COAL FROM RUHR

Press, Volume LXXXII, Issue 24911, 26 June 1946, Page 7

COAL FROM RUHR

EXPORT TQ FIVE MORE COUNTRIES

_ LONDON, June 24. Coal from the Ruhr is being shipped to Italy, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, and Portugal said North German Coal Commission officials at Essen, Previously only France, Holland, Belgium, Norway, Denmark, and Luxemburg received Ruhr coal allocations. -A" British official declared that the British zone in Germany would 1 be the chief sufferer. He added thet cuts had been ordered in-supplies to the British zone, and to Belgium and Holland, to make up the allocations to the five countries which Britain and America had decided to admit to the European Coal Organisation. Reuter’s correspondent in Essen says that it is learned that the Ruhr mines will supply Italy with 250.000 tons by the end of July, because the recent United States coal strike stopped shipments to Italy, The correspondent adds that the decision to admit five extra coal consumers to the allocation list has surprised commission officials, who forecast that dangerously low levels are likely to be reached in coal production which may disastrously affect not only Germany but the whole of western Europe. British officials said, they had suggested shipping - -e of the exportable coal to Britain, but the proposal had been turned down through “political intervention.” The commission was told that British miners would not stand for the importation of German coal.

Experts maintain that the present Ruhr production rate of 175.000 tons daily mifst be increased to 250 000 tons if a .winter crisis Is to be avoided, The Brussels radio said that Belgium and Italy had concluded a commercial agreement Providing for a yearly delivery of 3.000.000 tons of coal from Belgium to Italy.