In 1946 a number of Finnish state-owned heavy industry enterprises were combined to a single conglomerate called Valtion Metallitehtaat (State Metalworks), which acquired several shipyards in Helsinki, Turku and Uusikaupunki. The first ships were oceangoing fishing trawlers built in Suomenlinna for the Soviet Union as part of the Finnish war reparations. In 1950 the company was incorporated and its name was shortened to Valmet Oy, and in the following year a new shipyard was built in Katajanokka in downtown Helsinki. After the war reparations had been paid in full, the future of the state-owned shipyard remained uncertain until the Suez Crisis in 1956, which increased the worldwide demand for new ships and brought new contracts for Valmet as well. Later the company constructed a long series of accommodation ships for the Soviet Union.