M.E.D. Tariffs Cut For Most Consumers

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29262, 21 July 1960, Page 12

M.E.D. Tariffs Cut For Most Consumers

A reduction in the tariffs of domestic, intermediate, commercial and industrial consumers of the Municipal Electricity Department was approved by the City Council last evening.

The effect of the new rates for a full financial year was estimated to amount to a concession of between £75,000 and £BO,OOO, the electricity committee reported.

The present domestic tariff provides on its first step for the first 28 units a month to be charged at 3d. The new tariff will be 26 units a month at 3d. > The intermediate tariff, which applies to small hospitals and orphanages, now provides for all units to be charged at lid except water heating, space heating and similar special classes of load. The 1 5-8 d unit will be be charged at lid. * For commercial consumers, the present block tariff and bulk rates will be reduced uniformly by Id a unit This will make them 3.6 d and 3.05 d and Sfid and 2.65 d a unit for the first 300 units and the balance respectively. The special bakers’ rate for unite used during the daytime will be reduced from 2Jd to 21 d. The high-rate units of commercial

water heating will be reduced similarly. For industrial users, the standard industrial tariff will be reduced from 2Jd high rate and Hd low rate to 2Jd high rate and Ijd low rate. “This will affect the 11 k.v. consumers who are based on the standard industrial rate, and for the consumers who are based on the 11 k.v. Hopkinson rate the new reduced rate will be £2 Ils 6d a k.v. each quarter, with units at id a kilowatt hour.” the committee said. AU other rates and existing special rates wiU remain unchanged. Domestic Supply The committee said that domestic supply was being given at an average rate a unit below the average cost. Average costs and average revenues for the year ended on March 31 were: average total cost, 1.222 d a unit; average domestic revenue -985 d: average industrial revenue, 1.671 d; average commercial revenue, 2.876 d; average revenue, aU classes, 1321 d. Approximately 70 per cent of the units were sold to domestic consumers, said Cr. G. D. Hattaway, and one-third of the consumption was for electric water heating. With ripple control of water heating about £176,000 was saved in a year in the amount the M.E.D. paid the Government for bulk power. The domestic consumers were meeting £1.25 million of the total income, said the Mayor (Mr G. Manning). He asked that the first 24 units should be charged at 3d.

The most a domestic consumer could have in a month was 4Jd, said Cr. W. P. Glue. “We are on a very slender budget, as we don’t know what the surplus will be in the coming year,’’ said Cr. W. S. MacGibbon, chairman of the committee. “I can’t see the committee making any alteration in the rates of the reductions, as we have gone into it very carefully. At the end of the period when we know the results we may be able to have further reductions.”