Showa Steelworks in Anshan (Northeast China)

Showa Steelworks, initially established as Anshan Ironworks in 1917, was located in Anshan, Liaoning Province, Northeast China, historically known as Manchuria. Anshan Ironworks was a subsidiary of South Manchurian Railway Company, a Japanese semi-state-owned enterprise that managed railways and other operations in Manchuria.

During Japan’s occupation of Manchuria from 1931 to 1945, Anshan Ironworks was reorganized in 1933 and renamed Showa Steelworks. This reorganization was part of Japan's broader effort to industrialize Manchuria to support its military buildup. By importing advanced steelmaking technology from Nazi Germany, Showa Steelworks became central to Manchukuo's state-directed industrialization. By the late 1930s, the complex had expanded significantly, surrounded by numerous ancillary factories producing a variety of metal products. It was the largest steel producer on Chinese soil, playing a crucial role in Japan’s war efforts, particularly in China. However, its strategic importance also made it a prime target for Allied bombing raids in 1944.

After Japan's defeat in August 1945, the Soviet Red Army dismantled the most crucial machinery from Showa Steelworks, transporting much of the equipment to the Soviet Union.  Following the Soviet retreat, China's Nationalist government confiscated Showa Steelworks and other Japanese factories in Anshan in 1946, reorganizing them into a state-owned enterprise known as Anshan Iron and Steel Works (Angang). When the Chinese Communist Party took over Angang in 1948, they began reconstructing it with the help of Japanese and Nationalist Chinese engineers who remained in Anshan. Throughout the 1950s, the PRC government further renovated and expanded Angang through technological cooperation with the Soviet Union. During the Mao era (1949–76), Angang became the largest steel producer in China and a model socialist enterprise.