, present production capacity of all Ger-
was taken into account. Our plan will not contain any increases or expan-
tion in producti.rn, which, after restoration of German unity, would result in
eccrlomir waste of production nr_ans and manpower and thus would constitute an in-
vT?i.ment loss. Tt is not always easy to adhere to this principle, because we are
suffering from many difficulties in?exchanging goods with West Germany. This fflo
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can be seen from the restriction lists, for which we have to thank certain
groups in West Germany and the Anglo-US occupation powers. We shall have to
find certain limits in this principle to satisfy the requirements of our
industry.
3. To carry out that production for which domestic sources of raw mate-
rials are available and which can be carried out by our own means, we are, for
instance, not considering in our plan to build large plants for the processing
of coal tar.. Of course, we are lacking a number of aromatics. l?owever, we do
not have any hard coal deposits worth mentioning, and we consider that this
field should be left to our friendly neighbor, Poland. That country is the
proper place for the development of an extensive coal tar chemistry.
This principle calls for efforts on our part to reduce our imports
to the minimum required amount We cannot afford to export production items
(go?ods) so as to import goods which we can produce from domestic raw materials
at home It is no coincidence, therefore, that we had already started to build
in our Two-Year Plan our own plants for the production of synthetic fatty acids
for technical uses, as, we do not want to be dependent on the hazards and fluc-
tuations of the world markets for fats.
During the Five-Year Plan, the value of production in the chemical. industry
will increase to 182 percent. assuming the 1950 production value index as 1-00
percent, vhich is equal to art increase of almost 7 billion marks by 1955 Many
important figures pertaining to chemical production were made known by Walter
Ulbrich, at the Third Party Congress of the German Socialist Unity party _t. is
interesting at this point to consider a number of facts which were reported by
Herr Meruie, president of the Economic Council fcr the Chemical industry of West
Germns,y, at meetings of the Society of German Chemists in Cologne and of the
Society for Fat. Research in Hamburg. The hopes expressed by Herr Menne for West
Germany are probnbly hopes which will never be fulfilled. He staled, for instance,
that investments in the West German chemical industry should amount to 500 million
mark.: per year. which, in my opinion (and I must say that I consider myself quai-
tfiea to express such an opinion), is rather too low a figure. There is no doubt
that the West German government will not make allowance for this requirement and
that the danger exists teat the investment needs of our West German chemical indus-
try will be satisfied in certain definite fields and to a large extent by contri-
but.ions (or participation) from foreign countries. This is an unpleasant aolu-
tion of the problem, ;incr. we, on our part, do not desire a controlling partir_-
iput/an of foreign countries in such an important field, which would piece our
=r:dus---ry in a very dangerous position of dependence on foreign countries
/. notner et.aten.:ent mace cy Herr Menne is also of interest He announced that
the chemi;:ai indu-try had managed to obtain, through voluntary ?:oet.ributions, the
SWII of 5 millif:.n :darks for the support of universltiec and re;eercn 1nntitut-
H r ""'nn expr-s,.,d ;he hop.; that the federal government world contribute at.
?II'?'? :n: ur, r, - the ,upyort of chemical research Anyone who := faml;iar with
thn t this sum of 1 5 million marks is very =mall compared
i?^? :s in': :-urns wt t'n are made available on our side, as p.ruvtd.=d v: thin
and by -Iv, for Th.= _tln.ilation of research For .,,'t,r plan pmv:des a
u-r of ' tr.illi,;n miirkc. ,luring the 5-year period for research a,ona of which
A% urn:. :,5.,_, ned
g to chemical research In addition, a :one:d-
ri'r'U.: I moUn t. ma.rir uiv91 I ab1e for the support of unive r>i t.i'=P
riirnccr. Gur E,.--opl.=.co that teaching and research will be tritn;:ndcusly Cncour-
the ccp. of our plan and will surpass by far anything irr/nginable in
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kl.sn, what Meade had to say about production and the index of production
co.nnot be Frlvied by a but rather serves as a cause for deeply regretting the
splitting of vermany and its consequences. lie said that the index of prctuction
in the chemical industry is at present equal to 140, as compared. to [00 i7 i936.
The index of production in our chemical industry was already 167 in 1950 ana will.
become three time; nigher than the 1.936 figure during the course '.he Five-
:Year Flan. Menne stated further that the highest turnover of thi. ye~or was reach-
ed in June 19;?1 and amounted to about 450 million marks It is an integral part
of our economic planning policy to avoid ups and downs in proiucr.:en ?r>lue? and
in goals depending on fluctuations of the market, and to pertnii a corcta.nt.
predictable growth in the scope of an over-all plan allowing long-range working
to iiticoe and a clear conception of the development of our industry
The future of the West German chemical industry, as acknowl?ige'i by J4enne,
cannot be juriged in an optimistic manner in view of the sharp competition vnich
exists in foreign markets it is an intoler.ible situation that rrodv_tiOn of
certain ch