OIL INDUSTRY IN TARANAKI

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 228, 1 February 1911, Page 4

OIL INDUSTRY IN TARANAKI

BIG THING FOR NEW ZEALAND. PRESENT CONDITIONS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS. Says yesterday's Wellington Times:— Away up in a corner of Taranaki big things are happening, tilings that before long are going to mean substantial and lasting contributions to the prosperity of the whole Dominion, and yet, strange to say, people generally know very Httle indeed of what is going forward. Taranaki "struck oil" some years ago, and has struck oil more than once since, and yet even the people of Taranaki have not realised what this means. So, at least, a New Zealand Times representative was assured at the end of last week, when he visited the oil wells of the Taranaki Petroleum Company with the Prime Minister. The existence of huge deposits of oil near New Plymouth ha« been proved beyond question, but the province still halts on the eve of what must be a period of remarkable development and rapiu progress. DOUBTING VISITORS CONVINCED.

The company has four bores down close to the town of New Plymouth, near to the railway line and within a few chains of the port. A fifth bore is now being drilled close by, and is already down nearly 500 feet. From its situation it is hoped to prove a really good bore when completed. Doubting visitors are all convinced when they see what' i# happening at No. 2 bore, whicu goes down into the earth for 3030 feet, and has been flowing continuously for over twelve months at the rate of 100 barrels, or 400(5 gallons, every week. This is really the company's test well. The •oil comes up, day and night, without pumping or any mechanical assistance whatever, and shows no sign of weakening in its flow. This, in the opinion of the company's experts, is not likely to occur for many years, but even if it did there is a strong probability of securing an even greater flow by sinking the well a little deeper. No. 1 bore, which gave splendid indications and stimulated the formation of the present company, is now being re-cased, and will probably be taken down to about the same depth as No. 2. A really good well, says the manager, should result. No. 3 bore is down to about 3100 feet, and a very large flow of gas and oil has been obtained. The flow was steady for a while last year without any mechanical assistance, but the company had bad luck (as it hag had before), and the lower portion oj the well caved in during August. The flow was thus stopped, this being the direct result of the absence of the necessary casing for the bottom 500 feet. Several months elapsed before the casing could be procured and the manager could proceed to pump the "cavings'Vout. That the well taps the oil supply is shown by the fact that several times during the enforced.wait the pressure became great enough to force considerable quantities of gas and oil through some hundreds ot feet of silt. The flow lasted from one to three weeks until stopped temporarily by the resumption of casing operations. At one time during the year these three wells were all flowing steadily together. 160,000 GALLONS INT STORE. The crude oil on forcing its way to the top is conducted by piping to great underground tanks, after first being steamed and cleaned. There are now stored in the tanks upwards of 160,000 gallons of good, crude petroleum, which appears to the visitor as a waxy, greenish substance. Every day the store is being added to, and the company has at last been able to apply to the Government for payment of the £2500 bonus promised to the winners of the first 250,000 gallons of oil in New Zealand. In addition to the oil great quantities of gas are forced up the bores, sufficient, in the estimation of the experts, to illuminate permanently a town twice the size of New Plymouth. The gas, or rather a part of it, is being used by the company at the works. It is led by pipes' to the boiler-houses and fed into the fire-boxes, where it burns steadily with great heat and without any need of attention such as must be given to coal-fed furnaces. If more heat is required, all that need be done is to open • the tap a little more and the fire-box is filled with fierce flame. The turning of another tap adds a jet of crude patrolrum to the ful. There is no trouble and no smoke, the whole demonstrating clearly the value of the oil and gas for steam-producing purposes. BY-PRODUCTS FROM THE WELLS.

One of the most interesting things shown to visitors is the miniature refinery, which is said to have already proved a splendid advertisement and demonstrated the value of the oil. The process of distillation gives, first of all, benzine, then kerosene, four grades of lubricating oils, paraffin wax, pitch, and vaseline. The exhibit in the office comprises all the bv-products of the wells, from motor spirit to a paraffin candle. It is claimed that the refining shows Taranaki oil to be about two and a half times more valuable commercially than any other oil known.

To sum up, the company now possesses five wells, two of which are running oil without pumping, It is confidently expected that when the other bores'are down to the necessary depths all will give a good and permanent oil supply. The manager advises that at least one more bore should be started, declaring that it is almost a certainty that every bore would bottom on good oil. Altogether it is an industry of which Xew Zealanders should know more ucfore it passes into other hands.