From New Guinea
pp. 71-72 · Read in the full issue
Edie Ck. Gold Mining Co.
At the annual meeting held in Melbourne on December 16 of Edie Creek Gold Mining Co. N.L., New Guinea, the chairman of directors (Mr, E.
Ward) referred to the Edie Development N.L., the new company which will take over the assets and liabilities of the existing concern. Capital will be £60,000, in 120,000 shares of 10/- each.
For each £lO share held, shareholders will ic ceive 20 fully paid shares, and have the right to apply for 100 contributing shares, payable 1 /on application. Mr. Ward urged shareholders to support the new company to enable it to carry on. He emphasised that the general manager (Mr. H. Taylour) and Mr. J. M. Spence, mining engineer, had favourably reported on the prospects.
Enterprise Of N.G.
In the period from November 17 to December 6 activities of Enterprise of New Guinea, N.L., have centred principally on the construction at Surprise Creek of a water-race approximately three miles long. Good progress has been made, but the work has been hampered by frequent heavy rains, and a shortage of native labour. At the close of the period five Europeans and 105 natives were en gaged on the work.
Sunshine Gold Development Ltd.
For the period December 11, 1933, to June 30 last, Sunshine Gold Development Ltd., New Guinea, expended £14,818 on mine property account, £9353 on prospecting and development account, and £919 on formation expenses. At the close of the term there was a surplus of liquid assets of £14,483. Sluicing operations on the con solidated claims are expected to start in February.
The yardage of proved ground is 2,129,000 yards, having an estimated recoverable value of over £401,000, Australian currency. Owing to the exact ing nature of the race construction it has not been possible to test the value of the balance of the claims, and the additional land taken up, which increases the area of the claims to 222 acres. The directors expect to obtain an appre ciable additional volume of payable wash from these areas. Before undertaking sluicing operations on the undaunted claim, the general manager recom mends further testing. Offers to purchase this claim, and for working it on tribute, have been made. These offers have not been entertained.
After considering the results obtained from scout drilling on the Oro River property the directors have decided to relinquish the property. Drilling on the Sunshine claims is proceeding, progress being somewhat slow on account of the hard nature of the compacted nature of the wash. It is expected the testing of these claims will be com pleted before the option expires in June next.
Gold Prospecting And Development
(New Guinea) N.L.
A cablegram has been received by Mr. K. W.
Steedman, manager of Gold Prospecting and De velopment (New Guinea) N.L. from the contractor on Tatau Island (New Guinea) advising that the main shaft has been sunk 60 feet and is still in lode formation, with the gold content improving.
The contractor added that there are people from Australia not connected with the syndicate, looking at the field.
Gum River Development N.L.
After the report of gold found in every dish, by Mr. J. M. Spence, in the original inspection of the Gum River Development N.L. properry near Madang, New Guinea, there is disappoint ment for shareholders in Mr. J. B. Du Faur’s re port that the area is unpayable and that he re commends its abandonment. To the credit of the promoters, however, the proposition has been put forward only as a speculative chance right from the outset. It was clearly pointed out that whether or not it contained values was only to be determined by examinations.
Mr. Spence’s report was commendably clear on this point. “I dish tested the river beaches at numerous points and in all cases got colours of gold, some prospects were very fair, but this can not be taken as an indication of the average value on the property, as it may simply be a con centration caused by floods, and at no time can dish testing give anything like a true indica tion of values,” he said in the prospectus. “Drill ing will be the only logical way to prove values.”
Mr. Du Faur has suggested examination of an other area in New Guinea which may contain 40 million yards of 13 grain ground. It is under stood that the company has preserved about one half of its original capital intact, and that as Mr.
Du Faur is already in New Guinea, the cost of examining the new area will absorb the equiva lent of only about 3d. a share.
The public issue was 20,000 shares of 4/-; ven-* dors received 24,000 shares as part consideration,
and £5OO cash (the assets purchased included also 10 shares of £5 fully paid in Gum Heights Syn dicate) ; vendors took up a further 12,000 shares at 3/4 each and 69,000 shares were held in reserve.
Morobe Alluvials N.L.
The directors report that official quotation has been granted by the Stock Exchange of Melbourne to 130,000 shares of 10/-, paid to 5/-, in Morobe Alluvials N.L., Wau, New Guinea.
Sandy Ck. Gold Sluicing
The mine manager of Sandy Creek Gold Sluic ing Limited reported on December 24 that as a result of preliminary work opening out paddock, etc., he has recovered 330 z. gold. New flanges will be fitted to the pipes during the holidays to pre vent delay in further sluicing operations. The directors state that Mr. Winters has just returned after spending over two months at Sandy Creek, and reports that he is well satisfied with the re sult of his further examination of the property.
A report of his inspection will shortly be circu lated to shareholders.
On January 11, the mine manager reported that for the week ended January 8, he recovered 730 z. of gold from 2,175 cubic yards of gravel treated.
Upper Watut Gold Alluvials N.L.
The directors of Upper Watut Gold Alluvials N.L. made a call of 1/- a share, on January 8.
This was the third call made by the company, and brought the shares to their fully-paid value of 5/each. Paid capital is now £200,000. The property, which is situated in New Guinea, was recently in spected by Mr. G. Annesley, an American engineer, who expressed the opinion that, with proper man agement, and the right equipment, the area could not fail to be a regular producer and a constant dividend-payer. The constructional programme on the company’s property on the Upper Watut River, in New Guinea is well advanced, and is in accord with the time schedule arranged at the inception of the work. Installation of a hydro-electric power plant and construction of a race line to convey water from Big Slate Creek to the power station is proceeding. As the Big Slate Creek has a catchment area of about 50 square miles, and the district rainfall ranges from 40 to 103 inches annu ally, an ample supply of water is assured. The water will be diverted by a weir to the race which will be three and a half miles long and lined with concrete. Finally, the water will be discharged into a surge tank 270 feet above the power station.
Welded steel pressure pipes will then be used to convey the water to the power house. At present about 60 Europeans and 300 natives are being employed. A contract has been let for the supply of two sets of turbines and generators of 620 h.p. each, and provision is being made for the installation of a third unit at a iater date. The first instalment of the treatment plant will consist of 12in. pressure pumps and monitors and lOin. gravel pumps mounted on pontoons, and will be capable of handling 1,000,000 cubic yards of wash annually. The material will be delivered to sluice boxes, which will be equipped with the latest gold saving appliances. It is expected that production
will begin next June, and that prospectus esti mates will be fully attained.
Upper Sepik Gold Syndicate
Directors of Upper Sepik Gold Syndicate N.L., New Guinea, have granted to Bulolo Gold Dredg ing Ltd. an option of purchase until February 28 over seventeen acres of river flats, comprised in lease No. 361, which is held under option to the syndicate. The consideration on exercising of the option is £2,000. The ground is not suitable for sluicing, and at a recent meeting of the board of Upper Sepik Gold Syndicate N.L., Mr. L. V.
Waterhouse, a director of the Bulolo Gold Dredg ing Ltd., stated that it was the intention of his company to dredge this ground, together with the adjoining flats recently taken over from Bulolo Gold Deposits.
The legal manager (Mr. K. W. Steedmann) has received advice from Messrs. Spence and Smith, consulting engineers, of Wau, that Mr. J. M.
Spence is personally engaged on his final check testing of lease No. 351, which is situated about four miles from Wau, New Guinea, and is under option to the syndicate. This area has been tested
by Mr. H. Williams, the syndicate’s engineer, and is said to contain a large quantity of payable wash.
It will be the basis for the flotation of a major operating company. It is expected that the direc tors will shortly announce details of the company to be formed to work the property.
Kinantie Gold N.L.
To operate leases in New Guinea, Kinantie Gold N.L. is being formed in Melbourne with a nominal capital of £60,000, in 120,000 shares of 10/- each.
For subscription, 80,000 shares are being offered at 5/- on application and allotment; the vendor and promoter will receive 16,500, fully paid, in part consideration, and 23,000 will be held in reserve.
The cash consideration is £9,000, of which the owner will receive that amount, and 8,000 fully paid shares. To acquire adjoining properties, 1,500 shares have been provided. No. 1 lease is at the junction of Ornapinka Creek with the Ramu River, and up the creek for more than five miles, and No. 2, the Yonka, flowing into the Ramu. The first • lease is of 180 acres, and the second is 5281 yards long, by a width of 2)4 chains. Arrangements have been made to peg an extra lease of value, at the junction of Yonka Creek. This portion com prises approximately 54 acres of flats and terrace.
The wash is favourably situated for ground sluic ing. The estimated yardage proved is set down at 800,000 yards, with a recoverable value, estimated at 5/- a cubic yard, of £200,000. The cost of working is given at £70,000, leaving a working profit of 1/9 a cubic yard, or £130,000. The out put of sluicing is estimated at 200,000 yards per
annum, and the working profit £32,500. The directors are Sir Stanley S. Argyle, and Messrs A. R. Dodgson and A. G. Campbell, Mr. H. S.
Archdall, 422 Collins Street, Melbourne, is the legal manager.
Oriomo Explorations Limited
The chairman (Mr. E. L. Walter) of Oriomo Ex plorations, Ltd., addressing shareholders at the annual meeting on December 23, said that the expectation of gold-bearing gravels in the consoli dated areas in the Mandated Territory now attached to about 16 acres of river beds and 80 acres of terraces. Boring had shown that the value of the areas would depend on the value and yardage of the southern portion of the river terrace gravels to which the plants were transferred, and where boring commenced on November 13. Line 19 was discontinued after three bores, and showed an average value, at £AB an ounce, of 3/- per cubic yard for an average depth of feet.
Line 21 increased the difficulty in evaluating the area, for holes 44, 40, and 34 feet deep gave values of approximately 20/-, 7/2, and 8/9 per cubic yard respectively. Three other bores put down on the same line to a depth of about 18 feet averaged less than 1/- per cubic yard. The value of the area depended upon the frequency of the richer concentrations, and additional close boring might be necessary to show reliable values.
The company has options over approximately 2000 acres of alluvial ground in the Mandated Territory, New Guinea, stated the directors, in their annual report. The result of the work of Mr. M. Milstein,
a geophysicist, indicated five drilling areas, cover ing approximately 1100 acres, and estimated to con tain 59,000,000 cubic yards. The best prospects were contained in two areas which, combined, con tained approximately 33,000,000 cubic yards.
Expenditure for the twelve months ended August 31 was £4,669. At the close of the year there was a surplus of liquid assets of £23,002, exclud ing shares in other companies valued at £2.494.
Bulolo Gold Dredging Ltd.
Production of the four dredges of the Bulolo Gold Dredging, Ltd., for December compares with that of the previous two periods as follows:
No. 2 Dredge which shut down on November 25, resumed operations on January 1.
New Guinea Goldfields, Ltd.
The monthly returns of production and estimated profits of New Guinea Goldfields, Ltd., are as fol lows :
The first clean-up at the Edie Creek mill will be made at mid-February.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
Cubic yards .. 958,000 811,000 615,000 Bullion, oz .. 16,079 14,087 9,632 Gold, fine, oz .. 11,186 9,723 6,774
Value—
Aust. Currency* .. .. £97,877 £85,076 £59.272 Per cub. yard /24.52 /25.17 /23.16 Working profit .. £71,820 £63,166 £42,892 * At £A8/15/- per fine ounce.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
Alluvial— Fine gold, oz 1,132 959 917 Fine silver, oz 851 713 668 Mill (Golden Ridges) — Fine gold, oz 1,612 1,709 1,175 Fine silver, oz 1,025 1,056 723 Sept.
Oct.
Nov.
Estimated profit— Alluvial £4,499 £6,091 £5,073 Mill 8 540 8,366 7,607