Gove ELECTRICITY CHARGES

Southland Times, Issue 22992, 11 September 1936, Page 4

Gove ELECTRICITY CHARGES

NEGOTIATIONS WITH BOARD DISPUTE REFERRED TO ARBITRATION The negotiations between the Gore Borough Council and the Southland Electric Power Board were advanced a further stage this week when a deputation from the council met the board and discussed the full position and agreed to submit the dispute to arbitration. 1 The Mayor of Gore (Mr A. T. Newman) and the Town Clerk (Mr D. Harvey) were appointed some weeks ago to wait on the board to urge the adoption of a section of the Mataura scale of charges for electricity within the borough of Gore. At Monday night’s meeting pf the council the details of the dispute were discussed and the deputation received instructions on the points to be urged upon the board. The deputation subsequently met the board, and when interviewed yesterday Mr Newman said that after discussing the question with the board it had been mutually agreed to submit the dispute to a sole arbitrator. Both the board and the council had agreed on the appointment, but as this had not been confirmed Mr Newman stated that he could not disclose the name of the man nominated. It is understood that the arbitrator agreed upon by the board and the council is a solicitor in Dunedin. The dispute has arisen through a disparity existing in the charges for electricity levied in the boroughs of Mataura and Gore. The Gore area came under the control of the Power Board for the retailing of power practically at the inauguration of the Monowai scheme, but the Mataura Borough Council continued to retail power until 1932, when it completed an agreement with the board. In both cases the rates of charges to the consumers were the subject of agreements, and the Gore Borough Council’s agreement stipulates that if at any time consumers in any other part of the area in which the board retails electricity receive power at a lower rate than that charged in Gore, consumers within the borough are entitled to a reduction to the lower rate. It recently came to the notice of the Mayor that Mataura residents received certain advantages in power charges, and it was immediately decided to open negotiations with the board to secure reductions. The details of the charges in the two areas are as follows:— Gore. Lighting.—7d for the first 42 units used in a two-monthly period; 4d for the next 42 units; 2Jd for the next 84 units, and 1-ld for all units used thereafter. Power.—No separate charge is made for power for household use and the quantity of electricity used for heating etc., is charged with the current used for lighting. Minimum annual charge.—£3. Cooking.—ld a unit. Mataura. Lighting.—6d a unit for all current used. Power.—2ld a unit. Minimum annual charge.—£2 10/-. Cooking.—l£d a unit. The council decided to demand a reduction in the minimum annual charge to £2 10/- as charged at Mataura and also to press for certain other concessions. It has been contended that the Mataura scale represents a considerable concession to householders in comparison with the Gore charges. It has been stated that as many as 100 Gore consumers do not use the quantity covered by the minimum annual charge, and that in the average household the flat rate of 6d a unit for lighting and 2Jd for power would result in a substantial saving to consumers. The result of the dispute will probably depend on the legal interpretation of the Gore Borough Council’s agreement with the board. It is understood that the procedure to be followed in submitting the question to the arbitrator has not yet been settled, and it is not definite whether counsel will be engaged or whether a written submission will be made by each party. In view of early finality in the referendum to decide the future of the board, it is the desire of both the council and the board that the dispute should be settled as soon as possible. GOLF The draw of the Gore Golf Club for a four-ball bogey handicap to be played to-morrow and on Wednesday is as follows:— To-morrow. —Tansley v. Kidd; Douglas v. Wilson; Aitken v. Fraser; Feast v. Atkins; Caverhill v. Sadd; Piper v. Martin; Dolamore v. Barron; Smith v. Hunter. Wednesday: Wylie v. G. Young; Turnbull v. Hawk; Thomson v. McCaughan; Kirby v. N. Young; Doughty v. Bishop; Reid v. Barsdell; F. Young v. Fisher; Aitken v. McLeod; Ritchie v. Steans; Taylor v. Mitchell; Perry v. Dunnet; Parsons v. McGifford; Rutherford v. Father Harrington.