Abstract
Poland was the largest exporter of polished coal to Germany in the early twentieth century. The country continues to export coal to Germany. Germany was allowed by the Geneva Convention to import coal from the Silesia region in the 1924 to 1925. Germany was also the greatest purchaser of coal, especially the one that was duty free, as an outcome of the pact that was signed in Geneva. It is very critical to mention that the most part of Silesian coal basin was in Poland, and this is what made Poland the largest exporter of coal in Germany.
In 1925, after the treaty termination, the government of Germany banned the import of coal from Poland. Poland is a country known to be rich in minerals. Today it has become the biggest manufacturer of coal. Coal has many uses, but the most common usage is in the production of electricity. The history of Polish coal began many years ago. Historians document that coal mining in Poland started in early twentieth century. This research paper will deliberate the export of Polish coal to Germany.
History of export of Polish Coal to Germany
Poland was trying to develop its economic system after it had acquired independence from the Germans. The Silesian coal mine was one of the biggest in the country. Most of the biggest mines in Poland were owned by foreign businessmen who were registered under corporations, for example: Donnersmarck, Ballestrem and Hohenlohe. During the inter-war period, the production of coal went up. During this time, coal export was at fourteen million tons. 172 million tons of coal were exported from Poland to other countries between the year 1924 and 1938 (From Ballestrem to the port in Gdynia, 2012).
Due to a rise in production, Poland was forced to ship forty percent of the total production abroad. The Geneva Convention allowed Germany to import specific amount of coal from the Silesia region. A new custom law was overhauled by the Poland parliament, which was directed at protecting Poland market from outside influence. Since Poland began exporting coal to Germany, it faced resistance from the German. The opposition took place, despite Germany being one of the biggest buyers of Silesian coal. One of the reasons is that the largest part Silesian mines were on the Poland side. In January 1925, the government of Germany banned the import of coal from Poland. Therefore, Poland was forced to look for new markets for its coal (From Ballestrem to the port in Gdynia, 2012).
Reasons for the decrease in the amount of Polish coal exported to Germany
The amount of coal that Germany imports from Poland is likely to fall in the next few years. For example, since 2012, the amount of Germany import of Polish coal has gone down by seven percent. The cause for the fall of coal imports is the rough economic situation in Europe. The increment in the use of other renewable energies such as solar power has likewise led to the reduction in the amount of coal imported from Poland. Competition from coal producing nations has also contributed to a decrease in the amount of Polish coal exported to Germany (Eckert, 2012). Presently, the largest importers of Polish fine coal include Austria, Britain, Czech Republic and Germany.
The coarse coal for heat generating purposes is imported to Ireland and United Kingdom. However, Polish coal faces competition from nations such as Russia, United States of America and South Africa. Despite strong competition, Polish coal continues to be one of the best in Europe.
References
Eckert, V. (2012). German hard coal imports seen down 7 pct in 2012. Web.
From Ballestrem to the port in Gdynia. The pre-war period. (2012). Web.