No guarantee of coal

Press, Volume CXVI, Issue 34103, 16 March 1976, Page 16

No guarantee of coal

A Christchurch manufacturer of coal-fired boilers yesterday called on the Government to make a clear statement about the extent of New Zealand's coal reserves and their availability for industrial use.

The executive director of Mason Anderson, Ltd (Mr G. D. S tai rm and), said that his company had recently been told by a North Island client in the dairy industry that it might have to cancel its order for a $200,000 boiler because it had been told by the Mines Department in Auckland that no sup* plies of coal from State mines could be guaranteed for two years.

‘This sounds as though the Mines Department is saying that there are not enough resources of coal to go round,” he said. "We were able to direct this customer to an adequate private supply of coal, but it teems strange that somebody has suddenly decided there is ■ shortage when six months ago there was a move afoot to encourage industry to (use) coal because it is an indigenous fuel and not subiect to large price hikes, as oil is.

"The Government of the day even publicised a special Joans scheme to enable industry to have access to sources of finance at favourable rates so that it could effect the change-over to a locally produced fuel in the least painful wav.” Mr Stairmand said there had been some “curious in-

formation, presumably published by the Energy Resources people,” suggesting that there would be no major move to coal in the freezing and dairy industries in the next few years. This was the direct opposite of what his company had found in practice, which was that these industries were switching to coal because the high cost of oil and a shortage of natural gas were inhibiting their competitiveness in overseas markets.

“Companies like ours have geared themselves up to producing coal-fired boilers in response to strong Government indications that every effort should be made to save on imported fuel; but in a far worse position than us, in view of what now looks like a shortage of coal, are those firms who want to do something about lowering their bills for imported fuel and may now not be able to do so,” said Mr Stairmand.

Import schedule. — The import licensing schedule for the 1976-77 importing year would be announced on April 2 the Minister of Trade and Industry (Mr Adams-Schneider) said, the schedule determines which commodities may be imported and in what quantities and comes into effect on July 1.