COAL MINING

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 27, 31 July 1940, Page 9

COAL MINING

PRODUCTION FIGURES

INCREASE OF 5.15 PER CENT.

Production of coal in New Zealand increased by 5.15 per cent, during 1939 over the production during 1938, the Mines Statement, which has been presented to Parliament, states. The imI porting of coal also increased during the year. "There were 152 coal mines operating in the Dominion in 1939," the report states. "Sixty-nine of these mines are situated on freehold property and produced 1,026,095 tons, or 44 per cent, of the total output. The remaining 83 mines are situated on Crown lands and produced 1,316,544 tons, or 56 per cent, of the total output of 2,342,639 tons. The increase in output for 1939 is 5.15 per cent, above the figure for 1938. The quantity of coal imported into New Zealand in 1939 was 111,537 tons, as compared with 109,206 tons for the previous year, an increase of 2331 tons. '"The increase in output is satisfactory in view of the need for greater production of native coal to fulfil the industrial, transport, and domestic | needs of the Dominion, and at the same j time to conserve overseas funds by restricting importations to the bare requirements of certain consuming units which cannot operate efficiently without a proportion of Australian coal. A survey of the coal mines already developed shows that they are capable of ! expanding production sufficiently to meet the requirements of consumers. The policy of not granting new coalmining rights over Crown lands, except iin isolated places, has therefore been i maintained. During 1940 it is estimated that an output of at least 2,500,000 tons will be required to fulfil the requirements of the Dominion. No difficulty should be experienced in producing this quantity of coal. "Nineteen co-operative parties working portions of the State Coal Reserve near Greymouth produced, during the year 1939, 101,297 tons, the number of men employed being 174. During the previous year nineteen parties produced 108,214 tons, there being a decrease this year of 6917 tons. "The State coal mines experienced a very satisfactory year, the output being 220,780 tons, which was the highest for many years."