MUCH ACTIVITY

Evening Post, Volume CIV, Issue 98, 22 October 1927, Page 8

MUCH ACTIVITY

DEMAND FOR POWER

HYDRO-EtECTRIC WORKS

MANGAHAO SCHEME

Hydro-electric developments during the past year are reviewed by the Minister of Public- Works (the Hon. K. S, Williams) in the Public Works Statement. ! The year just completed, the six* I teenth since construction work* were first commenced by the Department has been one of considerable activity, says the Minister. The 'expenditure during the year has been £1,293,439, increasing, the total capital spent oa hydro-electric works from £5,134,498 to £6,427,935. Of this amount somewhat over two millions is invested ' iflt works which are still under construe* tion and which have not yet commence ed commercial operation.. Although no new scheme has come; into, operation during the year the ait* nual revenue continues to increase. Tor the year just ended th« revenui has been £364,412, as against £287,« 942 for the previous one, an increase o§ £76,470, 0^26.6 per cent. Similarly, the maximum load sup* plied by the Government schemes- dm* ing the year has increased to 50,15f1j kilowatts, as compared with 40,994 is' the previous year. • ' The second^year of operations of the) Mangahao plant was marked by rapid, ' growth of load, and the financial rei suits were satisfactory.. The total capital expenditure increased to £2^ 242,870 during the year, of- which: amount about £250,000 represents. as* sets not in operation at the end of ths year. Tho financial position may be( summarised as follows:— V > £ Capital >;.„...... 2,242,870 ' • Bevenue :.i 101,897 Operating expenses 26,921' Balance ..;...._^£74,976 ' The balance hag not been sufficient t*i pay interest and depredation, and leaves a deficiency of £56,002. Ta* accumulajted deficiency on this schema now stands at £124,193, against which there is a Depreciation Fond ©£ £64,255. The balance of revenue over. working expenses represents a payment of 4 per cent, towards capital charges^ which can be considered as reasonable^ It is a considerably greater percentage than was paid at a similar stage of it* career by Lake Coleridge, which has since proved so successful. • ...... INCREASES IN DEMAND. The very dry summer experienced • had the effect'of very considerably re. ducing the. revenue received in the last quarter of the year, owing to the large extent to which the fuel-driven plants in the area had to be called upon to assist in supplying power to the disi trict. The arrangements made with thej fuel-generating plants in Wellington^ Palmerston North, and Wanganui proved most satisfactory, and the co-opera-tion of the authorities controlling thesa plants was much appreciated. "There is no doubt," says the Minister, "that' th^e advantages of electric power are. being more and more appreciated ia this area, and the following table in? dicates the annual increases that havetaken place in the demand taken by- . different supply authorities obtaining power in bulk from this supply:

STEAM PLAKT BEQUIKED. i. "The fact that the Wellington eon* sumption, does not show a commensu- ■ rate increase with the others does not indicate that the consumption of electricity is not growing in Wellington. The reduced consumption of Ms.ngais.9 power is due to the fact.that the growth of load ,in. other districts has necessitated an increasing use being made of the Wellington City itcani plant. "The peak load carried by the plan* during the financial year was 18,100 k.w., but d.uring the past winter loads up td 20,040 k.w. have been carried. Very little trouble has been experienc-i ' ed with the power station or heal works. On the main transmission ,lina to Khandallah, the main Wellington! and Hutt Valley sub-station, there were four interruptions during the year, the total duration of interruptions being only eleven minutes. "Service over the lines to Hawkes Bay and Wairarapa .was not quite so good particularly in the earlier portion of the year, where trouble wag experienced owing to excessive swinging of the conductors during heavy gales. To remedy this, shut-downs were arranged on Sunday afternoons and times which; ■ would cause the least inconvenience to consumers. The modifications made to the line, and the installation of additional oil circuit-breakers, has very considerably reduced the number of interruptions, and also their duration." THE ABAPUNI DELAY. Regarding' the Arapuni contract th» Engineer-in-Chief of Public Works (Mr. F. W. Turkert) says that although the contractors, Mqssrs. Sir W» 6. Armstrong, Whitworth, and Co., have lately made substantial progress on No. 1 section of the contract, yet, having regard to the fact that the contract time expired on the 12th Jnly, 1927, a review; of the whole situation cannot but disclose disappointing and unsatisfactory progress. In patricular, at the poweq house and its foundations progress h&4 been so small as to bo practically neg» ligible. The steps taken by contractors to overcome the inroad of water from the river into the excavation for the power house foundations have beea quite inadequate, and after months o£ - time spent on insufficient effort that portion of the work is now at a complete standstill. The effect of this delay on the completion of the works is most serious, especially ia view of the Department's commitments for power in the area to be supplied fromthis power station. The obligation on the' contractors to spare no effort to get on with this portion of the work is most urgent, and is being pressed on them to the utmost by the- Department.

fclO • •33* sa> -..- - ■ .: s s X" ?. ■■■■•■ «-■■ IMI 1 ■ §8 ■§8 S3' Power station output 17,708,060 21,752,550 23 gorowhenua 1,J82,937 1,571,298 23 Wellington „...., 8,905,700 8,682150 • Hutt Valley ..... 1,872,120 8,230,450 «3 Me»t works ...... 263,700 473,150 SO Railway Department 131,180 237^80 82 Manawatu-Orou* . 1,786,871 2,843,641' i» „ Dannevliko 295,877 378,821 28 Tararua 317,725 497,357 67 Walrarap* , 687,900 590,910 O Wanganul-KangMilnl 989,436 5.65J.618 168 Central Hawkes Bay 239,690 449,406 «g Hawkes Bay ...... 0 353,929 -*