COAL INDUSTRY

Evening Star, Issue 22203, 4 December 1935, Page 18

COAL INDUSTRY

DEVELOPMENTS OF PAST REVIEWED BY MIKE OWNERS’ PRESIDENT At the annual meeting of ihe_ New Zealand Coal Mine Owners’ Association held in Wellington yesterday the president (Colonel W. D. Holgate), moving the adoption of the report and balance sheet, reviewed the condition of the industry during the past 12 months. He said he was pleased to be able to state that the industry had been free from strikes. There were, however, a few minor disputes which had been settled. There were still some disputes awaiting settlement on the West _ Coast which were to be considered with _ the West Coast Union at the conclusion of the annual meeting. A new agreement was entered into in April, 1935, this being practically the old agreement subject to an increase of 5 per cent, on all mine wages. This agreement would continue until the end of 1936. The industry generally showed an improvement for the year 1934 compared with the previous year, there being an increase in the output of 239,057 tons, for which the_ district was mainly responsible, but in no district is the output equal to that of 1930, there being 481,777 tons less for 1934. It would appear from the figures given in the annual report that the West Coast mines were seriously affected through competition with the co-opera-tive mines and State collieries, the latter being in direct opposition to private enterprise, neither benefiting the Government nor the employment of miners, as the men could be employed on the other mines. _ In the north the position had improved after 18 months of price-cutting, the owners having co-operated in fixing prices, which had also eliminated a certain amount of competition. Up ,to the present the system was working satisfactorily, and might lead to further rationalisation in the north. It had been previously pointed out that hydro-electrical power had. been a serious competitor to the coal industry, but as it was now an established fact, although at a big expense to - the Government, it was a competitor they had to endure. Oil in many cases was also replacing coal for producing heat and. steam and for use in Diesel engines, the importation of which had considerably increased during the past year. The use and importation of oil was rapidly increasing, and the only solution to combat tins was by extracting oils and benzine from our coal in New Zealand. “ At the last annual meeting, in referring to the depression of the coal industry, I stated,” said Colonel Holgate, ‘‘ that one of our difficulties was that there were too many mines working, and this still remains obvious today. There are also rumours of other companies commencing mining coal, in spite of the fact that very few coal companies are paying dividends. My experience is that most of the new companies,- more particularly in the north, have been floated by syndicates which have acquired the freehold at a small figure with thc_ view of obtaining royalties, resulting in that syndicate becoming a, parasite on the industry. I have always been in favour of ' the Government in any country acquiring through legislation all mineral rights, thus giving them the power to regulate the number of licenses granted for mining and also to receive any benefit from royalties. SATISFACTORY PROGRESS. “ The industry has made satisfactory progress for the year ended September last, resulting in an increase of over 40 per cent, in the sales of carbonettes, compared with the same period of the previous year. Apart, from an increase in tlie sale of carbonettes, all the oils extracted have been readily disposed of, gnd the slack utilised in the process has been the cause of decreasing the total slack waste by over 22,000 tons for the year. “ The latest reports from England are the results obtained from_ the plant erected by the Imperial Chemicals. This plant, according to statements made by one of its directors, cost oyer £7,000,000, and is producing benzine in large quantities, and is also heavily subsidised by the British Government, otherwise it is doubtful whether the process would be a commercial success. The latest reports from Germany are that' they are now obtaining 60 percent. of their own requirements of benzine and oils from coal. Forty per cent, of this amount is obtained from similar processes to the one used in the Waikato. Both England and Germany, having no oil deposits of their own, are anxious to obtain liquid fuels from, coal in order to bo totally independent of -obtaining them from other countries in case of war. THE OUTLOOK BRIGHTER. “It is generally admitted that England has to a very lax-ge extent regained her financial status lost through the Great War, and her dominions have also benefited in consequence. Our prices on exports of late have improved, and the outlook for the moment is brighter, much brighter than what it was three years ago. At the commencement of our depression, bur policy was to reduce costs of production in order to lessen the margin between costs of production and selling prices. Costs were considerably reduced, but did not sufficiently reduce the margin to give a profitable return. Now there is every prospect of costs being increased to the 1929 level, with probably no further prospects of increased selling prices beyond what they are to-day, and it is a question as to whether to-day’s prices will be maintained. If they fall, unless wo are careful, it would appear that the scheme has failed. No doubt the cause of our general depression in prices has been brought about by science and machinery both in the first and second industries to such an extent that it is doubtful whether there are sufficient people to consume the output even under normal conditions. As an example, 25 years ago Canada used to bring in close on- 100,000 men for harvesting. To-day, through the use of modern machinery, they do not require any. When the first turbine was erected, it consumed close on 71b of coal per horsepower. To-day the plant referred to consumes less than 11b of coal per horsepower. “ We cannot admit that either England or her dominions have recovered until such times as the greater portion of her unemployed are utilised at a failrate of pay on productive industries. It would appear that our old methods of sustenance and economics are failing us, and some -other method of rationalisation of industries, and probably our money system, will have to be adopted. In fact, the position to-day is that we are living in a period where we have a super-abundance of production on the one hand and extreme poverty on tlie other hand.”