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Natural Resources 
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While the industrial sector was increasing its relative contribution to national income, it underwent a radical structural change. Three branches became much more important: engineering and metalworking accounted for 25.8 percent of all industrial production in 1990, compared with 13.3 percent in 1950, while electricity and fuels increased their share from 13.2 to 19 percent and chemicals from 3.1 to 9.6 percent. Two other branches, metallurgy and building materials, showed a slight relative advance. The main relative declines were in wood processing, paper and food processing. The following review gives priority to fuels, electricity, and metallurgy.
The largest coal reserves are those of bituminous coal; half of Romania's bulk coal production comes from the Petrosani Depression alone. Reserves of poorer-quality lignite increasingly are being tapped to meet energy requirements. Except for the Baraolt-Vârghis Basin, which lies within the Carpathians, most deposits are found along the fringe of the mountain areas. A large lignite field in the Motru Valley (Gorj) supplies two of the largest power stations in the country, Rovinari and Turceni.
Oil deposits are found in the flysch formations that run in a band along the outer rim of the Carpathians and through the Subcarpathians. Deposits in the plains, notably Videle, have been tapped since World War II. Bacau and Prahova districts have long been famous for their oil-refining industry, and they have been joined by production from Arges (Pitesti). Oil was discovered in the Romanian sector of the Black Sea in 1981. Natural gases--mainly methane--are produced in the centre of the Transylvanian Basin, and gases produced as by-products of the oil industry are becoming increasingly important.
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Mineral Resources |
Annual production |
Comments - More Details |
| Aluminium | 154000 | tons | 1999 investment in Aluminium production will increase production capacity by
50% raising Romania to Europe's no. 5 producer - Source: US Geo Survey | | Bauxite | 140000 | tons | - Source: US Geo Survey | | Copper | 25563 | tons | The nonferrous metallurgical industry, which also dates from the Dacian-Roman period, is largely concentrated in the southwest and west, with copper, gold, and silver production still active.- Source: Romania National Statistics | | Gold | 4000 | kg / yr | - Source: US Geo Survey | | Iron Ore | 260000 | tons | The Romanian iron industry has particularly strong connections with Galati as well as with Calarasi, Hunedoara, and Resita (the last having a record of activity extending back to the 18th century). Smaller units exist at Braila, Câmpia Turzii (near Turda), Iasi, Otelul Rosu, Roman, and Târgoviste.- Source: National Statistics Institute - Bulgaria | | Lead | 21000 | tons | 7th largest European producer - Source: US Geo Survey | | Zinc | 32000 | tons | - Source: US Geo Survey |
One of the greatest problems facing Romania after World War II, when the Soviet Union demanded the delivery of Romanian petroleum as war reparations, was the very limited development of power stations based on other fuels. Under a plan spanning the years 1951-60 and supplemented by later plans, a remarkable rise in power output took place. The foundation for this increase was a series of large power projects, each having a capacity of 200,000 to 1,000,000 kilowatts. Both thermal and hydroelectric plants were built (though the largest capacities were installed in the Motru valley lignite field mentioned above). A nuclear program was launched with Canadian assistance at Cernavoda on the lower Danube.
The Romanian iron industry has particularly strong connections with Galati as well as with Calarasi, Hunedoara, and Resita (the last having a record of activity extending back to the 18th century). Smaller units exist at Braila, Câmpia Turzii (near Turda), Iasi, Otelul Rosu, Roman, and Târgoviste. The nonferrous metallurgical industry, which also dates from the Dacian-Roman period, is largely concentrated in the southwest and west, with copper, gold, and silver production still active. Aluminum production is a more recent development; alumina factories at Oradea and Tulcea supply the aluminum reduction complex at Slatina in the Olt district. Small quantities of lead, mercury, and zinc are also produced.
The machine-building and metal-processing industry is the main branch of the industrial economy, accounting for nearly a third of bulk industrial production. It provides a good index of the changing priorities in the Romanian economy: before World War II it accounted for only 10 percent of the total, being exceeded in importance by food processing and even the textile and ready-made clothing industry. Contemporary centres of production are Bucharest, Brasov, Ploiesti, Cluj-Napoca, Craiova, Arad, Resita, and many others, with a considerable degree of regional specialization. There has been a strong tendency to concentrate on such modern branches as the electronics industry, as well as to widen and diversify the range of production.
In contrast to metallurgy (which relies on imports of ore and coke to supplement the modest domestic resources), the timber industry can rely on domestic raw materials. The emphasis, in what is a traditional industry, has switched from production of sawn timber to finished products. A chain of modern wood industrialization combines turns out a range of products, including furniture and chipboard, which have done well in foreign markets. The building materials industry also utilizes a wide range of resources across the country; cement manufacture represents an important subbranch. The main centres are at Turda, Medgidia, Bicaz, Fieni, and Târgu Jiu.
The long-established textile industry has also undergone a steady development since its radical overhaul in the 1930s. The closely connected ready-made clothing industry has undergone considerable expansion, with a heavy investment in new plants. Silkworm production retains a modest importance despite the introduction of synthetic fibres. Silk, the weaving of which was long the occupation of peasant women in the south and southwest, has lent much to the beauty of local folk costumes, especially the richly embroidered blouses and head scarves. Finally, the food industry--formerly the foundation of the economy--has been all but eclipsed by the rapid development of other branches. It has, nevertheless, continued to grow in absolute terms, and processing plants are distributed throughout the country.
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Geography