Briefly
p. 57 · Read in the full issue
• Burns Philp (SS) Co Ltd plans to spend about $3 million in 18 months to boost its continuing development programme and assist Fiji’s ailing building industry. The company announced this at the same time as it disclosed that the profit for the six months to December 31, 1977, was $1 497 000, an in crease of 6.9% on the return for the six months to Decem ber 31, 1976. The sales revenue for the period was $23 959 000. Mr R. J. Row land, general manager, said he envisaged a brighter future for Fiji in the 1980 s. Trading in Fiji in the six months was static, but growth in the four other Pacific Island branches allowed the Fiji branch to maintain employment oppor tunities. • An external telephone and telecommunications to be installed in Honiara will give the Solomon Islands a direct link with the outside world.
At present, international calls from the Solomons have to be made through Suva or Sydney.
The system will be run by Soltel Ltd, a joint Solomons- Cable & Wireless Ltd en terprise. The project will cost about $2 million and is ex pected to be in operation by Independence Day on July 7.
Initially, the Solomons Is lands Government will hold a 49% interest in Soltel and Cable & Wireless will hold 51%. Cable & Wireless will, in time, sell its interest to the Solomons Government. • The oil palm industry in Papua New Guinea could be worth K4O million a year at today’s prices when it is in full production. Oil palm pro jects at Hoskins, Bialla and Popondetta will involve 26 000 ha producing 120 ton nes of oil and 18 000 tonnes of kernel a year. • A strike by Air Niugini pilots in March brought all services in Papua New Guinea to a halt for about a day. The dispute was over pay scales and arrangements for crews of the Boeing 707 which Air Niugini uses on its trunk inter national routes. Also ground ed were two Fokker Fellow
ship jets and 1 1 Fokker
Friendship turbo-prop
aircraft. The pilots went back to work late on the day of the strike. After talks with Air Niugini management and the Department of Labour they agreed to take their dispute to arbitration. • Fiji could be producing 400 000 tonnes of sugar from three million tonnes of cane by 1980 which should enable the Fiji Sugar Commission to meet without difficulty long term commitments to Europe, New Zealand, Malaysia and Singapore. Sugar production in the current year is expected to be about 362 375 tonnes from 2 674 1 72 tonnes of cane. • The Pacific division of Burns Philp & Co Ltd re corded improved profits overall, largely because of im proved efficiencies for Burns Philp (SS) Co Ltd, improved trading in the New Hebrides and Papua New Guinea and increased coca production in the six months to December 31, 1977. This is revealed in the company’s half-yearly re port, which recorded a net profit of $4,634 million, an increase of $467 000 on the six months to December 31, 1976. The group’s Australian operations continued to be affected by the generally depressed level of economic activity. The interim dividend is steady at 7.5 c a share. • Papua New Guinea Government moves to reduce the consumption of alcohol had little effect on the earn ings of brewer San Miguel and Swan Holdings Ltd in the year to December 31. Revenue was up by 63% to K 7.8 million and the loss was reduced by 46% to K 392 000 compared with the previous year. But if the people drank more beer there was nothing in it for shareholders for no dividend was declared. • A 28-bed hospital will be built in the Haapai group in Tonga from funds made available by New Zealand.
The cost, which will include some staff housing, is ex pected to be about $615 000.
The new hospital will replace a 70-year-old building, which no longer meets the needs of the group.