The company expanded globally. It focused on improving working conditions and developed its principles of global commitment to a viable society.
The weather forecast had been terrible. However no one going to work at the Karmøy metal plant or Røldal-Suldal power plant on Tuesday 24 November imagined that the highest pylons in Norway would be blown down. But down they came at 13.58.
Hydro Aluminium was formed on 1 September 1986 through the integration of Årdal og Sunndal Verk (ÅSV) and Hydros aluminium division. A new aluminium company was born with a clear international profile and a strong production base in Norway.
New investments require financing. For much of its history, Hydro has been able to finance new investments through operations or through taking up loans. However raising capital through the company's attractive shares has also been an important factor.
As early as 1882, Henrik Ibsen wrote An Enemy of the People, a play that draws attention to the problems of industrial pollution. However it was not until the sixties that industrial pollution became a major theme of public debate in Norway.
French, Italian or Belgian cuisine means top quality ingredients. Europe has become a gourmets paradise. Delivering plant nutrition and agronomic advice, Hydro is one of the most important suppliers of input factors to the food market in Europe.
In 1990, Hydrogas purchased a share of the state-owned Ceylon Oxygen Company Ltd on Sri Lanka. This was a chance acquisition and it is a good example of the way Hydros industrial chemicals sector was able to take market opportunities as they arose.
