DIVERSE CHARGES

Evening Post, Volume CV, Issue 147, 23 June 1928, Page 17

DIVERSE CHARGES

PER ELECTRIC UNIT -. -ANOMALOUS POSITION The extraordinary variety in charges made for. lighting purposes by different Electric Supply Authority throughout the Dominion was mentioned by Mr. I. Dalnier (Waitaki) at the conference of the Eleetrje • Supply Authorities Engineers' Association. "We all know," he said, "that various charges are made for lighting1 by-the-different supply authorities, but; it may be interesting to study, the amazing number of different charges as revealed by the rate book recently published by the Electric Supply Authority Engineers' Association. "The prices charged vary from Id to Is per unit net, most authorities having of course, more than one rate for lighting, the lowest rate being usually available for other purposes than . lighting, but still a lighting charge as well. The.reare no less than 18 different lighting charges among the. : 7;s supply authorities, in spite of the fact, that 23 of the authorities have only one charge, | though this charge varies from 4Jd to Is : pcr unit. On the .other hand,* one authority has no loss than five different lighting charges, while one has six, and two have five charges. Tho rest have two, throe, and four different charges. ... "Eliminating tho very small authorities, -with isolated plants and costly generation, where it is to be expected that the charge will be high, it is difficult to understand the groat variation iii lighting charges, except on the score of expediency where other uses are motored with lighting and tho charges must be arranged to obtain such uses. In many cases it is impossible to state the exact price per unit, owing to other charges being concerned, such as capacity or wattage charges, room or floor space charges, service charges, meter rents,' etc.,- but the above is sufficient to show the 'confusion existing, and the utter impossibility of comparing different authorities' charges on a common basis. ' ' "Summing up tho various charges, we find that three authorities have a unit charge of Id, nine have ljd, ten 2d, four 2£d, fourteen- 3d, six 3^d, twelve 4d, five 4Jd, thirteen sd, two 5Jd, twenty-one 6d, twenty 7d, twenty-four Bd, one B^d, nino 9d, four lOd, one lid, and three Is. The popular charge seems to be from 6d to 8d for straight out lighting, and as this price probably beats gas in any case, it would seem that, but for other uses being encouraged and metered through tho same meter, in many cases cheap lighting at Id to 3d per unit may possibly mean a loss' as against the smaller number of units which would I othcrwisobe used at a higher price."