CITY POWER-HOUSES

Dominion, Volume 19, Issue 153, 25 March 1926, Page 7

CITY POWER-HOUSES

DISMANTLING PROGRESSING Slowlv the city power houses art taking on an appearance of desolation, neglect, and disruption, and by next vear the properties, both in Wakefield Street and Mercer Streets, should be available for other purposes. At the present time the last of the great Babcock and Wilcox water-tube boilers in the Mercer Street power house, which ca,me into use at the end of 1921, is now being dismantled for. removal to the new power-house at Evans Bay. After that task is completed another big boiler and turbine is to be dismantled and removed from the Wakefield Street station. When that is erected at Evans Bay, possibly in a few months’ time, there will be plant sufficient to develop 10,000 kilowatts at the new station. The removal of the newest boiler from the Mercer Street station still leaves four other boilers in use, which are kept warmed up everv dav in case of accident. it is not intended to re-erect these at the 'bay, as their capacity is not large enough. The need for a little extra power on top of the usual load drawn from Mangahao is explained by Mr. Cable, who stated yesterday that the two frequency changers at the Jervois Quay sub-station were loaded to capacity to do the breaking down for the old voltage current (80 cycles), end if anything should occur to them at any time the city plant would at once be requisitioned. ' A few. days ago there was a break in the power from Mangahao, and, at short notice, they had io swing into action.