BROWN COAL

Dominion, Volume 17, Issue 288, 22 August 1923, Page 3

BROWN COAL

PROPOSED BRIQUETTING SCHEME Although brown coal has now reached half the volume of New Zealand’s production of coal, there are serious difficulties in the way of marketing it to- the householder. In his annual report, presented to ‘ Parliament, the Under-Secrotary for Mines says: “The brown coal and lignite mines of the Dominion are seriously handicapped in their operations by the difficulty experienced in marketing the small coal which results from screening for household purposes. Ihe effect is that the small coal, if disposed of. is sold at prices below the cost ot production, and this loss has to be made up from the sale of the screened coal, thus increasing very seriously the cost to the consumer of household coal. This is a matter to which I and my officers have paid considerable attention during the year with a view to investigating the possibilities ot increasing the market for small coal, it low-temperature carbonisation or briquetting were commercially practicable the present difficulty would be overcome. To ascertain definitely the possibilities, an investigation is being undertaken by the Dominion Analys . tho necessary plant for conducting the tests having recently been procured from England by the Mmes Department for that purpose. In addition, two representative samples «r coal from the Waikato, and two from and Southland, have been forwarded for test purposes to Professor W. A. Bone, of the Imperial College of Science, London, the recognised authority in the Empire on the low-tem-perature carbonisation of coal. » hen the results of the tests come to hand it will afford me great pleasure to bring the same under the notice of honourable members.”