Mezei István: Urban development in Slovakia (Pécs-Somorja, 2010)
3. The settlement structure of Slovakia
The settlement structure of Slovakia In accordance with the technical level of the age, the factories of the electrical and metal industries always employed a high number of people. The small settlements where the factories were set up and these industries had no traditions became the centres of regional development. Employment prospects attracted labour and a new economic culture emerged in this backward region. The five largest centres became Bratislava, Kysucké Nové Mesto, Nižná (where Orava TV sets were produced), Nové Zámky (the Tesla factory) and Zlaté Moravce. The new investments of the machine industry were made in the old centres, but several factories were purposely established in economically underdeveloped areas. The five largest factories were located in Dubnica nad Váhom, Martin, Považská Bystrica, Bánovce nad Bebravou and Detva. In the decades of socialism, the textile industry had large factories, mostly employing more than 500 people. The five largest factories were in the towns of Levice, Ružomberok, Trenčín, Banská Štiavnica and Svit. (3) This category includes the factories with high production values. The power stations were concentrated first of all in large cities (Bratislava, Košice and Žilina). A nuclear power station was built in Jaslovské Bohunice to the north of Nitra. A power station (coal) was also built in Vojany, close to the Soviet border, so as to shorten the transportation route for the raw materials. In a section of the river Vah, waterfalls and cascades made the building of small hydropower stations possible. The textile industry was concentrated in two areas in Eastern and Western Slovakia. The five largest factories were in Prešov, Trenčín, Puchov, Topoľčany and Bánovce nad Bebravou. While industrial investments were often located in villages, the printing industry proved to be typical of large cities. The five most important centres were Bratislava, Martin, Košice, Prešov and Banská Bystrica. The chemical and rubber industries were also concentrated in large factories and produced special, individual products. The five largest factories were in Šaľa (Duslo Chemical Works), Bratislava, Nováky (the largest thermal plant of the country was also located there), Humenné and Strážske. The tobacco and refrigeration industries and the production of mineral waters could also be found in small towns. The main centres of these sectors were Spišská Belá, Banská Štiavnica, Nitra, Levice and Bratislava. (4) In 1985 the factories with the highest production values also included the oil industry (fuel industry). Since crude oil was piped in from 72
