Gold Hunt Off West Coast

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31967, 19 April 1969, Page 1

Gold Hunt Off West Coast

(hew Zealand Preu duoeiationl

HAMILTON, April 18. An American marine mining company disclosed today plans to begin an extensive search for gold deposits off the West Coast of the South Island.

The company. Marine Mining Corporation of New Jersey, has obtained from the New Zealand Government the mineral rights to 150 miles of the rugged coastline stretching from the shoreline to 10 miles out into the Tasman Sea.

The senior marine geologist for the corporation, Mr C. Fray, who is in charge of the search, said 80 test bores would be sunk along the coastline from the mouth of the Little Wanganui River to the Walho River mouth in the south. The first of these was "spudded-in” today about 11 miles south of Greymouth. But despite Mr Fray’s presence in the area for the last two months, “locals” know nothing of the venture. Only a drilling rig on a lonely part of the beach near Kumara gives any indication of the search for bullion. But the present exploration work is only a continuation of the seisimograpb work carried out off the West Coast two years ago. “As we could only get the survey ship within a mile or so of the beach we are now drilling along the shoreline to correlate our geophysical information ” Mr Fray said. If encouraging gold deposits were found with the shoreline drilling, Mr Fray said, his company intended importing from the United States an underwater drilling rig to determine the depths and position of layers of alluvial gold.

New Zealand Ship A New Zealand ship will be used for the off-shore drilling. “We will only need one about 100 ft long," be said. “The drilling bit of the rig will be vibrated into the sea bed to produce core samples for laboratory analysis." Mr Fray said his company would drill until bedrock

was reached “The gold is there, but

whether there is enough to | mine is what we have to find: out,” he said. “Only when the tests have l been completed will any decisions be made on what method will be used to recover It.” Mr Fray said his company had also secured from the New Zealand Government two other off-shore mineral drilling concessions. One is off the Otago coast and the other near Foveaux Strait. Government Criticised Meanwhile, one of New Zealand’s leading geologists. Professor H. W. Wellman, has criticised the Government for 'providing a virtual monopoly of on-shore drilling concessions to a small number of associated companies. “The Government should take a long hard look at the situation and realise that oil licences are now valuable,” l Professor Wellman said in Greymouth today, where he is attending a geophysicists' conference. For two years he was in charge of BP's drilling work! off the West Coast. He is now an associate professor at Vic toria University of Wellington. “It started with gas at Kapuni and then progressed to Maul 1, and it. now seems possible that New Zealand could be in the oil exporting business," he said. “But a few years ago any prospects appeared very poor."

Two Youths Arrested Two youths, both under 17 years of age, were arrested I after a car ran off the road at| Cheviot yesterday afternoon. They will appear in the! Christchurch Children’s Court on Monday charged with unlawfully taking the car from Stafford Street, Timaru, on Thursday night.