PRODUCTION OF COAL

Southland Times, Issue 25796, 6 October 1945, Page 4

PRODUCTION OF COAL

RECORD LAST YEAR The New Zealand output of coal last year at 2,805,970 tons was a record, according to the Mines Statement, tabled in the House of Representatives by the acting Minister of Mines (Mr O’Brien). In 1943 the output was 2,787,868 tons. Production has shown an increase every year since the beginning of the war, when it was 2,342,639 tons. “While there was record production, the supply position has remained critical because of the increased demand,” says the statement. “Crucial to this situation has been the progressive decline in importations from Australia, which reached bottom last year with no imports at all. Even though it has been possible in some industries to substitute lower grade coal for bituminous, this has resulted in greater quantities of lower grade coal being required to give the same effect as the bituminous coal formerly used. It is apparent that under present conditions no permanent relief to the coal supply position can be expected until such time as it has been possible to increase the supply of bituminous coal. The opening up of new mines, or even increased production from old mines, cannot be speedily effected.” The statement says the output a miner underground last year was 676 tons, and the output a man on the pay roll of underground mines was 494 tons, respective decreases of 19 tons and 25 tons, doubtless because of the high percentage of inexperienced labour now employed. In the last two years 15 entirely new opencast mines have come into production, and during last year they were responsible for the production of 131,375 tons. (The statement does not give the total production from all opencast mines, but of the gross output of 762,231 tons from State mines last year, 115,253 tons came from opencast mines).