U.S. Businessmen Urged to Invest in Israel’s Mining Industry

American businessmen and investors were urged today to invest in Israel’s industry at a luncheon of the American-Israel Chamber of Commerce at which Abraham Dor, chief engineer of the Israel Mining Industries, and Bruce McDaniel, former head of the U. S. Foreign Operations Mission in Israel, were the principal speakers.

Mr. Dor told the audience, which consisted of American industrialists, exporters and financiers, that “Israel has some 30,000,000 metric tons of proven and indicated copper ores, containing some 400,000 tons of copper. The engineering work for setting up the metallurgical plant,” he added, “is being carried out by competent U.S. firms.” He also revealed that satisfactory iron ores were discovered in the Galilee, and that these ores, together with iron obtainable in the process of manufacturing at Haifa sulphuric acid, will enable Israel to produce over 50,000 tons of pig iron annually.

Israel’s chief mining engineer said that with the copper ores and the extraction needs available, Israel now faces the choice between a small copper-producing plant with a capacity of about 4,000 tons annually, or a larger one to produce about 14,000 tons annually. The investments involved are four and ten million dollars respectively, “This field of investment, production and export is open to American private initiative,” he declared, pointing out the copper would be produced at competitive prices.

Mr. McDaniel said that “agricultural products for industry, textiles, metals and chemicals are the fields of economic development on which basic stress will be put in Israel and wherein American business can find promising opportunities.” He drew the attention of American business also to the fact that Israel is spending over $10,000,000 annually for spare and replacement parts, and to the urgent need of overhauling Israel’s road transport, mainly bus services. He saw in these two fields added opportunities for U.S. businessmen.

Benjamin Cooper, vice president of the Chamber and president of the engineering firm Taller and Cooper, said his group believes in the future of Israel as a center of industry and international trade. The numerous multi-lateral business possibilities with Israel as a party have led the American-Israel Chamber to contemplate the setting up of a union of all the Israel bi-national Chambers of Commerce in Europe, South America, Australia and the U.S., he announced. “Such a union,” he said, “would open up to our members more international trade opportunities and would put at their disposal the facilities of the Israel bi-national chambers in all the other countries.”