Half year: II/1941 I/1942 II/1942 I/1943 II/1943 Overall
Consumption 63.8 55.7 67.4 84.1 85.8 356.8
Imports from Ukraine 25.5 39.0 86.7 94.8 70.0 316.1
Share of the imports from Ukraine on consumption in % 40.0 % 70.0 % 128.6 % 112.7 % 81.6 % 88.6 %
http://ww2total.com/WW2/History/Product ... uction.htm
These numbers illustrate the importance the imports of manganese from Nikopol had for Germany.
'To the above "military" requirements, one also had to consider the civilian needs. Raw materials from the German occupation areas had to be brought back to Germany so that the German industry could make optimal use of them. Industry specialists had to travel from one city to another, families also had social obligations they wanted to be able to meet, etc.
In terms of supplementing German industrial needs, the following main requirements thus existed for this category of trains:
Coal from the Ukraine (never shipped in satisfying quantities).
Manganese from Nikopol.
Iron ore from Krivoi-Rog.
Timber from the Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Pripet march regions.
Oil-shale from Estonia (a large percentage of the Kriegsmarine's needs came from Estonian oil-shale).
Grains (foodstuffs) from the Ukraine (this was always in surplus as the Ukraine was/is a very fertile region).'