Seven Dredges

Bulolo Company’s Plans for New Guinea

'PHE very successful Bulolo Gold A Dredging Limited, which has been operating profitably for some years on the New Guinea goldfield, has decided to in stal a dredge of six-cubic-feet-bucket capacity on the area at Wau taken over last year from Bulolo Gold Deposits Ltd.

Thus, including four dredges now in operation at Bulolo, and two deep-digging ones to recover gold from the lower level discovered under the present dredging area three years ago, the Company will have seven dredges working in the Territory.

The dredge for the Bulolo Gold Deposits area will be known as No. 6, and the orders for it are now being placed. It will dig to a depth of 30ft., and should be completed about the end of next year.

After No. 6 is in operation dredge No. 1, which for some years has been work ing the shallow gravel along the eastern rim of the deposits, and which cannot reach the lower gravels, will be dis mantled and re-erected some miles downstream.

The first of the deep-digging dredges (to be called No. 5) is now being shipped to New Guinea and should be completed by July next. It will be freighted in from the coast to Bulolo by aeroplane, and it has been built so that the heaviest piece of machinery to be carried by air will not exceed 7,900 lbs. (over three and a half tons). The dredge will dig to 80ft. below water level and carry a bank of 40ft., thus giving a total digging depth of 120 ft.

The second deep-digging dredge (No. 7) will be constructed as rapidly as possibly after the above programme is completed.

It will dig to about 115 ft. and carry a bank of 50ft., making a total possible dredging depth of about 165 ft.

The Company has also announced that a further 1,000 h.p. unit will be added to the hydro-electric plant at Baiune.