Intermetall

an organization of socialist member countries of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON) for collaboration in ferrous metallurgy. It was organized in July 1964, with Bulgaria, Hungary, the German Democratic Republic, Poland, the USSR, and Czechoslovakia as its members. In November 1968, Intermetall began to collaborate with the Yugoslav Union of Metallurgical Plants. In February 1970 an agreement was signed between Intermetall and Metallimport, the Rumanian state enterprise, for collaboration in mutual deliveries and cooperation in ferrous metallurgy production.

The main task of Intermetall is the application of new and effective forms of collaboration with the aim of better use and further development of production capacities in ferrous metallurgy and improvement of the technical level of production. IntermetalPs sphere of operations includes coordination of work in developing the production of rolled steel, steel pipe, and secondary products of ferrous metallurgy. The organization develops proposals for specialization of the production of ferrous rolled stock and for coordination of capital investments and plans for the production of ferrous metals. It fosters expansion of production of rolled products that are in short supply and develops proposals for unification of standards. Quarterly wholesale exchanges for trading in rolled stock are organized within the framework of Intermetall to guarantee provision of some countries with production types that are in short supply in cases of temporary surplus in other countries. The exchange of products of ferrous metallurgy among the member countries of Intermetall totaled 1.8 million rubles in monetary terms in 1967; in 1968 it was 3.4 million rubles; and in 1969, about 6.2 million rubles. This exchange of ferrous metallurgy products is over and above the quantities provided for in long-term bilateral agreements and annual protocols on mutual deliveries of goods among the member countries of COMECON.

Intermetall fosters systematization of technical and economic indexes of 362 rolling mills in operation in the member countries (as of 1970), which helps keep them evenly loaded. The work of Intermetall is directed by a council in which every member country is represented by a delegation of three members (each delegation has one vote). Decisions of the council may take the form of resolutions or recommendations. Only decisions adopted unanimously are mandatory. The Intermetall Bureau, consisting of specialists from the member countries, is Intermetall’s executive body. Intermetall is situated in Budapest.