ELECTRIC SUPPLY

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIV, Issue 269, 27 October 1934, Page 6

ELECTRIC SUPPLY

Harnessing Water Power GOVERNMENT ENTERPRISE* Scope for Difference* of Opinion (By Telegraph—Pre»e Association.! WAITAKI HYDRO, Oct. 27. In his address at the opening of the Waitaki hydro-electric works, His Exeellency the Governor-General, Lord Bledisloe, said that of all governmental activities in the Dominion there was probably none more important and certainly none more calculated to assist in expanding its industrial prosperity, its domestic comfort and its social amenities than the prudent development of its hydro-electric resources and their progressive and enlightened application to the multifarious requirements of modern civilisation.

There was scope for wide differences of opinion regarding the relative value and efficiency of private enterprise and that of the Government and public authorities. But in the matter of harnessing water power for a nation’s economic and domestic requirements there must be few who could reasonably idoubt the wisdom of Government enterprise if guided by expert knowledge, long vision- courage and reasonable OConomy.

Making full allowance for some aostly experience and temporary setbacks, such as that which occurred at Arapuni three years ago, there was no ground for dissatisfaction with electrical development in this Dominion. If allowances were made for the mountainous character and thin population •f ths areas not yet reticulated it would be found that electric supply Was available to no less than 94 per Mil t* of the total population (a percentage probably not exceeded in any other country in the world) with an average consumption per capita of about 500 units > year —a rate which was steadily increasing. The total capital invested In electrical supply undertakings in New Zealand was £32,000,000, of which 128,000,000 had been expended in the last 11 years. During the same period Government expenditure had amounted ••<10.500,000.

W SOWN AND COUNTRY, movement which tended to knit lawn and country more closely together and to cause their respective communities to realise their mutual interdependence and identity of interests was of outstanding national importance, and thia was especially true of the supply aad distribution of electricity. What indeed seemed to be needed more than anything else, if overhead costs and unit charges were to be lowered and rural uses for electric current amplified', was a fuller recognition of the complementary possibilities of user on the part of urban and rural consumers and ths extent to which one could assist the other. There was a great variety of farm processes to which electricity might usefully be applied with great convenience and profit to the farmer. A good illustration on arable farms was cultivation by the tractor. If this and other like farm operations could be conducted! at hours other than those of the peak load (say between 11.15 and 11.45 a.m., and between 4 and 5 p.m.) in the urban areas such user of current should constitute an attractive proposition to the supplying authorities and should, judging by European experience, involve a cost of no more than Id per unit and ultimately considerably less. If any such user on the farms should by its growth constitute a new peak hour, it would become possible to lower the rates for cooking and other domestic processes in the towns. In fact, by mutual accommodation at peak hours, the more that current was employed for cooking, the less it would cost at non-peak hours for farm tractors and Other similar farm machinery, and the more that the latter could work at such hours the greater the prospect of reducing domestic charges. In initiating fresh applications of electricity to farm requirements it must not be left to the farmer to undertake possibly costly experiments of an isolated character. It would amply repay the supplying authrity to expend money in demonstrations and advertisement.

TRIBUTE TO THE WORKERS. The Minister of Public Works, the Hon. J. Bitchener. said that it’gave him very great pleasure to be present, 1“ rst place, because the work was located in his own electorate and on the Waitaki River, a stream which he had known and for which he had had the greatest respect for a large number of years. As Minister of Public Works he could not but feel proud that under his adminisration. and with the organisation and resources of the Public "orka Department which it was his good fortune to control, the waters of flie Waitaki were being utilised for the benefit of the people of Canterbury and Otago. The Government throughout had always been of opinion that these hydro-electric works were amongst the most important developmental works in the Dominion, and in consequence had lound the ways and means to carry them on, although at times their re-, sources ha” been sorely pressed to find the necessary finance. Though the large attendance might bo taken as an indication of the country s confidence in the Government and its appreciation of the work being done by it to provide supplies of electricity throughout the country, it was also, he believed, a tribute io the skill and work of ihe department’s engineers ami workmen who had brought this work to n successful conclusion. He felt that he must specially mention at least some of the many able engineers and others who had been particularly connected with the work. In the first place there were the present Engineer-in-t'hief and Under secretary, Mr J. McKenzie, and Mr F. B . Furkert, who occupied tne same position during the earlier stages of the work. Then there were the Chief Electrical Engineer, Mr F. T. M. Kissel, who, as head of the hydro, electric branch of the department, hail probably more than any other been re. general supervision of this particular work with his first a-sist. t Mr A Cave.' To his assistants Mr !’. Audi r-on for survey and <ivi! de-ign work, and Mr E. C. Creagh to r building and electric d s.gn work, he was sure everyone would agree that a word of praise was due. As to the m r n actually located on the work he must in paritcular mention Mr R. FI. Packwood, the district

engineer in local charge, who had seen it through from the commencement to its completion. He had shown energy, enterprise and engineering skill to a marked degree, and the building of this great dam across the Waitaki River would always remain a monument to his work as a New Zealand engineer. He must also mention Mr L. S. Payne, resident electrical engineer, and Mr IV. H. G. Watson, the power station superintendent, under whose direction the complicated machinery switchgear and transmission lines had been completed. Then agSin there were the assistant engineers who had had charge of special sections of the work, of whom he particularly mentioned Mr McEnnis, Mr Christie, Mr Alecock, Mr Carter and Mr Southern. There were the overseers and the clerical staff; they have all played their part and played it well. Beyond all these, however, nothing could have been done without the workmen themselves, and to those men ho wished to pay a particular tribute. They had worked well under conditions that in many cases were difficult and uncomfortable, but on the various occasions on which he had visited the works he had been impresse dwith the interest they had shown in the work. He felt sure that equally with the highest engineer these men felt that this work was theirs, and that they would continue to maintain an interest in its successful operation even after they might have passed on to fresh activities elsewhere.

,'..e wished also to pay some tribute to the various contractors who had supplied plant and material in connection with the work. The whole of the cement used in the work has been manufactured in the Dominion. By far the greater part of the machinery in the power station was of British manufacture. Mr Bitchener concluded: “With you now rests much of the rsponsibility of seeing that the work is to be a real success. The Government, the engineers, the workmen, the contractors have each done their part and the work can go into operation. You can help by using the power now made available, and you can help by advising your friends and your acquaintances to do the same.”

MAN’S MASTERY. Mr. M. J. Savage, Leader of the Opposition,’ said that the ceremony marked another milestone in the history of man’s mastery over the forces of Nature in this Dominion. It remained to be seen whether or* not man would maintain that mastery and make available to the rank and file of the people the benefits of the machine and science, or whether these modern processes were to continue to multiply production and at the same time destroy the market in which the products of industry should be sold. They needed more than stored up electric energy ; they needed some plan by which that wonderful servant of mankind might be harnessed to modern machinery tor the purpose of producing the essentials which constitute a high standard of living for the people. If they failed in making plans which would ensure that the benefits of these modern processes would find their way to the homes of the people all the results of the tireless efforts of the scientist and the inventor would have missed their mark. What was accomplished in the air by a great British airman and his colleague during recent days had been to a large extent carried out in industry, said Mr. Savage, and it seemed as if those workmen, including farmers, whose labour was responsible for that wonderful advance in production were worse off to-day than they were before that advance was made. Ho hoped this vast store of energy which had been officially opened and which had been made possible by workmen and engineers would be the forerunner of still greater things, and that a grateful country would see to it that the men whose labour had made it possible would be found something better in future than a relief job in return for their services.