Galați steel works

The idea of building a large steel works in eastern Romania, with access to the Danube and/or the Black Sea, was first discussed in 1958 at a plenary session of the ruling Romanian Workers' Party.

At the congress, a heated debate took place over where to situate the plant; some wanted it near Constanța, at Midia or Mangalia, but they were overruled by leader Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, who had roots in Galați.

Gheorghiu-Dej stridently opposed this notion, and the Soviets' unwillingness to back the project helped foster Romania's opening towards the West.

After a thorough scientific study of air currents, groundwater and the stability of the land, a site was chosen in the city itself rather than in Tulucești or in the area between Galați and Brăila.

A special company, ICMRSG, was set up to build the works, hiring over 12,000 workers in six months and emptying entire villages in southern Moldavia and northern Muntenia of laborers.

It is also the only one not to use electric arc furnaces, instead relying on iron ore and coal to produce a special type of steel that welds more easily and is thus suitable for making sheet metal.