MOTOR SPIRIT SUBSTITUTES

Evening Star, Issue 23666, 28 August 1940, Page 6

MOTOR SPIRIT SUBSTITUTES

A MINISTERIAL STATEMENT PRODUCER GAS OFFERS BEST POSSIBILITIES [From Our Parliamentary Reporter.] WELLINGTON, August 28. The fact that the Government has been fully aware of the possible effect that a state of war might have upon the supply of motor spirit is evidenced bv a statement which the Minister of Supply (Mr Sullivan) made to-day in connection with the application of progas for automotive purposes. The Minister said that the national importance of substitutes for motor spirit was fully appreciated by the Government, and before the outbreak of hostilities a committee was set up to investigate the problem. The committee reported that of all the various alternative fuels which might be used for the purpose producer gas offered the best possibilities, having regard to the conditions obtaining in this Dominion. “ I realise that in this country producer gas is largely an unknown quantity, and I am arranging for a technical committee to prepare a service manual giving details of the operation and servicing of the emergency plant,” he said. “ While the Government wishes to place no obstacles in the way of the development of gas producers in this country, I feel that the public must receive a certain amount of protection, and steps should be taken to ensure that any person buying a gas producer plant will be assured that he is getting a reasonably satisfactory job. With this object in view I have arranged for a technical committee to investigate the matter and to draw up provisions for a reasonable performance test which all producer gas plants will be required to satisfy before their manufacture can be undertaken. Until these investigations are finished and a standard arrived at it will not be possible to test the plants, but _ any person desiring further information on this subject should communicate with the oil fuel controller.”

In order that the public may be assured as £ar as possible of a good standard of workmanship, some form of control 'should be exercised on the manufacture of these plants, Mr Sullivan said. He was therefore arranging for this to be done under the war emergency legislation. He realised that the motor industry had been affected by the petrol restrictions, and he had instructed the factory controller that in dealing with applications every consideration should be given to those firms whose businesses had been affected by these restrictions. “ The Government feels,” concluded Mr Sullivan, “ that under the present circumstances it is in the national interest that everything possible should be done to encourage the use of gas producers, so that a proportion at any rate of our vehicles may operate on locallyproduced fuel, and the question' of a mileage tax on vehicles operating on producer gas is now being considered by the Government.”