Need For New Zealand To Find Base Metals

Chronicle (Levin), 16 June 1949, Page 8

Need For New Zealand To Find Base Metals

■— — ♦ • WELLINGTON, June 14. New Zealand 's future economy, particularly in the event of isolation due to war, may be vitally influenced by her ability to produce supplies of base metals. The , demand for lead was mcrea'siug throughout the world and even if the ordinary commercial uses of lead were ignOred, the present development of atomic research might call for an euotmous supply of the metal, said Mr L. E. Hevwood, A.E.S.M., in Welling ton, to-day. Mr Heywood recently returned to this eountry from Britain and Australia after discussiug the future development and exploitation of the base Uietal resoUrces of New Zealand with leading mining authorities in thdse eountries. Low grade base metal propositions were novv. of great interest to mining engineers, expla!ined Mr Heywood. Previous to the recent war lead rnines hnd to be rich to be workable but during the war the.ptice of the metal skyrocketed. From the 1935 price of about £9 LOs a ton it rose to £129. The preseiii London buying price of scrap metal lead ,is about £56 a ton. It has fallen >y £57 since the beginning of the year. It had been estimated that at the present fate of consumption the world 's lead resources would be exhausted in aboUt 11 years-. Up to the present New ieaiand had never been a producer oi 'ead, copper or zine in any quantity and supplies have had to be imported. Thqre tre a Uumber of places in this eountry vhere low grade deposits of lead and iinc and, to a lesser degree copper, occur but so far no worthwhile deposits •)f copper had been found. Mr Heywood, whd discussed ^he wide distribution of sources of sitpp! • throughout the Commonwealth while in London, is liow engaged iu surveyittg the area north of Thames township, odt side the Thames special gold area. It ' base Metals are foUnd here in workable quantities, it will be possible tc produce them for the local market ancl the installation of suitable treatineui ilant will have to be considered. At otesent concent^ates containing thesc .metals would have to be 3ent to Aus- ' tralia or the tJnited States for treatment.