OIL-FUEL WARSHIPS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1576, 21 October 1912, Page 7

OIL-FUEL WARSHIPS.

SUPPLY SHIPS ORDERED. Ily Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright London, October 18. The Admiralty has ordered from Messrs. A'ickers, Sou, and Maxim marine oilengines to be fitted in a vessel 4Goft. in length. The vessel will have oil-tanks with a capacity of 8000 tons of oil, and will carry oil to warships at sea.

A RUSH FOR OIL-TANKERS. Tho (lcinnml for oil-carrying ships is so enormous—about a hundred of tho typo tiro on order, both in Britain and abroad—that several of tho Ilrms who socialise in this class of work have, tho Manchester "Guardian" understands, announced their inability to consider further contracts until the. end of next year. Owing to the impossibility of Retting early delivery of tonnage for the. conveyance of petroleum and other liquids in bulk, 6omo owners nre actually buying ordinary cargo boats for conversion into tankers, and n number of ship-repairing establishments are, it is said, scouring a pood deal of work in this connection. Meanwhile the Admiralty is in tho market for oil-carriers, and has just chartered for twelve months one of the boats owned by a London Company, while it has also' ordered four tank steamers from private yards , , and is to have another two constructed at Dnvnnnort. All these new vessels are to bo fitted with internal combustion engines, and tho contract for ono set ha-s been placed with Messrs. Viekers, Limited, Barrow, who lmvo also a big six-cylinder Diesel in hand for the. cruiser Hawlte. The Admiralty already owns a (loot of tlirco oil-tankers, so that important developments nre evidently contemplated. So far tho adoption of oil as an exclusive fuel has bran chiefly confined to the smaller craft in all the navies, but it. is stated that it is to be used in tho United States battleships Oklahoma and Nevnda, which have not yet, however, been completed for service.