IMPORTATION OF COAL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2895, 8 September 1909, Page 63

IMPORTATION OF COAL.

NEW ZEALAND MARKET FLOODED. AUCKLAND, September 3. Importations of Newcastle coal into New Zealand- threaten to have a somewhat serious effect upon the mines of the Auckland province. Representatives of some of the coal mining companies, seen to-day, by no means relished the situation created by the Government and other importers drawing supplies- from Newcastle. The managing director of the Northern' Coal Company (Mr W. D. Holgate) stated that there was a likelihood of a- reduction of hands in at least one of that company's ■ pits very shortly unless matters improved. "My reason for saying that," Mr Holgate remarked, " is chiefly on account of the market being flooded with Newcastle coal. During the last year the importation of coal from Newcastle has exceeded that of any previous year by over a million tons. Jn the first five months of the year alone wharfage was paid in Auckland on 32,000 tons of New* castle coal, and that does not include the supplies taken by steamers or put into hulks here. There is no doubt that Newcastle coal is freighted cheaply here, owing to timber vessels going to Australia, and bringing cargoes of it back instead of ballast. * Both Mr Holgate and other ' owners' blamed the Arbitration Act to a certain extent, in that it had, they declared, a tendency to increase the wages of miners to such an extent that Newcastle coal could be purchased cheaper than that of New Zealand mines. In consequence, the Dominion was being mad© the dump-ing-ground for Australian produce. One prominent representative of locallyowned min<es expressed the opinion that the Government was much' to blame for importing the New South Wales coal. He thought the statement attributed to t<h-© for Itail-w-ayis oxx iAxe subject was very lame, though no doubt he was not responsible for it. To say that screened coal suitable for steaming was not readily obtainable in New Zealand was to say what was open to doubt. Coal quite as suitable for the railways as Newcastle could be got in the Dominion. Not only that, but on some of the Government lines, notably on the Whangarei section, uniscre&ni&d coal was used with satisfactory results. This particular line was not only h?avily graded, but carried heavy traffic. In the case of the Taupiri Coal Company, the fact of the Government having so much Newcastle coal on hand has disorganised work at the Huntly mdmeis. More than once this company has had a contract to supply a certain tonnage/ per week, and when the orders "have been for le?is, work has on one or two occasions had to be sfonp°>d fo prevent a "surplus bein>K on haiPtd. PTiould th's state of things continue, it would be sariouis for the company.