Göta Canal share certificate, 1832
After losing Finland to Russia in 1809, Sweden made an economic reorientation westwards. But travelling by sea across the Öresund strait meant paying an expensive customs duty. That's why the idea of digging a canal through Sweden - from the Baltic Sea to the Kattegat - was born.
The financing of the project is a good example of the interaction between private and public actors. Ambitious entrepreneurs were given the opportunity to start work with favourable government loans combined with commercial banking in the form of the Göta Canal bank. By the time the canal was opened, 22 years after construction began, the company was privately owned but also state-controlled. The final bill for the construction was 275 per cent more expensive than planned.
