South Canterbury News Hermitage Power Link Nearing Completion

Press, Volume C, Issue 29538, 13 June 1961, Page 17

South Canterbury News Hermitage Power Link Nearing Completion

A double-barrelled achievement will be written into the history of the Mackenzie County Council Power Supply Authority on July 1, when The Hermitage, Mount Cook will be joined to the South Island grid, and the electrical reticulation of the Mackenzie Basin will have been completed. The total cost of the Mackenzie Basin reticulation including The Hermitage, is £14.000.

The Hermitage project has taken between six and eight months, and with the piledriving completed across the Tosman river. the contractors (The T-akes Construction Com nany. Ltd' are now eneaced •n attaching the last of the poles across the three mi’es and a h’tf st’»*ch of the ’iver. 'rhe rout” from the Teka’to hvdro-station f o’tows ♦he Bmemar road to Marvburn stream, across country to the confluence of the Claycliff rive’ and the Tasman river, then across the Tasman to G’enfanner and up toe west side of the river to The Hermitage—a tot®’ distance bv nower I’ne of 39 mites. The line carries 33.00 C volts. With the exception of th’ Tasman rtver crossing. al’ ‘he wjri"» has completed 'The Hamilton Con. struetton Comoanv. T,td. '-nrnntoted toe e**rttons toorr Teka*m to too Tasman rt vr ’ an<4 tra” the on”nsi*o side nt the riven to The Henm’♦pge. and were also resoonstole for the electrical wiring.

Mr G. A. Milward, o' Bridges and Milwa r d. nonsuiting engineers to the Mackenzie Countv Council, ‘odav paid a Mbute to the work of all eontrartor* especial! v those emnloved on the “ardnoi's and d’ngnrmjs” iob o' “bridging” the Tasman river

Fifta'-S’’- ni’“S —»’O driror to a denth of Wt to too -ive-bed Th ; s wo’k w” hindered bv ««a-emi fto-tos h‘«h winds and rain. Conditions w»r» atrocious and be bad nothing but admiration for the excrtlent ioh carried out with sheer determ»na*ion bv tb» contractors M* Milward said. The Hermitage at presen'

relies on diesel-generated electricity. Functions to mark the reticulation of The Hermitage and the Mackenzie Basin will be held at the hotel on the morning of July 1, when the Minister of Agriculture (Mr Hayman) will pull the switch which will bring the whole system into the South Island grid.