POWER REQUIRED BY MARCH, 1968

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30171, 1 July 1963, Page 10

POWER REQUIRED BY MARCH, 1968

(From Our Own Reporter)

WELLINGTON, June 30.

Announcing the Government’s acceptance of the tender for work at Lake Manapouri, the Minister of Works (Mr Goosman) said today that the first power from Manapouri was required by the end of March, 1968, when some 200,000 kilowatts would be needed for the interconnected system supplying both the North and the South Islands. “Completion of this first contract on time is critically important in reaching that objective, and accordingly the major effort so far has been directed to putting this work in hand.” The Minister of Justice (Mr Hanan),'who as member of Parliament for Invercargill

has long been an advocate for the establishment of an aluminium industry in Southland based on power from Lake Manapouri, said today: “The decision to go ahead with the power station, regardless of whether the Comalco firm takes power for aluminium production, is in my view the most important single decision affecting the future of the South Island ever made by a New Zealand government.

“It would not have been possible to take the calculated risk of creating power for an aluminium smelter, which might not eventuate, if the decision had not been made to connect the power systems of the two islands by a cable."