SMELTERS NOT OFF

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30056, 14 February 1963, Page 16

SMELTERS NOT OFF

Incentive In Lake Power

(N.Z. Press Assn.—Copyright) MELBOURNE, February 13. The assurance that a large part of Manapouri’s power output would be realised should effectively enhance the prospects of a major aluminium smelter by the time power became available, said the chairman of Comalco Industries Proprietary, Ltd., Sir Maurice Mawby, today. He was commenting on the announcement (reported on page 10) by the New Zealand Prime Minister (Mr Holyoake) that the New Zealand Government would accept financial responsibility for developing the Manapouri - Te Anau lakes power scheme.

His company’s objectives remained unchanged, Sir Maurice Mawby said, and engineering studies and geological test work by the company in the last two years had fully confirmed the attractiveness of Lake Manapouri as a large-scale source of low-cost power. It was not at present considered practical to finance a large-scale smelter near Invercargill concurrently with the Manapouri power development scheme and with the alumina plant in Queensland, Sir Maurice Mawby said. He said he greatly welcomed the decision of the Government to undertake construction of the Manapouri scheme itself, with a portion of the output being for the national system. Negotiations with the Government for a new agreement to replace the present one governing rights to develop power from Lake Manapouri had taken place on a most friendly basis, he said, and he valued the cooperation the company had received from all quarters in New Zealand.