SovRom

An agreement between the two countries regarding the establishment of common enterprises was signed in Moscow on 8 May 1945,^[6] at a time when Romania found itself in economic isolation.^[7]

The first SovRom to be created (on 17 July 1945), was Sovrompetrol, which had as its objective the exploitation of petroleum in Prahova County areas and the oil refineries in Ploiești.^[8] By 1947, it was responsible for 37% of oil drilling,^[7] some 30% of the total production of crude oil, and over 36% of refined oil,^[7] controlling 37% of internal oil supplies and 38% of external ones.^[7]

Sovrompetrol was followed by Sovromtransport and Tars (transportation), and later by Sovrombanc (banking and commercial monopoly), Sovromlemn (wood processing), Sovromgaz (natural gas), Sovromasigurare (insurance), Sovromcărbune (coal exploitation in the Jiu Valley and other areas), Sovromchim (chemical industry), Sovromconstrucții (construction materials), Sovrommetal (iron mining — around Reșița), Sovromtractor (future Tractorul, in Brașov), Sovromfilm (importing Soviet cinema productions), Sovrom Utilaj Petrolier (producing oil refining equipment) and Sovromnaval (shipbuilding in Constanța, Giurgiu, and Brăila).

El caso más notorio es el de Sovromcuarț (o Sovromquarțit , Sovrom Kvartit ), que, aunque aparentemente producía cuarzo , como su nombre indicaba, ^{[ 9 ]} en realidad se dedicaba a la extracción de mineral de uranio. ^{[ 10 ]} Sovromcuarț comenzó a operar en 1950 en la mina Băița , en el condado de Bihor , con una plantilla de 15.000 presos políticos . Tras la muerte de la mayoría de ellos por envenenamiento por radiación , fueron reemplazados por aldeanos locales, que desconocían el mineral que extraían. ^{[ 11 ]} Otra instalación operada por este SovRom fue la mina de uranio Ciudanovița, en el condado de Caraș-Severin , que empleaba a unas 10.000 personas a principios de la década de 1950. ^{[ 12 ] [ 13 ]} En secreto, ^{[ 14 ]} Rumania entregó 17.288 toneladas de mineral de uranio a la Unión Soviética entre 1952 y 1960, ^{[ 15 ]} que se utilizó, al menos parcialmente, en el proyecto soviético de la bomba atómica . ^{[ 16 ]} La extracción de uranio continuó hasta 1961. ^{[ 17 ]} Todo el mineral se envió fuera de Rumania para su procesamiento, inicialmente a Sillamäe en Estonia ; el concentrado de uranio fue utilizado entonces exclusivamente por la Unión Soviética . ^{[ 17 ]}

En 1952, el 85% de las exportaciones rumanas se dirigían a la Unión Soviética. ^{[ 18 ]} El valor total de los bienes que Rumania transfirió a la Unión Soviética superó con creces las reparaciones de guerra exigidas, estimándose en 2 mil millones de dólares. ^{[ 19 ]}

Las circunstancias especiales también intensificaron los efectos negativos de SovRoms en la economía rumana : la grave sequía y los brotes de hambruna de 1946, ^{[ 20 ]} junto con la grave devaluación del leu , que culminaron en una estabilización forzada a través de una reforma monetaria (1947). ^{[ 21 ]}

The SovRoms' end, evidence of the relative emancipation of the Romanian Workers' Party from Soviet control, ran parallel to the de-Stalinization process; it was approved by Nikita Khrushchev and carried out by Miron Constantinescu (head of the Planning Board).^[22]

Discussions aimed at winding down the SovRoms began in March 1953.^[23] The first measure was taken in 1954 (through accords signed in March and September):^[7] Soviet shares in 12 of the 16 enterprises were taken over by the Romanian state, in exchange for a sum to be paid in installments of merchandise exports (in 1959, the debt was set at over 35 billion lei).^[24] Payments were completed in 1975.^[24] The initial sum at which the Soviet side estimated its contribution was 9.6 billion lei, in contrast to the 2.9 billion lei at which it had been valued by Romanian sources;^[25] discussions on the matter reduced the sum to a total of 5.3 billion lei, which was construed by the two sides not as a corrected result, but as a concession owing to past irregularities in SovRom activities.^[25] At the same time, the Soviet Union announced that it gave up interests in formerly German-owned enterprises and equipment on Romanian soil, for which Romania paid 1.5 billion lei as compensation (deducted from the total 5.3 billion).^[25]

The last two remaining SovRoms, Sovrompetrol and Sovromcuarț, were disbanded in 1956.^[26] However, the Romanian government signed an agreement that would replace Sovromcuarț with a new state-owned company which was to carry on the mining and processing of uranium ore, delivering its entire output to the Soviet Union.^[27] This successor company was itself dissolved in 1961.^[17] Soviet investment in Sovromcuarț was evaluated to a debt of 413 million rubles, which were to be paid by Romania over a 10-year period (starting with 1961).^[28]

El gesto fue utilizado por el Primer Secretario Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej , quien previamente había garantizado la eficiencia de la SovRom, ^{[ 29 ]} como un medio para ganar popularidad entre los ciudadanos rumanos y, paralelamente, para publicitar la idea de que Rumania tenía los “requisitos” suficientes para el socialismo después de completar la nacionalización . ^{[ 30 ]}