RAND MINING RECORDS

Greymouth Evening Star, 9 August 1938, Page 10

RAND MINING RECORDS

OUTPUT EXCEEDS £7,000.000

The Transvaal mining industry has established several new records. Aided by the longer working months of 26 days, the production and value figures for May show substantial advances over those of the two previous months. With a production of 1.019,251 ounces of gold valued at £7,109,276 the output for the second time in history exceeds the 1,000.000 ounces and £7.000.000 mark, established last March by 6.735 ounces and £46.977. The new record was helped considerably by the appearance of the new producer. Van Dyk. which made a. maiden return of 6,284 ounces, though even without, these figures the old records would have been surpassed. Another pleasing feature of last month’s returns is the native labour figure, which unexpectedly rose to the new record of 334.914. With two more large mines. Grootvlei and S.A. Lands reaching the production stage in the second half of this year, more records will undoubtedly be established for tonnage mined, output of gold, dividends, and money expended on wages and stores. The extensive expansion that has taken place in recent years in the gold mining industry continued throughout 1937. and the Union’s total production for the year reached the record figure of 11.734,574 tine ounces —one-third of the total production of the world, which is estimated at 35,000,000 fine ounces.

New records were also established in the number of tons treated, the number of persons employed, the salaries and wages paid and the stores consumed.

These facts are contained in the report of the Government Mining Engineer for 1937, which has just been released.

The previous production record of 11,558.532 line ounces was established in 1932. and the 1936 figure was 11.336,214 line ounces. With the exception of 22 line ounces, all the gold produced in the Union last year .was produced in Transvaal, the output for the Wit watersrand being 10.829,311 line ounces.

Employment figures reached new totals of 35.888 Europeans a.nd 28,676 coloured workers.

The prevalence rate of tuberculosis among mine natives was reduced by 44 per cent. The total number of accidents reported on Transvaal gold mines in 1937 was 14,634, compared with 14,568 in 1936. They resulted in 49 European 'and 723 coloured deaths and in in- ' juries to 1,786 Europeans and 12,661 j coloured employees. The number of European deaths from accidents in 1936 was 60 and of coloured deaths 760, while 1,590 whites and 12,705 coloureds were injured. The accident death rate for a.ll Louth African mines iu 1937 was 2-01. that for gold mines being 2.09 and the rate for coal mines being 2.55. Since the end of last year several monthly production records have been broken, and after the end of July the monthly gold output will exceed l.(io(i.i)iio tine ounces every month.