Britain To Concentrate On Coal Production

Chronicle (Levin), 12 January 1949, Page 5

Britain To Concentrate On Coal Production

Eeceived Tuesday, 7.5 p.m. LONDON, Jan. 11. Britain is eonfident that her eoal expoits during 1949 will beat all postwa?' reeords and greatly exceed last year's dgure of 16,100,000 tons. The ehairman of the National Coai Board, Lord Hyndley, said the Ifoard whieh administers Britain 's national ised coal industry, is determined to do e.verything possible to hit the 23,000, 000 tons export target set in the Eiiro pean economic reeovery programme. The industry beiieves it can sel; abroad without difficulty all the bunke' coal, gas coal and coke it can produce. Lord Hyndley gave his own personal target for 1949 production of deer mined coal, of 215,000,000 tons and technical advisers are understood tc .consider this figure practieable. Lord Hyndley, voicing his disap pomtment at the failure to reacli lam year's 200,000,000 tons target (thel output was 196,689,000 tons) asserted at concentration on improving qual-it-y had cut quantity and robbed the mmers of full achievement. Tlie National Coal Board is sending a team of expei-ts mto the mining areas in the next few weeks to see what can be done o ^lmprove output and cut costs. The team will be headed by Sir Eric Young production member of the board.