WORK OF POWER BOARDS.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 25 September 1928, Page 7

WORK OF POWER BOARDS.

CONTERENCE PROCEEDINGS REVIEWED BY MR MONK. CONSIDERABLE PROGRESS OF ELECTRICAL DEVELOPMENT. A review of proceedings .at the sixth annual conference of tlfe Power Boards Association Conference was given by the chairman of the Horowhenua Board (Mr G. A. Monk), at the last meeting of that body. Mr. Monk attended the conference in company with Mr A. J. Petheriek (the Board's other representative), the Engineer (Mr J, A, Smith) and the secretary (Mr P. W. Goldsmith). The chairman state-d that there were 4.0 bodies now affiliated with the Association. There had been a steady growth, as when the association started the number affiliated was 18. The main order paper at. the sixth conference contained 32 remits, and the supplementary order paper nine. DEPRECIATION FUNDS. A matter which received a good deal of consideration, and over which there was much discussion, was theAjuestion of depreciation and the establishment of the depreciation fund. It had been felt, by a good many of the Boards that, just when they were getting on their feet and- making two or three thousand pounds a year in profit, their position was altered by the Act passed to ensure their putting aside a certain percentage by way of depreciation. Some Boards found themselves unable to give any concession to their consumers and unable to find the whole amount required for depreciation. It was decided to ask the Minister to defer the whole matter for seven years, and that a start should then be made to set aside money for depreciation funds. The chairman doubted whether the Government would give any concession on that point. GOVERNMENT PROFIT*?. One of the remits referred U, by the chairman was one which asked tne Government to issue a definite pronouncement that all profits from its electrical undertakings would be used firstly in placing its works on a. sound financial basis,, and secondly in reducing the charges for power to the distributing authorities. This Board had made ;« contract with the Government for power supply from the latter for five years, of which four years would have expired in January next. In the coming twelve months it would be necessary to enter into a fresh contract with the 4Department, and he felt that, with the load that was being built up for Mangaha.o, .‘and with ithe Wa'ikaremoana scheme approaching completion, there was some possibility of a reduction in the charge to the Board. SUPERANNUATION. With regard to superannuation, the chairman stated that this was discussed at the Conference. The Auckland Board, which was a big concern, hail gone in for such 'a scheme, but that Board’s turnover was £1500,000 a year, and probably the project was in that case an easy matter. The proposal was referred to the executive of the Association with an instruction to bring down a '’recommendation. The executive met recently and resolved to suggest that the National Provident Fund would probably offer the best medium. TREE-CUTTING. The remit ou tree cutting, the chairman continued, was a hardy annual. The various Boards placed their experiences before the conference, and it was resolved Jo ask for further legislation to deal, with the matter. In certain cases lines had been established for five or six years over fertile land where trees were planted, and the latter became an impediment. There were districts whore some apathy had existed on the part of settlers towards keeping

the trees lopped that were in proximity to the linos. The Boards were asking for power to make the person who planted the trees responsible for any damage that might be done. It was rather a big question, and such authority might not be given. INFORMATION EXCHANGE. Another question dealt .with at tin conference was the appointing of an information officer'. It was quite the usual thing for local bodies to. circularise other local bodies for information, and apparently Power Boards had got into the same habit. The information to be circulated might be of the very greatest value to the whole off the Boards, but hitherto there had been no channel of distribution unless by an act of courtesy. It had been suggested that an information officer be appointed, but the Conference found that the cost would be too great, and the matter was being referred back to the Boards with the suggestion that any Board which collected information, of value to other Boards should send a copy of it to those for whom it was collected, SPECIAL LOANS. One of the most important remits that had been before a conference, and one which the Minister and the Chief Electrical Engineer were inclined to view favourably, was that which advocated that power be given to Boards to raise a loan or levy a separate rate for lines where guarantees were given or for the purpose of strengthening transmission lines to carry a greater load. The remit recommended that Boards be authorised to raise a loan not to exceed in any one year 5 per cent, of the original construction loan; or in the alternative to levy in any year a separate rate within certain limits. The necessity of this would not be apparent to this Board at the moment. It had been fortunate in inducing the ratepayers in its district to consent to a fairly liberal loan authority—namely, £260,000, of which £190,000 had been raised and spent, leaving £70,000 for future extensions or strengthening, and putting in heavier lines. It had been a very wise precaution on the part of the engineer who had laid out the proposals, and, as far as the chairman could see, the Board was provided for for another ten years, unless a tremendous development took place in the district. The experience of the .majority of the Boards in New Zealand had been to go for rather a loan amount. With the development of electrical cooking and water-heating, their lines had very easily become overloaded. The same thing had happened to some extent in this district in regard to reticulation. The Board had had to put in bigger transformers in inany cases, and heavier copper in some cases. The difficulty in connection with getting further loan authority was that in most instances the districts were combined, being partly town and partly country. The towns had been the first to be reticulated and had had the benefits of electricity before the lines were pushed out to the back country. The experience was that, after a. few years, with the additional cooking load and other demands, the lines were unable to carry the load; the Boards, having expended, their loan authority, had no-ynoney to extend the lines or make them heavier. One Board received authority to take a poll for a further loan, and the proposal was turned down. That action had been taken by the boroughs who were already supplied, and so the people in the eountryAvho want-

eel the current and could give a sufficient guarantee were unable to get it. The remit had been placed before the. Minister, who suggested that it should go before the Loans Board as well. The Chief Engineer was of the /ppinion that it was very necessary and would help the development of the load. The chairman added that Mr J. A. Nash, M.P., had done excellent work as president of the Conference, to which position he was re-elected. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. Mr Petheriek thanked the Hoard for having given him the opportunity to attend the conference. It appeared from the returns of electricity supplied by the diffeernt Boards that the power was going to be of immense benefit to production in New Zealand. He had been impressed by the amount of work done by the engineers' and secretaries' associations. The Power Boards owed a great deal to those bodies because they were practically the advisers of the Boards and the consideration which they gave to the questions' that came before them simplified the work of the conference very much. The Secretary, Mr Goldsmith, paid a tribute to Mr Kissel, the Chief Electrical Engineer, saying that it'was a great factor in the progress of electrical development in the Dominion to have such a live and capable man at the head of affairs. ' • . Mr W, E. Barber expressed the opinion that it would be a good idea, for all members of the Board to attend the conferences. He added that the question of superannuation was an important one. The chairman stated that the secretary and himself had been investigating the matter. They had approached the National Provindent Fund Department, and would probably be able to brinjg something before the Finance Committee shortly. He endorsed what the secretary had said about Mr Kissel, who was manifestly very fair and who realised that the supply authorities were neeessaiy to the prosperity of the Department. The Board’s engineer, Mr Smith, also spoke in praise of the Chief Engineer and of the District Engineer (Mr I. R. Robinson) and his officers, who had been very willing to supply information and meet the Board's representatives in every way. . v ‘