Chrome Languishes

Caledonian Nickel Booms While Chrome Languishes

From Our Own Correspondent

: Noumea, Nov. 11.

VTTCKEL and chrome mining, the JLI two industries which are the basis of New Caledonia’s i economy are at present in violent [ contrast to each other.

Nickel mining is booming and faces a bright future. But the chrome industry is reeling under the burden of high production costs and few foreign buyers. America, which used to take the greater pro portion of NC’s chrome production is now out of the market.

Members of the local assembly the Conseil Generale, recently radioed the French Premier (M.

Mendes-France) protesting against French industrialists buying chrome from foreign sources—with ap parently little result: it was officially announced shortly after that under a Franco-Russian economic treaty then being discussed, France would import large quantities of chrome from the Soviet.

The local Assembly considers that if the treaty is adopted, NC’s chrome industry will die. Dismissals occurred in October and the Colony s largest mine laid off a further 200 workers in November. viniL the u S l me time the Societe Nickel, which operates smelters in Noumea expects this year’s pro duction to total 8,000 tons of pure metal At least 450,000 tons of ore *?e mined, and it is expected 1955 1S figure be exceeded in The smelters at Noumea are -quipped with three coke and three -lectnc furnaces. Continuous opera -lon of the latter is conditional on ; he water level in the Yate dam— •lie of the only hydro-electric in itallation in NC —about 50 miles rom Noumea. The Government is [t present considering enlarging the . A refining furnace, which animates all sulphur from the melters VaS recently at the are being exploited by he Nickel Co. About 1,600 persons re employed, and at least another ,000 will be employed as the rapid Kpansion at the smelters and the lines continues.

Japan, which secured large con -ssions in the Colony before the ,r a , n( *. worked them extensively, en^er the nickel trade ith NC once again. Contracts have for the supply of K), 000 tons of 3to 4 per cent ore nou 1 be J refined in Japanese nelters ahd, as ferro nickel, will be "Ported to South America ermany apd Italy.

. lcke l Co- has also interested itself in cobalt deposits. it has brought a specialist out from France, who is at present examining the deposits. A pilot plant, capabll of treating about 20 tons per dav has been erected for washing cobalt ore. A company, in which both French and Canadian capital has been invested, has been formed to concentrate and smelt the mineral.

I Mr -. E- J. H. Colchester-Wemyss, Superintendent of Police and Prisons, BSIP, has been appointed Commissioner of Police, Bahamas.

The appointment will take effect at the conclusion of his forthcoming leave. Mr Colchester-Wemyss will leave for UK next February.

and r M^ s - Brassey. of Tipperary, Ireland, recently visited their former home at Dunk Island. mnnf£c UPlC f£ tWO and a half Ke via Vi l usl and and retUrned ® amoans and the president or the Samoan Seventh Day Ad ventist Mission (Pastor H. B Christian) visited Australia recently.

They were delegates to the Quad rennml Session of the SDA Church m Sydney. The Samoans, Pastor Tmi Inu and Miss Momoi Kuresa were on their first visit to a com pletely European community. Miss Kuresa is the matron of a train ing hospital for 200 nurses in Western Samoa. Pastor inu lives in American Samoa.