OIL AND IRON.

Hokitika Guardian, 20 January 1922, Page 4

OIL AND IRON.

MINERAIi BEY4SLQPMENT IN NE\y ZEALAND.

WELLINGTON, Jap 16

“We are gpt at present advancing any money for tfie development of oil- j fields,!’ said tho Minister of Mines (the Hon’ G. J. Anderson) in the House of Representatives on Fr.iday night. “We advanced a considerable amount of money for prospecting in Canterbury, and we assisted in other places with the bject of getting a productive oilfield in this country. Our experience has been j ■that oil can be obtained in Taranaki at a depth of from 2090 to 2,300 feet. There is talk of a further oilfield somewhere in Nelson or Marlborough prvinces, but w.e are not interested in that financially. Dr A. K. Newman (Wellington East) suggested that more might be done in the search for oil and other minerals. It would pay the Dominion to get the ■best expert advice obtainable. Taranaki had turned out over two million gallons of oil, and there were other points wjhjere oil might be sought. He thought tfiat New Zealand ought) t? undertake the systematic development of its mineral resources. Traces of minerals had been found frqm one end of the country to "idle other, but prospecting did not seem to have got below the surface and the product of the existing jnipes was dwindling instead cf increasing. Other countries were tUvqloping ]?PY® r hy boring super-fieated steam in thermal regions. New Zealand did nothing of the sort. High-grade plumbago had been' found in Taranaki, but never developed. Phosphate existed in Canterbury, b u k the deposits \vere not being used. He thought that geological service required to be strengthened.. Mi 1 S- G. Smith (Taranaki) predicted a great fattire for wining W Taranaki. He thanked the Minister for assistance that had been given recently tP people who hoped still to demonstrate that oil could be won in Taranaki in payable quantities. The Minister had completed with a New Plymouth syndicate an agreement under whioh the syndicate was going to spend some money in oil development. It was a fact that every bore had found oil at a certain depth, between 2000 and 2500 feet. One bor. had gone down 5600 feet, and was now going to bo sealed at the depth at which oil had been found. Mr Smith suggested that it would be a very' good thing if the Government would negotiate again with the Anglo-Persian Com pany and get that great organisation interested in the New Zealand oilfields. The company was a British concern, backed by the British Government and it employed experts pf the very highest standing. Australia had derived "great benefit front an agreement with his company. There was no doubt at all that oil could be obtained in Taranaki. It could be won in large quantities if the right method of development were employed. Turning to ironsand, Mr Smith said tfiat an influential and wealthy British firm had made a proposition to the New Plymouth Borough Council. The firm was willing to establish a smelting plant, afi New Plymouth for the treatment of ironsand if th c Borough Council would undertake to supply 3,000 kilowatts for 24 hours a day from 1 ■ hydro-electric installation it had in hand. A representative of the company was coming to New Zealand, and he believed that the arrangements would be made and that Taranaki ironsand would be smeltered successfully on a commercial basis. Mr Smitfi added a suggestion that there were great possibilities of mineral development in the Puakau Ranges in Taranaki. The Minister of Mines said he could not agree that no good hadl come f rom the prospecting vote. Some excellent results had been obtained. The geologists were doing good work. The result of a report made on a West Coast mine might be to induce capitalists to puf up money for its development. The Government had been advised to bring in the Persian Oil Company. That was rather a big order at present. It might he well worth considering filter, hut he had great hopes that if the two syndicates which had been mentioned restrain od their enthusiasm and kept at a depth of between 2000 and 3000 feet

they would obtain eventually sufficient j oil to supply almost the whofij of the j New Zealand demand. If they went 1 below the depth lie had specified they ! would probably get no oil and woe i

only waste their money. With regard to ironsand, it seemed to him that the best progress would be‘ mU.de by private enterprise. The Government was considering assisting a company which was endeavouring to work the iron ores at Onakaka. The company was doing well, but the present financial depression was putting a check on its operations. The Minister mentioned in the course of his reply that he believed some men pos- , sessed genuine powers of divination, but did not know whether they could find oil. or not.