Gradual Recovery of

Nauru Phosphate

Gradual Recovery of Production

ACCORDING to evidence given by Mr, Bankes Amery, United Kingdom commissioner on the British Phos phates Commission, before the Committee on Public Accounts, in London, in October, phosphates production from Nauru Is land should overtake the present de mands from Australia and New Zealand in about three years. . i At present, said Mr. Amery, Australian and New Zealand requirements were about 1,100,000 tons a year, but as a re sult of damage done during the Japanese occupation of the island it was not ex pected that the output for the last finan cial year would be more than 230,000 tons.

This would be stepped up progressively by about 300,000 tons a year until by 1950 it was hoped the output from the island works would be sufficient to meet the full requirements of the two Dominions.

Mr. Amery said the import of phos phate by Australia and New Zealand was limited at present to some extent by the capacity of manufacturers in the two Dominions to produce and deliver super phosphates from the raw material.

The main preoccupation of the com mission was to obtain sufficient supplies to meet the demand from Australia and New Zealand, and also from the United Kingdom if the need ever arose. There was no demand now from the United Kingdom because it cost too much to ship phosphate from Nauru to Britain.