WORK OF POWER BOARDS

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1027, 18 July 1930, Page 11

WORK OF POWER BOARDS

CONFERENCE OPENS IN WELLINGTON COUNTRY EXTENSIONS Press Association WELLINGTON, Thursday. The Minister of Public Works, the ITon. W. B. Taverner, in addressing the annual conference of the Electric Power Boards Association today, said the work in which the association was engaged was one of supreme importance to the community, as a whole. The president, Mr. J. A. Nash, M.P., at the opening of the conference, extended a welcome to Mr. Taverner and the Minister of Labour, the Hon. S. G. Smith. Mr. Taverner said he believed that the intensive development of cheap electrical energy would play an important part in solving the industrial problems existing today. The Public "Works Department and the association were partners in a .great work, and although he had not had an opportunity of studying the proposed legislation, or the remits previously dealt with, except the proposed Bill dealing with the functions of the association, as soon as possible he Avould give complete consideration to any remits placed before him. The president stated in his report that immediately after last year’s conference the executive waited upon the Hon. E. A. Hansom, then Minister of Public Works, and put forward the most important of the remits which had been carried. During the 1929 session no legislation was passed to give effect to the remits, and there was little legislation passed affecting the operations of power boards and supply authorities. The executive had also waited upon the Minister to oppose the bringing into law of remits passed by the Municipal Association relating to supply by boards in boroughs, and petitions for inclusion in power districts. Mr. IT F. Togoood, representing the Electric Supply Authority Engineers’ Association, stressed the necessity for the setting up of a properly-consti-tuted Approvals Board. The position today was that appliances were being used that would not be approved if the desired board were set up. BOARD’S RESERVE FUNDS Among the remits carried were the following: That the Government be urged to grant authority to power boards and supply authorities to invest their depreciation funds and reserve funds in all trustee securities. That where the commissioners of the depreciation fund deem it desirable to have a report, as provided under section 26 of the Electric Power Boards Amendment Act, 1927, the engineer appointed to make -tho report may be an officer of the Public Works Department. That the Government be requested to amend the Local Authorities Superannuation Act. so that a power board or supply authority can, if it so desires, subject to the consent of the Minister, provide for superannuation for its employees, either by way of endowment assurance or a saving fund. That legislation be sought to fix definitely a last year before which objections to the availability rate must be made in writing.

That in order to make it possible to extend electrical services to those engaged in and connected with agricultural or pastoral pursuits in less densely populated districts, where otherwise such service would not be financially feasible, the Electric Power Boards Act be amended, to provide for Government assistance being given in the form of a grant in aid, up to a maximum amount of 50 per cent, of the capital cost of lines and . secondary equipment. That the basis upon which the Government charges power boards for the supply of electricity, namely, JEIO per k.v.a. for the first 200, has become a penalty on tho smaller boards, and this conference urges the Government to alter its scale of charges so that the smaller boards shall not pay an average higher rate per k.v.a. than the larger boards. It was stated that on the average the smaller boards paid a higher pro rata rate than the larger boards. Considering the difficulties confronting smaller boards, it was thought that the principle of the charges was wrong, and that they should be relieved of the impost. The conference discussed at some length the present method of the Public Works Department of charging supply authorities on peak load. It was decided to ask the Engineers’ Association to report on the question. The election of officers resulted: President, Mr. J. Nash, M.P.: executive. Messrs. &. A. Monk (Horowhenua), R. S. Chadwick (Dannevirke) W. J. Holdsworth (Auckland), A. W. Rodger (Southland), J. W”. Kershaw (Wairarapa). A. J. McCurdy (Hutt Valley), J. Kennedy (South Canterbury), A. C. Russell (Central Hawke’s Bay), F. W. Watt (Ashburton). J. T. Johnson (Te Awamutu), W. B. Galloway (Otago), M. Cable (representing North Island supply authorities), E. Hitchcock (representing South Island supply authorities), H. F. Toogood (representing engineers’ associations), S. P. Day (representing secretaries’ committee): secretary, treasurer and legal adviser, Mr. F, MMartin.