FALCONBRIDGE NIKKELVERK 1910-1929-2004 AN INTERNATIONAL COMPANY IN NORWAY 1 Foreword 3 PART 1: PIONEERING, PROFIT AND PROTEST 7 1. The road to Kristiansand 9 2. The plant and the process 18 3. Turbulent times 1914-1926 32 4. The scandal and the consequences 49 PART 2: A SUBSIDIARY IN A CANADIAN COMPANY 56 5. Falconbridge takes over 58 6. On the brink of collapse 67 7. Expansion in the 1930s 75 8. A new Canadian refinery? 89 9. Occupied and isolated 1940-1945 102 PART 3: THE KRISTIANAND REFINERY 1945-73, STRATEGIC STOCKS, GROWTH AND SOCIAL DEMOCRACY 114 10. Curtailed expansion 117 11. Falconbridge and the strategic stocks 1952-1962 135 12. Expansion and industrial co-operation 143 13. Ripe for change, Falconbridge in the 1960s 161 PART 4: CRISES AND EXPANSION 1973-2004 175 14. Survival and innovation in a changing market 1973-82 177 15. Cancer and the external environment, Falconbridge’s new challenges 192 16. Creating a competitive subsidiary 205 17. Nickel and knowledge, Falconbridge 1910-1929-2004 218 Endnotes 227 2 FOREWORD I was both flattered and full of enthusiasm when asked to write a book on the history of Falconbridge in Kristiansand, especially as I had spent my early childhood in the small mining town of Falconbridge in Canada, where my father worked as an engineer. The history of the nickel refinery in Kristiansand contains elements of drama, international politics and perhaps even more importantly: demonstrates how advanced industrial culture and competence was patiently built up. Kristiansands Nikkelraffineringsverk was established in 1910. Today, the original plant no longer exists and the refining process has been reorganised so that the workers now have quite a different working day from their predecessors. In addition, major environmental problems have been solved and there has been a change in ownership. At first glance, it would seem that the past and the present are two completely different worlds. But if we take a closer look, the links are still quite visible. Decisions made in the initial years of the company plotted the course for the next 40 – 50 years and much of the building mass remains from the expansion period in the 1950s. As author, I have had unrestricted access to the company’s archives in Norway and Canada up till the 1970s. There is an excellent supply of information for the period between 1929-47, whereas this is in short supply for the period before 1920 and after 1960 in particular, as most of the material has been discarded. However, as regards the first period, information provided by a few key personnel that have written retrospective notes and the controversy in the newspapers and investigations in the wake of the scandals at the nickel works have compensated for this. For the latter period, I have received information from retired Falconbridge employees in Norway and Canada. In addition, I have also sourced material from the National Archives in Kristiansand, KEV’s archive, the Labour Movement’s archives, the National Archives of Norway and the National Library. After two and a half years of work, the book has now been completed. During this time the book committee, comprising Arne Johan Finne, Ed Henriksen, Realf Høy-Petersen, Jørn Jacobsen, Terje Næss, Erling Stensholt and Hagbarth Aanensen as well as editor Jens Vetland and historians Ketil Gjølme Andersen and Knut Sogner, has been an important source of inspiration and friendly criticism. However, as author I am responsible both for assessments and all errors and discrepancies. 3 I would like to thank everyone at Falconbridge for the goodwill and generosity they have shown me. I am especially grateful to Jørn Jacobsen and Erling Stensholt. My father Knut Lyng Sandvik has given me good advice and technical insight. For more than two years my friends at the Department of History in Trondheim have patiently had to hear about nickel prices and refining methods and have given useful help in return. I would particularly like to thank Hans Otto Frøland, Ingar Kaldal, Kristian Steinnes and Lars Fredrik Øksendal. I have also learnt a lot from my good colleagues at the Norwegian School of Management about how corporate history can be interpreted and written. As usual, Svein Henrik Pedersen has provided a wealth of both constructive and less constructive comments, has proofread and has compiled the index. Finally, I would like to thank my dear Margrethe - who would have thought that she would become an authority on nickel? Trondheim, August 2003 Pål Thonstad Sandvik My book on the Falconbridge nickel refinery was published in Norwegian in 2004. Falconbridge generously translated my manuscript to English. I proofread and edited the translation in 2005. However, the English text was never published. In early 2020, a former Falconbridge employee, Michael Sudbury, suggested that I should give the manuscript to Laurentian University. Rereading it during my summer holiday in 2020 I spotted a few new errors and inaccuracies. These have been corrected. Some arcane points have also been cut or clarified, but the rest of the manuscript has been left unchanged. In the sixteen years which have passed since the original book was published new historical scholarship has emerged. I will recommend readers who are interested to look at the work of Olav Arne Kleveland, Jonas Scherner, Knut Ola Naastad Strøm as well as my own work. This new research deals with the mines at Evje, the world wars, the nickel market in the 1930s, the relationship between the Kristiansand subsidiary and the Canadian mother company and environmental development in Kristiansand from the 1970s onwards. Trondheim, August 2020 Pål Thonstad Sandvik 4 On 14 June 1929 Canadian Falconbridge Ltd. took over an ailing nickel works in Kristiansand. But in spite of a turbulent past, the company is now proudly celebrating its 75th anniversary. The special occasion is a good opportunity to reflect over the history of the nickel works. In all these years, the urban community, local hydroelectric power production, the company and the parent company have evolved together, in mutual dependence. This interaction has given Kristiansand the largest nickel refinery in the western world, which produces first class products from one of the most environmentally friendly plants in the industry. I feel humble when I look back at the company’s history and I am full of respect for former colleagues and for the way in which they tackled their challenges. Each era has had its heroes, but the path to success has always been paved with innovation and creativity. Today, we produce nickel in a high-cost country, face global competition for raw materials and export all our production. Competence and technology are our competitive advantage in a world where changes take place at an even faster rate than before. In order to succeed, we must follow the same path and continue a harmonious interaction between employees, customers and society – locally and globally. Through words and pictures, this anniversary book primarily describes the company’s local development: technologically, financially, environmentally and socially. In addition, it illustrates the relationship with others, local industry and the parent company. I would like to thank the author, Pål Thonstad Sandvik at NTNU, for his excellent work. A special thank also goes to the book committee, who has shown great enthusiasm for the project. The committee has comprised historian Knut Sogner from the Norwegian School of Management BI, his colleague Ketil Gjølme Andersen from the University of Oslo, local historian and former editor of the Kristiansand newspaper Fædrelandsvennen, Jens Vetland, employee representatives Terje Næss and Arne Johan Finne, the company’s own representative Erling Stensholt, and also co-ordinator and company representative Jørn Kjetil Jacobsen. A big thanks also goes to Hagbarth Ånensen, Realf Høy-Petersen and everyone else who have contributed. 5 Falconbridge Nikkelverk has become a global player. I would like to thank all former and present employees for their contributions to this book. They have helped give the company a sound future foundation. Eric Edwards Henriksen Managing Director Falconbridge Nikkelverk AS 6 PART 1. PIONEERING, PROFIT AND PROTEST In 1910, Kristiansands Nikkelraffineringsverk set up business in the buildings and orchard of the old estate at Kolsdalen. The company arose from the traditional Norwegian nickel industry and was based on the industry’s established knowledge and used its raw material resources. At the same time, the refinery was more than just a continuation of something old. It was also a product of the new industrial capitalism in Norway at the time. A new generation of investors had appeared, of whom Sam Eyde is the most well known. These investors wanted to exploit Norway’s raw materials, hydroelectric power and modern technology. A number of electrochemical companies were established, including Elkem, Norsk Hydro and Kristiansands Nikkelraffineringsverk. The refinery used Victor Hybinette’s newly developed nickel refining process. From a purely technological point of view, this process also represented a new industrial phase in Norway. In cutting edge technology, such as nickel refining and other electrochemical processes, it no longer sufficed to establish a business based on practical experience and technical know-how gradually acquired over time. Even if these elements remain important, laboratory trials and scientific insight were also required. We will take a closer look at the background of the Hybinette process, why it achieved its industrial breakthrough in Norway and the struggle to get it to function in practice. From there we will take a step further. The refinery was a new kind of work place with different tasks, challenges and hazards than people were used to. The work was heavy, dusty and at times uncomfortably hot. Burns were a common everyday occurrence in the smelting plant and in the electrolysis area many workers suffered from serious nickel allergy.