IRON INDUSTRY.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVIII, Issue 77, 28 February 1938, Page 9

IRON INDUSTRY.

ESTABLISHMENT IN DOMINION. BILL BEING PREPARED. WELLINGTON, Feb. 28. ' A Bill embodying the Government’s proposals for the establishment of an iron industry in New Zealand is already in the hands of the law draftsman and will be submitted to Parliament during the next two weeks. A statement on these lines was made by the Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage; in his speech at Featherston on Saturday, and subsequently amplified by him in an interview. “It is definitely the intention of the Government to establish an iron industry in New Zealand,” Mr Savage said. “Recent experiments, with important projects held up owing to delay .in the arrival of iron and steel supplies, would alone make this course necessary, but there are other obvious reasons of even greater importance. “At present there are some difficulties in the way, and they must bo removed by legislation before we can proceed. The Bill giving effect to the Government’s policy is being drafted now, and its main provision will be to enable us to go ahead and do the job. For years there has been talk about developing the iron deposits of the Dominion, and it is about time that'we stopped talking and did something.” . ; ■ The Prime Minister added that the general proposal ■ was to develop the iron deposits at Onekaka, which on several occasions have aroused the interest of overseas experts. He was unable to say where the actual smelting works and mills would be situated once the project is under way, but stated that these and other related matters would be finally determined as soon as the preliminary difficulties had been removed. Mr Savage was also asked whether the Government.' would conduct the proposed new industry in its entirety or whether it would be operated by private enterprise under license and on the payment of royalty to- the State. He replied that he was unable to discuss that particular point at the moment, as the full details of the Bill had still to be discussed at a Government caucus. However, the actual proposals would be made public in the near future. As long ago as Noveinboi, 1935. the then Minister of Finance (Rt. Hon J. G. Coates) announced that a comprehensive survey of the Onekaka iron deposits had been made. Mr Coates stated then that there were over 60,000,000 tons of ore containing more than 50 per cent, of pure iron in the Onekaka field. Negotiations had been in progress between the Unemployment Board and the company holding the options over the Onekaka property. It was estimated that if the industry were reopened it would provide direct employment for 1700 men. A full report had been received from Brassert and Company, consulting engineers and advisers, which stated that the prospects were very favourable provided that some assistance could be given by the Government in the early years of the undertaking.