L.P.G. sellers still waiting for bulk supply

Press, 25 May 1984, Page 5

L.P.G. sellers still waiting for bulk supply

Limited supplies of liquefied petroleum gas have been supplied to Christchurch but distributors are still waiting for bulk deliveries.

Some small tanks of L.P.G. arrived earlier this week and more are expected today or tomorrow. Commercial and industrial users were being given first priority on the fuel with the L.P.G. ban on sales of it for private vehicles remaining, said the centre’s manager, Mr Vince Matthews.

A dispute in New Plymouth has delayed the new bulk L.P.G. carrier Tarihiko which was to have delivered a 1000-tonne load of the gas to the Dunedin bulk depot this week. Earlier this month a crewing dispute in Wellington also delayed the ship’s first delivery. Until this bulk load is delivered Liquigas, Ltd. is reverting to the old deliverysystem of using smaller tanks, either on the Cook Strait ferries, or a Union Steam Ship Company ship to Lyttelton. About 26 tonnes was sent to the South Island on

Wednesday, and by next Tuesday about 100 tonnes was expected. The Union Sydney was expected in Lyttelton on Tuesday with four tanks, said the general manager of Liquigas, Mr Tony Easther, yesterday. AH four L.P.G. wholesalers should have had a consignment of the gas by today, he said. He hoped that the Tarihiko dispute would be settled some time today. The Christchurch Gas Company’s L.P.G. Centre received a small load of L.P.G yesterday and that would allow it to continue to supply its commercial and industrial users for a few days. It would give no relief, however, to private car users said Mr Matthews.

“Everything will be done to keep industrial and commercial users going," he said.

The regional manager of one wholesaler, New Zealand Industrial Gases. Ltd, Mr Roger Harvey, said it had received one 10-tonne tank load on Wednesday and it would get another today or tomorrow. That would be enough to “keep our head

above water" until next week when it was hoped that the Tarihiko supplies would have arrived. The costs of small tanks were almost double normal costs, but the firm did not want its customers to run dry. The supplies would be for regular commercial and industrial customers.

Rationing had not been necessary yet and with “luck and prudence" the company would “struggle by,” Mr Harvey said. The present problems were probably rather large teething problems, which would settle down once the Tarihiko began its deliveries.

Another wholesaler, Shell, is also giving priority to industrial and commercial users. It had stopped supplying service stations because it would be “irresponsible” to supply motorists who could switch to petrol, said the Canterbury branch manager, Mr John Davidson. The priority was on “topping up” “sensitive” industries such as fibreglass and printing companies that "simply must have it,” he said.

The shortage could become a "crisis” for some Christchurch companies if it was not over next week, the director of the CanterburyManufacturers’ Association. Mr lan Howell, said last evening.

The shortage was “developing into a very serious situation” and unless it ended next week “quite a number of jobs” could be at stake.

Although some companies had as much as four weeks supplies, some were “virtually down to one day's supply” and were relying on these supplies being topped up daily by the L.P.G. Centre, he said. About 2000 Christchurch jobs relied on L.P.G., while others were dependent on the goods produced by these. The main areas of industry affected were building materials, packaging, printing, motor components, and engineering companies.

Some manufacturers would even be willing to pay more for the gas, rather than lay off staff, Mr Howell said.