THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN

AND

JOURNAL OF THE COAL AND IRON TRADES.

Vol. CXIIL	FRIDAY, JUNE 29, 1917.	No. 2948.

COAL AND SHIPPING.

XVIII.—Coaling in

The principal ports and coaling stations of Sumatra,
Java, Borneo, the Straits Settlements, and the Philip-
pine Islands form the subject of the present article.
Sumatra, Java, and part of Borneo are included in
the Netherlands East Indies; the Philippine Islands
are possessions of the United States of America; and
the Straits Settlements, as well as part of Borneo, are
British colonies or protectorates.

Sabang.

At the northern entrance to the Straits of Malacca,
and about 30 miles from the most northerly point of
Sumatra, is Sabang, which is situated in the north of
the island of Web. Sabang. is an important coaling
station, where a storage of over 50,000 tons is kept

Fig. 1.—Storage and Loading Equipment at Sabang,

under cover. The harbour is extensive, well pro-
tected, and deep, there being an anchorage about
1,625 yds. long and 985 yds. wide, with a depth of
from 90 ft. to 125 ft. within about 110 yds. from the
shore. The entrance to the bay is about 820 yds.
wide, and at the wharves, which are some 4,000 ft. in
length, there is a depth of 30 ft. of water alongside.
It will therefore be realised that the port can accom-
modate a considerable number of large vessels at one
time, both alongside the quays and at moorings.
Sabang, in fact, is claimed to be the most up-to-date
coaling station in the Far East, the equipment includ-
ing five movable transporter bridges with trolleys
operated by steel ropes. These transporter bridges
are 394 ft. in length, and extend 150 ft. over the wharf
side; they are movable along the wharf front on rail
tracks, and span the storage sheds situated at the
back of the wharf (fig. 1). There are some 35 storage
sheds, into which the coal is discharged from vessels
through movable sections of the roof, and is taken
from storage in a similar manner. When discharging
cargoes, the handling is effected with iron skips of
about 35 cwt. capacity; but for bunker deliveries
smaller skips or baskets are generally used. Vessels
moor alongside stagings constructed parallel with and
about 130 ft. from the wharf, these stagings being
connected with the wharf by several jetties. Bunker
deliveries are also dealt with by labour — gangs of
coolies being employed—and, in addition, mechanically
equipped barges are available, both of the conveyor
type, with inclined elevator and adjustable chutes,
and of the transporter type operating with a grab.
Despatch of up to 100 tons per hour can be effected
with labour, and with the mechanical equipment up
to 200 tons per hour can be dealt with. Regarding
the coal available at Sabang, consignments are
received from Japan and India, as well as supplies of
Welsh and Ombilin (Sumatra) coals. About half the
total supplies, however, are of Bengal coal, and
bunker mixtures are frequently used, consisting of
half-and-half or two-thirds to one-third of Bengal and
Ombilin coals respectively. Sabang is a port of call
for bunkering by vessels bound to the Far East via
the Cape, the distance from Durban being about
4,250 miles; also by vessels vid the Suez Canal en route
for China or Japan, or from the Straits of Malacca to
Europe.

Padang.

Padang is situated on the west coast of. Sumatra,
and is connected by railway with Emmahaven, about
five miles distant. The wharf affords about 25 ft.
depth of water alongside, and is equipped with two
coaling plants, each of which can handle 80 to 100 tons

| By F. J. WARDEN-STEVENS,
°	M.I.M.E., A.M.I.E.E., &c.

the East Indies.

pel- hour when coaling vessels. (Fig. 2.) The total
length of the crane bridge of these equipments is
200 ft., the rail tracks being 100 ft. apart. The structure
of the bridge at the wharf side supports a hopper with
a capacity of 950 cu. ft., and this can be raised or
lowered in elevation, to meet different conditions of
delivery of the coal to vessels’ bunkers, by means of
an adjustable chute. Beneath the hopper, and form-
ing part of its framework, are an operator’s platform
and cabin provided with weighing mechanism, from
which the control of the chute and delivery of the coal
are effected. The bridge which spans the coal recep-
tion ground alongside the wharf, supports an electric
jib crane, which is movable on rail tracks along the
bridge. The crane has a slewing radius of 43ft., and

can handle loads of eight tons. The coal is hauled in
special skips on platform rail trucks from the local
coal mines at Ombilin to the reception or loading
ground, these skips, each having a capacity of six
tons, being hoisted by the crane and discharged into
the bridge' hopper. The skips are of a somewhat
similar shape to a grab, being constructed in halves,
hinged from the top, and opened and closed by wire
ropes from the crane driver’s cabin. The output
from the coal mines at Ombilin during 1913 amounted

Fig. 2.—Coaling Plant at Padang (Emmahaven).

to about 411,000 tons, cargoes of which, in addition to
bunker supplies, are shipped to Sabang, Batavia,
Singapore, etc.

These two ports are the most important in Sumatra
for coal supplies: Sabang for- bunker deliveries, and
Padang for shipment of coal from the local mines
belonging to the Government of the Netherlands East
Indies. Attention may next be directed to coaling
facilities at Java.

Batavia.

Batavia is situated in the. north-west of Java; and
about 4J miles east of the city, with which it is con-
nected by both railway and canal, is the port of
Tandjong Priok. The quays there, which are about
3,000 yds. in length, have a depth of. about 24 to
28 ft. of water alongside, although vessels frequently
anchor about a mile from the shore and take their
bunker supplies ex lighter.

The important coal-handling equipment at Tandjong
Priok comprises four movable transporter bridges,
each having a span of 265 ft. over the storage ground.
The bridge extension at the rear is 100 ft. in length,
whilst at the front an adjustable sliding extension
provides for a maximum outreach of 100 ft. over the
quayside. On account of the long reach of the quay-
side extension of these bridges, deliveries can be
effected into the further side bunkers of a vessel, as
indicated in fig. 3. Grab trolleys, which are inde-
pendently controlled and electrically operated, are
used with these plants, the grabs having a capacity of
up to 200 cu. ft. The sliding extension of the bridge
is operated by a separate electric motor, the extension
being drawn in when the bridge is moved on its rail
tracks along the quay from the position of one hatch-
way to another, or when the plant is not in use. The
quayside supporting structure of the bridge spans two
lines of railway tracks, and a clear way is available
for the grab trolley along the whole length of the
bridge and both extensions. The bridge can be
radiated horizontally, on its supporting structures, on
either side of the centre line, so that alterations of the
position of discharge or loading can be effected, to
some extent, without moving the bridge along the
quay, and two bridges alongside can work into the
same or near hatchway. The weight of the coal is
recorded in the trolley cabin. The imports of coal at
Java during 1913 totalled about 282,000 tons, which
included about 167,000 tons from Australia, 60,000 tons
from Japan, and about 32,000 tons of Welsh coal. In
the same year the steamships dealt with at this port
amounted to a total of nearly three million tons, of
which 304 vessels—representing about 569,000 tons—
were British.

Other coaling ports of Java include Sourabaya and
Samarang, both situated on the northern coast.
Improvements at Sourabaya include the construction
of a pier about 1,312 yds. in length and 220 yds. wide,
forming an inner harbour with an entrance about
330 yds. in width and with 30 ft. depth of water along-
side the pier; and additional piers are also projected.
Australian and Borneo coals are generally stocked
there, and bunkers are supplied from lighters. The
vessels which entered the port of Sourabaya in 1913
totalled 1,185, with a combined tonnage of nearly 2|
millions. At Samarang, where vessels generally lie at
anchorage about two miles from the shore, harbour
improvements, including accommodation for lighters,
are being effected. It may be mentioned that 715
vessels entered and cleared with cargo in 1913, repre-
senting a combined tonnage of nearly 2,000,000.

With regard to Borneo, which island includes both
British and Dutch territory, it should be noted that
coal resources are available in British North Borneo,
which is governed by a chartered company ; in Labuan,
which is a Crown Colony; and in Sarawak, which is a
state under British protection ; also in Dutch
territory.

British North Borneo.

The mines of Silimpopon are situated in the south-
east of British North Borneo, and the coal is con-
veyed on a light railway, direct from the mines, in
10 cwt. pit tubs to the river bank—a distance of about
four miles—where it is transferred from the tubs,
first to a picking belt, and then to lighters. The

lighters are towed down the river for about 17 miles
to the island of Sebattik, which is separated from the
mainland by Cowie Bay. In the west of Sebattik,
about 20 miles from the entrance to Cowie Bay, a coal-
ing station has been, constructed, comprising a jetty
150 ft. in length, with a wharf at its head 150 ft.
long, having a depth of about 30 ft. of water along-
side. The lighters are discharged at this wharf by
means of a movable steam jib crane, the rail tracks of
which extend along the wharf, the coal being then
conveyed, to storage, in trolleys on narrow-gauge
tracks, two lines of which extend down the jetty to
the storage ground adjoining. This storage ground
has a capacity of about 10,000 tons, but unless con-
tracts call for a storage to this extent, it is usual to
supply as much as possible direct from the mines to
meet the requirements. For bunker supplies, vessels
go alongside the wharf, the coal being conveyed from