Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-10-15
Swedish Mines
Suffer Hardships
Because of Ruhr

Kiruna, North Of Artic Circle,
Sweden, Sept. Is ca. P. by MaiD-
Frances occupati ton of the Ruhr, and
the resultant collapse of the Swedish
iron ore trade with Germany, have
brought hardship to SWeden's great
northern ironfields and aroused en-
! nifty to France in the large Arctic
areas of north Sweden and Norway
which depend upon the pay-rolls of
the iron districts for their existence.
In 1922 the Kiruna field used to
send three shiploads of ore daily to
the Norwegian port of Narvig. At
the present time there Is scarcely a
shipload q week. Germany formerly
took the greater part of this ore. She
has the furnaces 10 handle it, but her
purchases have ceased since the
furry in the Ruhr.
England and France have no fur
naces suitable to the reduction Of the
Swedish orc. The Bethlehem Steel
Company has furnaces which are
capable of using this ore. and some
of it goes to America. Sweden ex-
ported nearly 100000 metric tons Of
ION ore in 1922, and over so percent
of this went to Germany AS early as
1913 Germany bought over 5000, 900
tons of Swedish iron ore for the Ruhr
furnaces.
The railway which runs from Lu-
lea, on the Gulf of Bothnia, to Mar
Wig, north of the Artic Circle in Nor
way. lives on the ore traffic. 1t
hauls export ore from kiruna to
Narvig, and from Gellivare and other
mines further south to Lulea. But
the latter port freezes, and in mid
winter the export ore reaches tide
water entirely through the Norweg-
ian port, Narvik.
Ore and wood products are prac-
tically the only freight which this
great section of Lapland affords it's
single railway, which is entirely cleo
trified and is the most northern cleo
trio railway in the world. Cities Of
10000 people have sprung up here in
the heart of Lapland at kiruna and
Gellivare, where mountains of iron
ore are being demolished by gigantic
electric shove!s and rushed to tide
water in steel dumpcars. These load
directly into steamers at Lulea and
Narvig, after the manner that the
Mesaba Range pours it's ore into
steamers at Superior, Wisconsin, for
the use of furnaces in Indiana or
euIlSylNdIld
The crews at these great ore CEN
ters now have only three or four days
of work week. and are feeling the
pinch which threatens to become
worse unless France and Germany
reach some agreement on the Ruhr
situati
Great Britain has about 100000
tons of iron ore stored at Narvig. In
addition there are about 100000
tons more which belong to various
commercial organizations. This ac-
cumulated before the armistice.
Great Britain bought her part to
keep it from going to Germany. but
the British furnaces did not use 1t,
and apparently it has been impossi-
BILE to find markets elsewhere.
Spain and Morocco yield an album
dance Of ore which is adapted to
British and French furnaces as they
are now equipped. If German fur
naces do not speedily come into the
market again for the Swedish ores.
and if Great Britain does not alter it's
steel industry to handle Swedish ore,
the outlook for the Swedish iron
mines is far from promising.
Sweden, Furthermore, is facing new
competition from Chile Strangely
enough. Swedish builders are con-
structing some gigantic ore ships for
the Bethlehem Steel Co. which are to
be used in carrying Chilean ore to the
United States. These vessels have
several times the capacity of the av-