PRODUCTION IN N.Z. OF NEWSPRINT SAID TO BE ECONOMIC

Wanganui Chronicle, 7 May 1948, Page 4

PRODUCTION IN N.Z. OF NEWSPRINT SAID TO BE ECONOMIC

(P.A.) Wellington, May 6. Investigation by two American experts at present in New Zealand confirmed the State Forest Service's belief that despite high capital charges local development of newsprint, printings and writing mills, complete with groundwood and sulphate pulp, was entirely economic. Announcing this in Dunedin today, the Commissioner of State Forests (Mr. Skinner) said the Government expected by October 1 a critical report by the experts on the establishment of a pulping and papermaking project in New Zealand. The Minister said that In contrast to the world timber supply position, the forward pulp and paper position recently Investigated overseas by the Director of Forestry (Mr. A. R. Entrican) wa» not so encouraging as far as export markets were concerned. Unlike timber, pulp and paper carried no huge accumulated shortages, and what shortages did exist would probably be eliminated within three years. “What is most significant is that North America has such a potential wealth of logging and sawmill waste available from its current operations that any increased production required will be much more cheaply obtained from there than from New Zealand resources," said Mr. Skinner. “North America is expected in a few years to become independent of enormous supplies of North European pulp which it previously imported, making a large supply of pulp available for all the wond markets, including Australia. New Zealand must therefore be most cautious when contemplating expanding pulp producing facilities for any considerable export during this current period of extremely high capital investment.” He added that in view of the need for independent investigation of such a nationally important project, the Government obtained the services of the Rust Engineering Company, of Pittsburgh, Pennsy.vania. This firm had been very prominent for many years in designing and constructing pulp and paper mills in the southern United States, where the use of pine pulpwood similar to the product from New Zealand's exotle forests had given the company's experts the necessary background for their investigations in this Dominion. Engineering and pulping experts visiting New Zealand had made exhaustive investigation into the physical, teennlcal and engineering problems involved in the whole project.