POWER FOR PROVINCE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20603, 30 June 1930, Page 8

POWER FOR PROVINCE.

SITE OF TEMPORARY PLANT. CLAIMS MADE AT HUNTLY. 1 INSPECTION BY ENGINEERS. [BY TELEGRAPH. —OWN CORRESPONDENT. ] HUNTLY, Saturday. The district electrical engineer to the Public Works Department, Mr. T. McLennan, accompanied by the engineers to several Auckland provincial power boards, has inspected sites in the vicinity of the Huntly coalfields with the object of determining their suitability for the erection of a steam plant for generating electricity while the Arapuni power station is out of commission. A meeting of members of the Central Electric-Power Board, miners' unions, the Huntly Town Board and mine managers was held at the Town Hall, Huntly, this afternoon, when further discussion took place in connection with the proposal that a steam-generating plant should be erected in the Huntly district. Mr. T. Hinton said the Central Power Board had received notification of the conference in Wellington, which he hoped to attend. He gave the, meeting every assurance that the boaid would support Huntly in the proposal. Ho considered the plant should be erected at Huntly, as the town h'ad everything in its favour, including a central position and a plentiful supply of water and coal. Mr. J. R. Ellis said he thought the only argument to be considered in favour of the plant being erected at Auckland was tlio factor of time The Auckland authorities would try to undertake the erection quicker. Ho thought there might bo a possibility of getting the loan of a machine to put into the old power station at Huntly as a temporary measure. It was resolved that the mino managers of tho district and presidents of the miners' unions be added to the executive committee formed last Wednesday to furthet the project. CONFERENCE MEETS TO-DAY. AUCKLAND BOARD REPRESENTED. In response to an invitation from tho Minister of Public Works, Hon. W. B. Taverner, representatives of the Auckland district power boards left last evening for Wellington, where they will attend a conference to be held this morning. The conference is for the purpose of explaining the department's proposals for further supplies. It was previously announced that the Auckland Power Board would not be represented, as a private conference between the Minister and Mr. W. J. Holdsworth, chairman, and Mr. R. H. Bartley, general manager, was held in Wellington on Thursday. However, in response to a telegram received from Wellington on Saturday morning, Mr. Holdsworth and Mr. Bartley decided to attend the conference., They were members of the party which left last evening.