POWER BOARD DEFICIT.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 99, 29 April 1939, Page 16

POWER BOARD DEFICIT.

PAST YEAR'S OPERATIONS. (By Telegra.ph—Press Association.) GISBORNE, Friday. Accounting for a deficit of £1887 on the past year's operations of the Poverty Bay Power Board, the man-aging-secretary, Mr. R. P. Baigent, stated at a meeting of the board to-day that the combined effect of operational costs and tariff reductions to consumers brought them to a point where stability must be sought. In 18 months, he stated, the monthly bill for wages had risen from £l(j!X> t r > £227!', and the additional cost for the year in wages reached the equivalent of £7000. Iwo reductions in tariff rates made during the same period were estimated to cost the board £!)000 over the full year's operations, and, although tlie revenue from electricity sales had actually increased, that was" due to the extensive load on the lower rates. Mr. Baigent said the board would have to face the fact that further reductions would have to be very carefully considered iji relation to the direction irt which load additions were made.