Capital Demands From Power Load Growth

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31365, 10 May 1967, Page 9

Capital Demands From Power Load Growth

By 1972, demand would have risen probably to 55,000 kilowatts as compared with 36,225 kilowatts last year, and to 100,000 kilowatts by 1977, the Engineer-Manager (Mr S. E. Slatter) and Secre-tary-Manager (Mr V. G. Mason) told the Central Canterbury Power Board, in a joint report to yesterday’s meeting. They said that necessary capital for distribution works for the next five years would total £1.6 million, and, allowing for some work to be done out of revenue, loan liability would rise by £600,000 over the five years. Over the 10-year period, new equipment worth £4.5 million would have to be commissioned, and this would entail a probable increase in loan liability of £1.7 million. They said that the recent announcement of a doubling in the capital costs levy by the Government, meaning an increase of 0.15 d for each unit bought in bulk, would cost the board £107,000. The board’s revenue would have to be be increased by about 12 per cent

Dealing with last year’s statistics, the report stated that last year, unit sales totalled 167.5 million, as compared with 47 million units 10 years ago.

Because of the continuing conversion to 33,000-volt distribution, line losses had fallen to 7.95 per cent as compared with 12.4 per cent for the three year average before the conversion. Estimates for the current year were approved. They provided for an income bf £1,064,334 and expenditure of £924,874, leaving £55,000 for loan repayment charges and £BO,OOO for capital expenditure for a net surplus of £4260.