Changes in the processes of production and distribution of gas in Barcelona and its hinterland (1930-1961) Between the coal gas and the natural gas

Abstract

Our contribution presents the results of a research based on the enterprise Archives of Gas Natural of Barcelona, the oldest gas enterprise in Spain existing from 1843. In our work we will present the variations of the gas consumption in Barcelona and the towns conforming its hinterland. The gasworks of these towns were enclosed in the La Catalana industrial structure from the beginning of 20th Century. Our study focuses the attention on the period extended from 1930 along the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) until 1961, when a generational change in the enterprise direction was produced. This circumstance will us permit think about the capacity of some people to manage the enterprise trajectory to unexplored paths.