The Chronicle

BULAWAYO, Wednesday, March 1, 1967 — The big coal lift planned to bolster the sagging supplies of Zambia’s fuel –starved copper mines has begun. Thirteen trucks moved more than 260 tons of coal across the Zambian border from Wankie to Livingstone. It was the first consignment in an expected three-month long operation to get coal through to the Copper belt.

By the middle of next week the South African firm of Cargo Carriers, which has been hired by the copper mine companies for the operation , expects to build up the movement of coal to between 1 200 and 1 500 tons daily. A fleet of 38 trucks will be used. They will be used.

They will make the 68-mile trip betweenWankie and Livingstone twice daily.The first consignment got through without a hitch yesterday.But the drivers of the first lorries to cross the Zambezi were unhappy over the condition of the 28-mile stretch of strip road they had to cover between Wankie and the Rhodesia border.Said one, Mr FG van Zyl: “Strip roads will never stand up to this kind of traffic.I can’t see them lasting any more than a month”.

But the road worries are the only problems likely to face drivers. They were given every assistance butcustomsand immigration officials on both sides of the border. The first lift of coal was due to have taken place on Monday. But it hit snags. By the time compulsory loading regulations had been met and a route agreed upon, the delay meant trucks couldn’t get through before dark yesterday. Operations manager, Mr Reg Grant of Germiston, said last night: “The delay was unavoidable .But now we have got the show on the road we will be operating at a minimum of 1000 tons a day from the end of this week”.

The total tonnage railed into Zambia over the past weeks has fallen well short of the country’s ordinary requirements. It was for this reason that copper production has been running at 75 percent of the scheduled level for some weeks. Before the road lift was announced it was expected to drop below even this level.