State Electricity For Britain Is Huge Move

Northern Advocate, 11 January 1947, Page 4

State Electricity For Britain Is Huge Move

(Roc. noon) LONDON. Jan. 10. The Exchange Telegraph's political correspondent rays compensation payable to private undertakings under die L le-ctricily Dili is likely to amount to £350.000,000. t i The taking over of municipal mi- J destagings will cost ttu* state only an | amount necessary to pay oil their liabilities. Five hundred and seventy private, municipal and other electrical undertakings will be taken over.. Of these, 100 are private companies. A senior representative of Lite Ministry of Fuel said the substitution of a central electricity authority for 571. municipal bodies or private companies is evpected to facilitate full development of the country's productive potential of electricity, and enable more equable distribution to ah parts. ; CHEAPER POWER j Fourteen area boards responsible for distribution will standardise voltage, which at present varies from area to area. This will aid standardisation of fittings and rates of charg-1 ing for electricity. The bill is expected, over all. to provide cheaper electricity. It may mean | a rise in charges for some areas at present served efficiently at low ! rates, but should mean a substantial reduction for these not so efficiently served. PLANT REPLACEMENT I The Ministry representative emi phasised that the new authority would inherit the problem of replacing the | obsolete and inadequate plant which | has arisen largely as a result of six i years of war. j i This inadequacy of plant was re- • ! spcnsible for periodic cuts in electric-; i ity due to swollen winter consumption j exceeding the capacity of plant. 1 • The central authority would endeav- I , our to expedite delivery of new pint't. j i which would be standardised. ThC| | authority would be empowered to, i manufacture plant itself, if required, j Reuters says quotations on the Stock Exchange when conditions settled] ! down were generally below over-j I night’s closing levels, following pub- 1 ; lication of details of the Electricity; , Nationalisation Bill.