Wood charcoal could fire Glenbrook for fraction of coal cost — paper

Press, 31 January 1986, Page 23

Wood charcoal could fire Glenbrook for fraction of coal cost — paper

PA Auckland Wood charcoal could be used instead of millions of tonnes of Waikato coal to fuel the expanded Glenbrook steel mill, according to a paper written by an Auckland lawyer and forester, Mr Mike Malloy. “Energy forests” could be planted on hill country near the Waikato River to supply the New Zealand Steel mill, Mr Malloy said.

Glenbrook’s demand for coal in the 1994-95 year — 880,000 tonnes — would equal 1.76 million cubic metres of wood. This could be obtained from 70,400 hectares in

the first year of a sevenyear growth period, the paper said. At a cost of $l4OO a hectare to establish, an exotic energy forest would cost $lOO million to get going — one-tenth of published estimates for the capital required to mine Ohinewai coal.

Mr Malloy said the forests would also have environmental benefits — they would stop erosion' on the hills and flooding in the valleys.

But the New Zealand Steel-raining manager, Mr Davd/Buist, said yesterday the use of charcoal in

steelmaking "went out with the Middle Ages” and was never considered seriously for Glenbrook. Mr Malloy said he believed his theory of forest fuel would probably be rejected because only short term benefits would be taken into account by New Zealand Steel, and it would not satisfy the Treasury criterion of a 10 per cent rate of return.

“In an area where primary forests are rapidly disappearing, it is possible that only New Zealand will pioneer an effective replacertfent resource,” he said.