Rörelser mot en mer avancerad organisk ekonomi : Institutioner, energi och tillväxt vid Forsbacka bruk cirka 1850–1870

Sammanfattning

This thesis investigates the interaction between energy and growth at the Swedish ironworks Forsbacka bruk circa 1850–1870. It builds on insights of Tony Wrigley, his concept of the organic economy and the constraints it posed on economic growth. Swedish ironworks remained firmly rooted within traditional energy sources throughout the 19th century, in contrast to the developments in Britain. Forsbacka acts as a case study for how growth occurred within the boundaries of the organic economy. Using account books and detailed letters from the site, the thesis uses a mixed method process tracing methodology to analyse the co-evolution of the energy system and growth through iron production and sales on the international market. It first finds that deeper market integration of the Swedish export sectors, namely timber, activates institutional change regulating the energy system of Forsbacka – from an administrated institution which favoured coordination among ironworks, to a diffused but local energy market – causing instability for their energy supply. Simultaneously, deeper market integration on the iron side sees Forsbacka gain direct access to export markets, enabling discovery of a higher-value product niche. This leads to a path dependency that delays the introduction of new production technology. In the year 1861 the change to the so-called Lancashire method did occur, however, as they were squeezed from two sides: the international iron market yielding lower sales, while a cascade weather effects severely disrupts the already changing energy market. As the price of charcoal rose due to severe shortage, the decision to implement a more energy efficient technology rearranges the energy geography that Forsbacka relied on, to a more concentrated but sometimes more spatially distant supply. In short, I argue that the institutional change that clarified opportunity costs, in combination with deeper international market integration, allowed for dynamism. This took shape by initial Smithian growth, which then gave incentives for Schumpeterian growth, allowing Smithian growth mechanics to continue operating. My conclusion is that this represented movements towards a more advanced organic economy, an organic economy seeing meaningful growth, in which Forsbacka became an active participant.