SUCCESSFUL MUNICIPAL ENTERPRISE.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXIV, Issue 10960, 1 May 1907, Page 1 (Supplement)

SUCCESSFUL MUNICIPAL ENTERPRISE.

' THE LYTTELTON GASWORES.

The annual, repoit of the Town ; Clerk of Lyltelton contained the following m reference to the ga6 department : — ''Steady progress. has again characterised the operations of the gas department, and the sales by meter for the. year disclose an increase of 14.18 per cent on the figures of the -preceding year, and ' a total increase, of 97.32 per cent, since the Corporation ; assumed the management of the works. The number of meters m use increased during the period of the corporation's ownership from 227 to 390— an increase of 71.80 per cent. --. To have practically doubled the output m slightly over four years m a concern wliich for the preceding ten to .fifteen -years had been stationary, is a result which could hardly have been hoped for by the most sang*uine advocates of municipal control. Through, out this brief report I have, as far as is consistent with my duty m setting down results, refrained frdni'tPuching matters of controversy; and I have no intentionwhatever of suggesting that the preceding paragraph disposes of the 'Municipality versus Company' aspect of gasworks management. To do. so would be to dogmatise on a subject which -has. : proved a thorny path to many disputants on both sides of the question, and all I intend to convey is that, m our cast?-, the municipalisation of the works has been a most profitable investment for tlie town, and that results have been attained which, under the policy of our predecessors, were hardiy likely to have been achieved. During the four years and four months ended March 31st last, the sum of £810 lias been s-et aside as a sinking fund, an "amount of £1961 lis 3d has been spent out of revenue on new works, and m addition to this the reductipn made to the consumers, on the basis, of; last year's output, reaches the very respectable total of £538 14s 8d per year. Referring to the sinking, fund, it might be pointed oufcrthat the contribution to date represents a sum' of about £190 per year during the period of ownership, and tliis sum, as I pointed out last year, is just about, sufficient,; if invested on a o_ per cent, basis, "to produce £5000 at the date on wliich the £15,000 loan will mature. It is therefore evident that the contributions to the Sinking Fund Commissioners should be maintained . at not less than the sum named per year." Returns, attached showed- that: during the year 781 tons of coal had been carbonised, with the following result : — Gas made, ■ 8,992,000 cubic feet ; gas made per ton of coal, 11,515 cubic feet; gas sold, 8,336,307 Jcubic feet ; gas accounted for, 97.29 "per cent; gas iinaccounted for 2.71 per cent; coke .old, 302.35 tons; coke sold per ton of coal, 7.74cWt; tar niade, 8925ga1; tar made per ton of coal, ll;42gar; tar sold, 8755 gal.;- -net cost of coal per 1000 cubic fett sold, 4.63 d; gas sold by meter for lighting, 39.07 per cent; gas sold by meter for "special," 44.30 per: cent j gas sold for public lighting; 9.33 per cent; gas used on works, 4.43 per cent; increased stock, 0.16 per cent. .. : r ■ '" The cost had been at' the - rate of 81.77 d per 1000 cubic feet, and the-re-venue at the rate of 103.97 d per 1000 cubic feet.