Cost May Halt Use Of Coal

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31248, 21 December 1966, Page 1

Cost May Halt Use Of Coal

(New Zealand Press Association)

AUCKLAND, December 20.

The high cost of coal, aggravated by high shipping and wharfage costs, may force the Auckland Gas Company to abandon the use of coal or face big price increases, the general manager of the company, Mr R. P. Worley, said today.

The gas company hoped to draw its future supplies from the natural gas reservoirs at Kapuni, he said, but if this was impossible further alternatives, such as the use of oil products, would be studied. One quarter of the gas last year was produced by oil and coke. This was the first step towards doing without coal.

The company was constantly facing increased costs which it tried to absorb. Next year shipping costs would rise by £25,000 because of the new coastal freight charges. This might very well prove too much to absorb when the directors came to fix gas charges next year. The Auckland Harbour Board today received a letter from Mr Worley complaining about "the outmoded facilities” provided for discharging coal at Auckland, and asking that the equipment be brought up-todate. Mr Worley said the coal rate at Auckland was 5s a ton while at Adelaide, where discharging was more efficient, the charge was only Is 8d a ton.

The board’s general manager, Mr R. T. Lorimer, said a greater volume of coal was handled at Adelaide, and much of the cool at Auckland was discharged at Wynyard wharf as the request of the gas company instead of at

JelHcoe wharf where better facilities were provided. The board decided to take no action on the request.