POSITION OF LEADING COMMERCIAL NATIONS
The country that leads in the manufacture of chromium products, such as ferrochrome and chrome chemicals, is the United States. In normal times the United States consumes more than one-third of the annual consumption of chromite by the world. In 1913 the chromite used by manufacturers of ferrochrome and chrome chemicals in the United States amounted to 65,000 tons. Owing to the war, the consumption increased markedly until 1917, when it was nearly 130,000 tons. The normal consumption of chromite in England is about 25,000 tons and in France approximately 35,000 tons. These amounts have not greatly increased in recent years. Germany is an important producer of chromium products, normally consuming 30,000 tons of chromite annually. Russia and the former Austrian Empire used perhaps 5,000 tons each annually. Norway and Sweden use small amounts. Russia’s consumption has been mainly in the manufacture of chromium chemicals, and that of the former Austrian Empire was principally for refractory purposes. In Norway and Sweden small amounts of ferrochrome are produced.
United States.
—The United States, although the world’s largest consumer of chromite, is not an important producer of this mineral in normal times. During the 30 years preceding the war, the annual production never exceeded 4,000 long tons of crude ore, and during the last 15 years preceding the war the largest annual production was 598 long tons, in 1909. The production in 1913 was less than 1 per cent. of the domestic requirements.
The chromite supply of the United States has, therefore, come largely from foreign sources, and these sources have been mainly Asia Minor, Rhodesia, and New Caledonia. Before 1905 Turkey in Asia was the principal source of supply. Since then, however, Rhodesia and New Caledonia have largely replaced Turkey in the American chrome market.
Although numerous deposits of chromite occur in the western United States and locally in the eastern states, these deposits are usually small and scattered or of low grade. On account of their physical character, small size, scattered occurrence, or distance from consuming centers, domestic chromite could not be furnished to consumers in the required grade or for the price that chromite from rich foreign deposits could be furnished. For this reason the American chromite deposits remained undeveloped and no ore was mined except small quantities which were consumed for refractory purposes in neighboring metallurgical works.
When in 1914, at the beginning of the war, the price of chromite increased, production was immediately stimulated, this being shown by the rapid increase in output from 591 long tons of crude ore in 1914 to about 82,350 long tons of crude ore in 1918, equivalent to about 66,554 tons of ore on the basis of 50 per cent. chromic oxide. Even this largely increased domestic output, however, filled only little more than one-half of the American requirements, the total amount of chrome ore consumed in 1918 being about 104,000 long tons on the basis of 50 per cent. chromic oxide. Had the market for chromite kept up, however, the domestic mines would have supplied a much larger proportion of the requirements in 1919. The consumption of chromite in the United States in 1913 amounted to 65,000 tons of ore containing 50 per cent. chromic oxide. From this it rose to about 127,000 tons in 1917, which represents the maximum annual consumption thus far.
The following table shows the production and imports of chromite on the basis of 50 per cent. chromic oxide, from 1913 to 1918, as well as the total quantity available for consumption for these years. No chromite is exported from the United States.
Table 26.—Production and Imports of Chromite, United States, 1913-1918
| Production (long tons) | Imports (long tons) | Total available for consumption (long tons) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1913 | 230 | 65,180 | 65,410 |
| 1914 | 530 | 74,578 | 75,108 |
| 1915 | 2,756 | 73,762 | 76,318 |
| 1916 | 39,509 | 110,849 | 150,358 |
| 1917 | 36,729 | 64,978 | 101,707 |
| 1918 | 66,554 | 92,678 | 159,232 |
The prices paid for domestic chromite in the United States in recent years ranged from an average of $11.19 per ton in 1913 to an average of about $24.00 per ton in 1917.
When the need of increased shipping was felt in the latter part of 1917, steps were taken to reduce the imports of chromite from distant countries, such as Turkey, New Caledonia, and Rhodesia, to increase the imports from nearby sources such as Brazil, Cuba, and Canada, and to urge the maximum production from domestic mines. As a result, the imports of chromite from Brazil were 17,854 long tons of crude ore and from Cuba 8,821 long tons of crude ore in 1918. The only previous production in Cuba was 34 long tons in 1916 and 17 long tons in 1917. Brazil had no production before 1918. The imports from Canada amounted to 20,949 long tons of crude ore in 1918, as compared to 19,021 long tons of crude ore in 1917, and 12,220 long tons of crude ore in 1916. In order to reduce the importation of chromite from countries far overseas, various restrictions were put into effect by the War Trade Board in the early part of 1918.
The development of domestic chromite supplies means the depletion of limited resources, high cost of production, use of lower-grade ores, and lowered efficiency in consumption. With the free access of high-grade foreign ores, the market for domestic ores, therefore, disappears; and the domestic chromite-mining industry can not survive to any large extent. If world conservation of raw materials or the best use of the world’s resources is of chief importance, the domestic chromite-mining industry should be allowed to decline, and cheaper and higher-grade foreign ores should be allowed to replace domestic chromite. Experience during the past few years has shown that the chromite deposits of the United States, supplemented by imports from Canada, Brazil, and Cuba, can largely supply the domestic requirements for a limited period.
The United States controls only a small part of the chromite reserves of the world. American firms own the principal Cuban deposits and control the Brazilian deposits through leases. The United States is, therefore, dependent to a large extent upon the good will of France and England for a continuous supply of chrome ore, these two countries jointly being largely in control of the chromite reserves of Rhodesia and New Caledonia. Turkey controls most, if not all, of the chromite deposits of Asia Minor, but because of their enclosed situation on the Mediterranean, these deposits could not be relied upon as a source of supply in time of need. The same is true of the deposits of the Ural region in Russia.
The chief chromite-consuming firms in the United States are the Electrometallurgical Co., probably the largest producer of ferrochrome in the world; the Mutual Chemical Co., and the National Electrolytic Co., large producers of chromium chemicals, and the Harbison-Walker Refractories Co., American Refractories Co., and various steel-making plants, users of chromite for refractory purposes.
Great Britain.
—Before the war Great Britain consumed annually about 25,000 tons of chromite, most of it being used by Blackwell & Sons, Ltd., for the manufacture of ferrochrome. The ferrochrome made in England, however, is not sufficient to supply the needs of the British steel industry, and much is imported from France.
Except for unimportant occurrences in the Shetland Islands there are no chromite deposits in the British Isles, and Great Britain is therefore dependent entirely upon overseas sources of supply. British colonies, on the other hand, are rich in chromite deposits, and as long as British ships have freedom of movement on the ocean, they will have access to the more important chromite deposits of the world.
Owing to their richness and large size, the most important of all the British-controlled deposits are those of Rhodesia. Only one of many deposits in this area is being operated, and the reserves in untouched ore bodies are undoubtedly large, comparable perhaps with those of New Caledonia.
The production of the Rhodesian chrome mines has in recent years averaged in the neighborhood of 60,000 tons annually or about 35 per cent. of the world’s production, and doubtless the output could be very greatly increased if other known deposits were developed. However, even the present production is more than twice the actual chromite requirements of Great Britain. These requirements, however, do not represent the needs for metallic chromium or chromium compounds, and if France should cease to supply Great Britain with ferrochrome, a much larger amount of the raw material, chromite, would be necessary for the English steel industry.
Besides the chromite deposits of South Africa, chromite deposits of importance are found in other British colonies, notably in British India and Canada. Amounts of chromite varying from 2,000 tons to 10,000 tons have been produced annually in British India for many years, coming mainly from Baluchistan, in the northwestern part, but a small production has come also from Mysore, in the southern part. In early years, India furnished a more important part of the world’s supply of chromite than at present. Transportation is a serious difficulty in the mining of these deposits and when New Caledonian and Rhodesian ores became developed, the Indian ores dropped in importance.
The Canadian deposits, while of considerable extent, and having ready accessibility to eastern American markets, have not been extensively or continuously mined, on account of their low-grade character. By concentration, a medium high-grade product can be obtained, but concentration methods are expensive and bring the cost of the material up to such an extent that it can not compete with other ores now on the market. Thus, the cost of producing both Indian and Canadian ores is such that under normal conditions it is difficult to find a market for them, but in case of necessity, a considerable tonnage can be supplied from these sources.
Other British colonies in which deposits of chromite exist are New South Wales, Tasmania, and New Zealand. As far as known, the deposits in these countries are small and only those of the first have furnished a small production.
Besides controlling chromite deposits in many parts of the world through her colonial possessions, Great Britain controls deposits through British firms with foreign possessions. Thus, the Chrome Co., Ltd., of mixed British and French interests, controls not only the Rhodesian chromite output but also owns and controls most of the important New Caledonian mines.
Great Britain has in the past received most of her supplies of chromite from Rhodesia, New Caledonia, and Turkey. Although more than enough chromite is produced in Rhodesia to supply the British needs, England has allowed most of the Rhodesian ore to be exported to other countries and has imported foreign ore for part of her own needs. Probably the largest part of the Rhodesian output before the war went to the United States. Much of the ore consumed in England has come from Turkey, where English firms have been interested in chromite mining for many years. Most of the Indian output probably has been used in Great Britain, but a part has gone to France.
France.
—A few deposits of chromite are known in France, but they are of no importance commercially. France, therefore, like England, is entirely dependent upon overseas sources for her chromite supply. Unlike England, however, France has only one colony, New Caledonia, containing important chromite deposits; but luckily this colony contains enough to make it one of the world’s principal sources of chromite.
Although the Chrome Co., Ltd., which controls the principal New Caledonian chromite deposits and is the largest shipper, represents both English and French capital, France through political means can control the output of chromite from the island. While in the past probably the major part of the chromite used in France has come from this source, France has also used Rhodesian and Turkish ores and probably Russian ores to a considerable extent, and much New Caledonian ore has gone to Germany, the United States and Great Britain.
The principal French firms manufacturing ferrochrome are the Société Electrometallurgique Française, at La Praz; Société La New Metallurgie, at Giffre; Société Anonyme Electrometallurgique, at Albertville; Keller, Leleux et Cie, at Livet; Société Electrometallurgique de Saint Beron, at Saint Beron; Ch. Betrolus, at Bellegarde; and Rochette Frères, at Epierre.
Germany.
—Except for unimportant low-grade deposits in Silesia, Germany has no chromite supplies within her borders. As a user of chromite Germany ranks in importance with France, most of the ore consumed being used in the manufacture of ferrochrome, the principal manufacturers of which have been the Krupp works. Chrome chemicals are also made in abundance, however. None of Germany’s former colonies is known to have chromite deposits except Togoland, and the Togoland deposits are undeveloped and are believed to be unimportant.
In the past, Germany has received chromite from New Caledonia, Rhodesia, Turkey, Greece, and probably Russia. Because of the long rail haul from Russia and the poor state of development of the industry in Turkey, the ores from these two countries were, in the years immediately preceding the war, being largely replaced by ores from overseas. The four large chromite-consuming countries have, therefore, all been looking mainly to New Caledonia and Rhodesia for their sources of supply.
During the war, when overseas chromite was not available, Germany was enabled by her relations with Turkey to obtain chromite from Asia Minor, and probably from chromite mines in Serbia, Hungary, Bosnia, and Herzegovina. Thus in time of need, when the usual overseas sources of supply were cut off, Germany, through her relations with neighboring countries, was able to obtain by land sufficient chromite to supply her ordnance requirements. Had the war continued Germany would doubtless have developed the chromite resources of the Urals, and those, together with the deposits of Asia Minor, even in their present state of development, could have kept Germany supplied indefinitely.
It is probable that German control became important in the mines of Asia Minor during the war. By relatively small improvements in transportation facilities, such as building branch railroad lines to the principal deposits, the chromite mines of Asia Minor might be rejuvenated to such an extent as to enable the ores to compete with Rhodesian and New Caledonian ore and to place them again among the world’s large producers. The deposits are large and the reserves rank in importance with those of Rhodesia and New Caledonia.
Russia.
—Russia is independent as far as her requirements of chromite are concerned. Out of her production of about 20,000 tons annually, the domestic industry consumes less than one-fourth and the rest is available for export to nations less favored with chromite resources.
Most of the chromite used in Russia goes into the manufacture of chrome chemicals. The Russian bichromate works at Elabouga, east of Kazan, established in 1892, have consumed about 2,000 tons of ore annually.