Pyrkal
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| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Defense |
| Founded | 1874 |
| Headquarters | Athens, Greece |
| Products | Weapons systems |
| Parent | EAS |
| Website | [1] |
Founded in 1874, Pyrkal is one of the oldest Defence Industries (in the modern sense) in Greece and the main producer of ammunition and explosives in the country. Throughout its history it has been one of the largest Greek companies, in fact a reflection of the history of Greek Industry itself. Moreover, since its foundation it has been a crucial supplier during all the military conflicts this nation faced, and historically a well-established exporter to five continents.
The company "Elliniko Pyritidopoieio A.E." (Greek Powder, Chemical and Industrial products) was founded in 1874 and "Maltsiniotis Brothers" (Cartridges and metal products) in 1887. The merger of the two companies in 1908 was done to overcome an odd competition between the two for ammunition orders by the Greek state. Thus, a new company was formed, named "Etairia (Ellinikou) Pyritidopoieiou kai Kalykopoieiou" with the initials EEPK or EPK (ΕΠΚ) - the acronym Pyrkal used later; internationally it has been known as "Greek Powder and Cartridge Company" (GPCC) in English, and "Poudrerie et Cartoucherie Hellenique" (PCH) in French. In addition to ammunition and explosives, the company has been engaged in a variety of additional activities including arms manufacture (which included own development of the advanced EPK machine gun type immediately before Greece's entrance to World War II), construction of machinery (including Diesel engines), vehicle bodies, tools, factory infrastructure, boilers, aircraft (as it undertook constructions for the AEKKEA-RAAB company) etc.
From 1934 the company was controlled by Prodromos Bodosakis-Athanasiadis, one of the most important figures in 20th century Greek industrial history. Pyrkal eventually became part of a huge industrial empire created by Bodosakis in Greece and Cyprus, involved in mining operations (several companies, holding dominant position in Greece), textiles, chemicals and fertilizers, beverages, glass manufacturing, engineering & constructions, as well as services (shipping, insurances etc.).
In 1936-37 during the Spanish Civil War German arms were supplied to the Spanish Republicans from Rheinmetall-Borsig, then controlled by Hermann Göring, even though German forces were fighting with the Spanish Nationalists. Arms shipped to Greece with a Greek end-user certificate were split by Bodosakis, with arms for the Republicans transferred to ships supposedly sailing to Mexico. But the Nationalists got the best and latest weapons while the Republicans got the oldest and least serviceable. This supply peaked in 1937-38, with shipments from Rheinmetall-Borsig worth up to 40 million Reichsmarks each. Nationalists identified 18 vessels sent to Republican ports from 3 January 1937 to 11 May 1938, and estimated that Goering received the equivalent of one pound sterling per rifle. In November 1937 Bodosakis travelled to Barcelona in a Soviet aircraft, and signed a contract to supply ammunition to the Republic for £2.1 million, in hard currency in advance. There have also been reports that the company assembled airplanes for the nationalist forces.
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Wikipedia