Från svensk malmexport till utländsk etablering : Grängesbergsbolagets internationalisering 1953-1980

• The main purpose of this thesis is to analyze the internationalisation of the Grängesberg Company from 1953 to 1980. The strategies that the company used and the knowledge it gained by participating in international mining projects are studied. The first and largest mining activity abroad was the Lamco project in Liberia. By transferring the company’s competence and knowledge of mining activities to Liberia, the Grängesberg Company used an international strategy of horizontal integration. The company’s contacts were of importance to start the production in 1963. The main ambition was thereafter to negotiate new long-term contracts in order to create stability for the project in the 1960s and the 1970s. Through its involvement in the Lamco project, the Grängesberg Company also acquired shares in a Belgian steel company and became half-owner with the Liberian state in a foreign shipping company. The experience and knowledge that the company gained in the Lamco project was used to increase its internationalisation in the 1970s. Appointing a Mineral Project Group, it investigated existing mineral projects abroad and formulated new internationalisation strategies such as vertical integration and diversification. The main motive for the further expansion abroad in the mining area was a need for resources for its domestic production. The most important outcome was the acquisition of a Canadian copper company, and the company integrated backwards to gain access to copper. The Grängesberg Company also used its competence by doing prospecting work in New Caledonia, Peru and Canada and consultant work in mining projects in Iran and Saudi Arabia in the 1970s. The study has shown that further international expansion became limited because of the downturn of the international economy in the 1970s, but also because of the company’s cautious attitude towards the political risks that were associated with international mining projects.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Ekonomi och näringsliv -- Ekonomisk historia (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Economics and Business -- Economic History (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Internationalisation

learning process

investment strategies

iron and steel industry

market integration

mining

business history

path dependence

internationalisation theory

Lamco

Economic history

Ekonomisk historia

Ekonomisk historia

Economic History

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