CARGO FLEET

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 4, Issue 115, 9 June 1941, Page 6

CARGO FLEET

EMPIRE BUILDING PLAN

BRITISH MERCHANTMEN'

Tha shipyards of the Dominions and India are now organising t-hie supply of cargo vessels for the Empire's merchant fleet. India, ancient builder of ships, is preparing to launch vessels equal to the best of the West. Hongkong has two yards building handy cargo carriers up to 5000 tons: one of them, the Hongkong and Whampoa Dock Co., year built not only the hull of a fast modern cargo boat, but also her main propelling engines, the largest marine power unit which has come out of China. Although South Africa has no real shipbuilding industry, Durban's well equipped repairing yard and dry dock are most valuable to-day when shipping goes round the Cape in-? stead of through Suez. In the last eighteen months Australia has greatly extended her shipbuilding resources. A new shipyard, employing 2000 men, is being established at Whyalla, South Australia, to build ships of up to 12,000 I'ons. The'famous Cockatoo Island yard can build four ships at one time, while Mort's Dock, Sydney, can turn out two large and several small vessels simultaneously.. Both Port Adelaide and Williamstown, with experience of building ships in tha last wai', still possess expert labour. The equipment of the Commonwealth to handle the engineering side of shipbuilding is shown by the ordc/rs to the value of £250,000 for marine propelling engines and auxiliarv machinery recently placed in Queensland. Canada has now more than doubled the 4000 skillofd workers employed before the Avar in her 40 shipbuilding andi repairing establishments. Contracts for eighteen merchant vessels, each of 9300 tons carrying capacity have just been placed in Quebec, Montreal and Vancouver. It is expected that in about a year's time the first oi them will be. sent down the ways. These ships from the Empire, together with the reservoir of new tonnage,' in U.S.A., are an important addition, increasing month by month, to the growing expansion '.> f Britain's own war-time fleet of merchantmen.