NEW INDUSTRY

Hokitika Guardian, 16 September 1932, Page 6

NEW INDUSTRY

COAL DISTILLATION PROPOSED. £250,000 COMPANY TO BE FORMED. CHRISTCHURCH, September 16. 'Two New Zealand delegates will visit; England shortly with th 6 object of interesting English financiers in a new: industry which has its roots on the West Godst. The fPriiiation o'f a company in England with £250,000 capital is proposed by Coal Distillation and By-Products '(New Zealand), Limited, which at a meeting ye-ferday selected two directors, Mr H. R. Young (’Westport) and Mr R. English .(Christchurch) to go to England next month. They will be absent niitg giOntliG. The preliminary company was formed -some tim e ago, most of the capital, of £io,ooo being subscribed in Greymouth, where the main factory will be estafelished.

' The business to be undertaken by the company will be th{ extraction oi all the by-products from small' qba 1 - frOm/ a ; number of .mines in the West 'Coast. Among the by-products to be extracted will be benzine, tar, , pitch, dyes, sheep dips and many other pi eparations which at present are mainly imported. A factory will he established at Greymouth, And' another on© will be opened at Westport, and it is considered That the operations of the company will prove a solution of. the unemployment problem .in thoj-'e - districts. -

‘At present- the coalmining industry on the YVest Coasi .is depressed owing to a dearth of. orders • and much of the sleek coal is wasted. Tests carried out by ihe prolitainatry company > have, proved, that a great deal of this slack coal is particularly suitable for distillation, especially that from «;be, Walkend, Grey Valley,, State and many of the co-operative mWes.

Because of th©> importanc 6 of the work proposed to be carried'out by the company it is felt by the directors that assistance should' be' forthcoming from the Government and the Unemployment Board in making a start with the operations.