TARANAKI IRONSAND

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 87, 3 October 1911, Page 4

TARANAKI IRONSAND

IXTERKST IN AMERICA. The following is an extract from a report in the Financial Bulletin, of Philadelphia, on New Zealand oil and iron ore, furnished by Vice-Consul Henry D. Baker, who is at present 011 special service in New Zealand in connection with oil and iron matters. The report states that at present there is much interest in the possibility of important developments in New Zealand as regards its presumably largo resources of petroleum and iron ore:— "Along the sea coast in the vicinity of New Plymouth mid a 100 miles farther south, there occur, I'or aliont a mile inland, deposits of magnetic .iron sand. The'director of the geological survey recently reported that the black sand had apparently been derived in part from the disintegration of liorii-blende andesites and more basic volcanic-,, rich in titaiiiferous magnetite, and in part from tufa. He stated that while it is impossible to give any definite idea of the quantity of this ironsand, yet undoubtedly it exists in immense quantities, and is measurable in millions of tons. "Some of the ironsand was recently sent to Xew York, where steel briquets were successfully made from it. The Xew York company that made the experiment was apparently pleased with the result, as it has just obtained from one of the small sea. coast towns an option to purchase a portion of the beach containing the sand. "Another company controlled by Xew Zealand capitalists'has acquired rights for iworking ten miles of the ironsand beach. It is at present awaiting developments in tly> oil lield at New Plymouth, with a view to making use, if possible, of either natural gas or petroleum as power for -obtaining pig iron -from the sand by electrical process. It is understood that about. 8000 h..p. is desired." [The small town referred to is Patea.]