Manapouri Target Date Unchanged

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30919, 27 November 1965, Page 16

Manapouri Target Date Unchanged

(New Zealand Press Association) INVERCARGILL, November 26. The £l7 million underground powerhouse contract at Manapouri could still be finished on time in spite of a three-month delay in starting work, the Minister of Works (Mr Allen) said in Invercargill today.

With full co-operation of the contractors, Utah Construction and Mining, of which the Government was assured, and of the unions, the first 200 megawatts of power could be delivered for the winter of 1969.

Mr Allen could not give a figure for the cost to the Government of the threemonth delay because of difficulties with unions. He said the Commissioner of Works (Mr P. L. Laing), the chief power engineer for the Ministry of Works (Mr R. F. D. Ritchie), who were with him today, and other senior officials of the Ministry were discussing the question with the contractors and with Bechtel Pacific, the consultants. Mr Allen said that workers

on the tailrace tunnel contract at Deep Cove had approached the contractors there, Utah-Williamson-Bur-nett, seeking a 3d an hour increase in wages, similar to the increase granted to workers on the powerhouse

job under the initial agreement for that job. This, said Mr Allen, was a matter between the contractors and the unions. Naturally, since the Government was the client, the Government was interested. If the increase was granted, the cost of the tailrace job would rise. The agreement with the contractors specified that the Government, at present, met twothirds of any wage increases granted. Asked whether, in view of his use of the words, “at present,” someone was seeking to change that agreement, Mr Allen said that no change had been considered “as yet.”

Asked whether the agreement might be changed so that the Government paid all costs of wage increases, Mr Allen said that Utah-William-son-Burnett must deal with Bechtel and Bechtel with the Government on “any proposition which might arise.”