NEED FOR POWER

Greymouth Evening Star, 31 July 1946, Page 4

NEED FOR POWER

ROSS CO-OPERATIVE LIME COMPANY PRODUCTION HANDICAPPED One West Coast secondary industry, with a guaranteed and rapidly expanding market for its product, is being handicapped by lack of electric power and consequently does not view with equanimity the indication given by the chairman of the Grey Electric Power Board, Mr. J. B. Kent, that the extension cf the board’s reticulation system -will probably involve further protracted negotiations.

With the exception of one comparatively small plant at Koiterangi, which supplies only its own district, the West Coast has only one lime works, the West Coast Farmers’ Cooperative Company’s plant at Ross. More and more, the essentiality of lime to agricultural production in Westland is being recognised and the result is that the Ross works are unable to cope with farmers’ orders. The directors and management some time ago laid plans for considerable expansion. Bound up with these plans was the complete electrification of the machinery, but, unfortunately for the company and the users of the lime, these plans have gone astray. The new plant, to increase the output of agricultural lime from the present 5000 tons per annum to 12,000 tons, with a further potential of 45,000 tons per annum, is at Ross, but, in the meantime, the driving power is lacking. Negotiations for Supply. At the end of last year the lime company entered into negotiations with Westland Power, Ltd. (Hokitika), for the extension of its lines to Ross. It was stated by Mr. Kent that the company, on making preparations for electrification, was acting on a verbal arrangement, but the manager of the company, Mir. .A. Thompson, in an interview with the Evening Star, stated that to describe the arrangement as “verbal” was not being strictly correct. He said that early in January last, following an exchange of correspondence, the company actually signed a written agreement for the supply of power. Both copies of the agreement were, by prior arrangement, forwarded to Mr. J. S. Langford. manager of Westland Power, Ltd., for signature. It was understood . that the signatures would be affixed immediately and the lime company’s copy, which would have been a binding document, returned by the next mail. To date, the agreement had never been returned, although Mr. Langford had promised that power would be in Ross by the end of January.

“Still a Long Way Off.” When it became obvious, continued Mr. Thompson, that a power supply from Westland Power, Ltd., was not becoming a reality, Lite lime company naturally interested itself in the proposal to have the Grey Electric Power Board’s system extended as far south as Ross and was hopeful, in view of the support accorded the proposal in Hokitika and other areas en route, that early finality would be reached. However, it appeared that power for Ross* and the lime works, was still a long way off. The lime company, said Mr. Thompson, had on hand a diesel power unit, but, in the expectation that the works would be electrified at an early date, had offered the diesel engine for sale some time ago. A prospective buyer had been found and the company had committed itself to a sale. The full position, however, was that if the company was compelled to use entirely diesel power for the existing plant and new equipment, it would require two additional engines. The lime works, continued Mr. Thompson, would require electric motors totalling 28 b.h.p., in the first instance, and ultimately 150 b.h.p. The one small diesel engine now in operation could provide only a fraction of this power, and it could thus be seen that the major retarding factor in respect to the works was the lack of power. Stone Dust Supplies.

In addition, said Mr. Thompson, the company had purchased a new electrically-operated stone dust plant, to produce commercial stone dust for the coal mines on the West Coast It had entered into a contract with the Mines Department for the supply of this dust to State mines as from October 31 next. The contract was accepted on the assumption that electric power would be available at a reasonably early date, as was commonly expected in Ross and the surrounding districts. The company expected to produce between 800 and 1000 tons of stone ■lust per annum, and thus meet the shortage which had been experienced in West Coast mines for a considerable period. It was vital to the safe ipu ation of the mines that theie riouid be a considerable quantity of dust on hand, but without power the : me company would be unable •to ■eep the terms of its contract. (Stone iu-t is used in coal mines to assist in neutralising and removing the menace of the potentially explosive coal dust.)