§ 40 and 41. Viscount SANDONasked the President of the Board of Education 189 (1) what are the conditions existing in Westphalia which make low-temperature carbonisation of even low-grade coal a commercial success which are said not to be at present applicable to this country; and, if there are none, what still hinders the commercial adoption of this process in the United Kingdom;
(2) what countries are at present utilising processes of low-temperature carbonisation on a commercial basis and to what extent in each case?
§ Lord E. PERCYWith my hon. Friend's permission I will answer these two questions together. I am not aware of any low-temperature carbonisation process being worked successfully on a large commercial scale and using the type of coal available in this country. Such plants as exist are either experimental or working under special conditions on a comparatively small scale.
If my hon. Friend will give further particulars of the process or processes to which he refers as being a commercial success in Westphalia, I will endeavour to give him the information for which he asks.