GOLD PRODUCTION

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 12 January 1931, Page 10

GOLD PRODUCTION

ENCOURAGING THE INDUSTRY OUTLOOK FOR FUTURE In spite of the fact that the production of gold in New Zealand has decreased greatly since 1910, the opinion is still widely licit! that the Dominion is capable to yielding millions of pounds from this source. The days of huge gold production are eertainly many years away, but the optimistic outlook of recognised authorities is revealed by the close attention being given to locating and work possible profitable areas. Considerable time has been spent by the Minister of Mines (Mr A. J. Murdoch) upon the question of gold production. and the Mines Department has also devoted its attention to an encouragement of the industry. It is realised that although extensive areas have been worked, the time has come to explore other likely parts of both the North and the youth Islands. Prospectors are continually penetrating hitherto practically untraversed country in the heart of the South Island, and reports received by the Mines Department indicate that gold reserves are by no means exhausted. The lure of gold discovery may he said to account for the continued interest of some, while those in a position to know continue to be sanguine concerning the future of the industry. Overseas experts have in some instances been secured recently to report upon and advise concerning the working of eeitain areas by private enterprise, and it is understood they are of the opinion that the gold to he had in New Zealand has bv no means been exhausted. Added to this is the testimony of old and experienced miners, several of whom have recently written to the department aiul the Minister expressing a Arm conviction that, with the provision of the necessary funds, gold production would once more take its place as one of the country’s most important and lucrative industries. From 1857, in which year gold was first found in significant quantities, to the end of 1928 a total of £93,427,022 worth of gold was produced in the Dominion. Gold is widely distributed throughout both islands, but the chief economic deposits occur in three regions—Hauraki, the West Coast of tho South Island, and Otago. Each of these regions has yielded roughly a third of the Dominion total of gold, although considerable quantities have been taken from Nelson and Marlborough. Reference to the demand of modern prospecting is made by Mr J. Henderson, director of the Geological Survey Office, in an article upon gold in New Zealand in the current issue of the “Journal of Science and Technology.” He recalls that in the old days, when a prospector found a deposit he camped on the site and worked it as a miner. If it were too poor lie became a prospector again. Nowadays, however, a prospector who discovered a deposit, whether alluvial or reef, was rarely able to pay for the plant necessary for its proper working. The capitalist, before he would provide the money, wanted to know the size and value of the deposit. To ascertain this was in many instances a costly and a serious undertaking. For many years business caution had replaced speculative optimism. The times required a new kind of prospector, who had not only financial backing but who also had a knowledge of the different kinds of auriferous deposits and the geological conditions that affected their economic value.

It is pointed out that the progressive fall in the gold output since 1910 and its largeness, is disquieting, and it seems even more serious when the cause'of the fall is examined. The ore reserves of Waihi, which for over 10 years have yielded over half the gold produced annually in New Zealand, will soon be exhausted in spite of strenuous efforts to locate other ore bodies in the numerous lodes that traverse U several claims. One, if not the greatest, of the problems to he faced in the industry at the moment is that of rising costs of production in relation to output. The costs of mining ore in the lieefton area have doubled in the last 25 years, and the returns in many instances barely cover the cost of working. In Otago, as on the West Coast, the rise in costs during the last 25 years has greatly reduced both the output of gold and the reserves of payable auriferious deposits. Everywhere the rise has hampered the prospector, and in this respect Hauraki, which is so largely dependent upon new discoveries, is more adversely affected than other rc gions. It would seem that in many instances future gold mining operations will have to receive at least preliminary assistance from the State, which is able to use its organisation for tho discovery of payable deposits. In point of fact, the Mines Department is davoting much attention to this end. Tho Minister is keenly interested in the future of the industry, as it is realised that if gold production can once more be raised to a high level the national wealth must increase accordingly. It is understood that even greater attention is to he given to the question by the Government in the future.