Soviet Union Table of Contents
Soviet industrial planners have recognized that a hightechnology chemical industry is indispensable for advancement in both heavy and light industry. Although Soviet chemical engineering has advanced in such areas as composite materials, which are used to make lighter airplanes, and photochemicals, major projects have depended heavily on foreign technology.
Because of the critical role of the chemical industry in technological advancement, a major campaign in the 1980s was aimed at improving domestic technology and reducing dependence on foreign technology in the chemical and petrochemical industry. In 1984 thirty-two scientific research institutes were conducting major petrochemical research under the academies of sciences. But the technical and investment contributions of British, French, Japanese, East German, West German, Italian, and Hungarian chemical firms remained crucial during that time. Many divisions of Soviet industry failed to produce as planned through the early 1980s, and massive investment did not have the expected effect. The goal for the year 2000 remained an overall increase of 2.4 times the 1980 level and that required a doubling of investments before 1990.
Data as of May 1989