SUPPLY OF POWER

Taranaki Daily News, 15 April 1935, Page 8

SUPPLY OF POWER

SOUTH TARANAKI OPERATIONS. REVIEW OF PAST FIVE YEARS. An interesting review of the activities of the South Taranaki Power Board since it acquired the undertaking of the Hawera County Electric Company Limited in 1929 was given by the chairman, Mr. J. B. Murdoch, at the board meeting on Friday. The board had been in operation for five and a-half months only in March, 1930, the date with which the comparison was made, said Mr. Murdoch, and his remarks would show the progress that had been made in the past five years. The programme announced by the board in 1929 was that the board would raise only such sums of the loan as were necessary to buy out the Hawera County Electric Company Ltd., and to carry out reticulation work as and when it was required; would arrange for a supplementary supply of power from the Public Works Department; would only extend reticulation into areas which would take an assured and payable load; would reduce the prices of electricity as the position warrants it; and would establish reserves. He thought that the board could claim to have fully carried out that programme. It would continue to work along those lines, safeguarding for the ratepayers the interests of •an undertaking which had proved a great asset to them and to the district. In the following statement made by Mr. Murdoch the first figure in each case gives the position at March 31, 1935, the figure in parentheses indicates the position at March 31, 1930, and the third figure shows the increase. Line construction: Route miles of line erected, 2202, (79), 141; transformers installed 173, (43), 130; total capacity of transformers installed 4451 k.v.a., (1290 k.v.a.), 3161 k.v.a.; number of poles erected 6888, (3385), 3503. In addition over 70 route miles of lines were reconstructed and overhauled to meet the requirements of the changeover of the supply from 5500 volts to 11,000 volts. There had also been 1072 new service lines erected since March, 1930. , Generation and purchase of electricity: Maximum demand (kilowatts) in the system, year ended March, 1935, 1603, year ended March, 1930, 657, increase 946; total units generated and purchased year ended March, 1935, 6,680,684, year ended March, 1930, 2,038,000, increase 4,642,684. Load connected (kilowatts): Total 7824, (4139), 3685; lighting 1216, (948), 268; heating and cooking 4134, (1810),- 2324; water heater 257, (37), 220; industrial motor 1487, (932), 555; milking motor 634, (370), 264; field and drainage pump 96, (42), 54. The percentage increase in total connected load for the period is 89. Number of appliances connected to the system: Electric ranges 186, (32), 154; water heaters 392, (49), 343; industrial motors 363, (256), 107; milking motors 447, (180), 267; field and drainage pumps 246, (39), 207. Consumers: 3077, (2274), 803; increase of 35 per cent. Wiring costs: Lighting points 235, (295), October, 1929, 355; heating points 255, (31s), 42s 6d; range points £5 10s, (£6 ss), from £8 to £10; water heater points 27s 6d, (32s 6d), 42s 6d; milking motor points, including cut-outs £6 10s, (£7 15s), £9 10s.

Figures for October, 1929, when the board started operations, show the reduction in prices brought about by the introduction of the group system of electric wiring under which the various in-, stallations are tendered for by electrical firms operating in the board’s district. The figures show the benefit consumers have thus received. When considering present day prices it must be remembered that materials have increased in price considerably during the last year or so, owing to the operation of sales tax and exchange. The figures given are average ones.

Tariffs (net): Lighting 53d, (7 l-sd), 7 l-sd; minimum charge for lighting (per month) 2s lOd, (3s), ss; heating (small users) (3 3-sd), 3 3-sd; minimum charge for heating, nil, (nil), 3s; cooking lid to Id, (14d), lid; milking motors 2Jd, (3 3-sd), 3 3-sd; minimum charge for milking motors (per annum) £3, (£4), £4; industrial motors under 5 h.p. 2Jd to lid, (3 3-sd), 3 3-sd; industrial motors 5 h.p. and over 21d to ljd, (3 l-5d to 2d), 3 l-5d to 2d; dairy factories ljd to Id, (2d), 2d; water heaters (controlled) 14s per 100 w.p.a., (24s per 100 w.p.a.), 24s per 100 w.p.a.; field pumps (J h.p.) £4 5s 6d per anhum, (£4 10s per annum), £4 10s per annum; community lights 3s lOd per month, (5s 5d per month), 5s 5d per month.

Gross revenue from sales of current: Year ended March, 1935, £39,049; year ended March, 1931, £30,057; an increase despite reductions of 25 per cent.

Loan assets: Lines and sub-stations, £100,739 (£39,536); meters and equipment, £13,122 (£7374); 'stocks, £3625 (£2668); land, buildings and generating station, £44,405 (£40,845); totals, £161,891 (£90,423); an increase of £71,468, or 78 per cent.

Lotins raised: £202,583, £154,000. Of the loan of £187,500 authorised by the ratepayers in the original district in 1929 an amount of £182,500 had been raised, and there was thus an amount of £5OOO of that authority available for further development in the area. Of the loan of £40,000 authorised in 1931, for the outer area, an amount of £20,000 had been raised, and there was still £20,000 of authority available for further development there. No interest was payable on those unraised balances. The loan conversion scheme adopted by the board reduced its average nominal interest rate on its loans raised from 5 2-sth per cent, to 4| per cent., and ensured that the whole of the loans would be paid off within their term.

Reserves: Statutory reserves, £27,054 (£1086); written off capital account, £15,423 (£1246); other reserves £13,904 (£1570); totals, £56,381 (£3902).

SOUTH TARANAKI HOCKEY.

FIXTURES FOR COMPETITION. The following fixtures have been drawn up by the Taranaki Hockey Association for the South Taranaki competition:— Senior. May 1: Manaia v. Hawera, Nolantown v. Egmont, Katua a bye. May 8: Hawera v. Nolantown, Egmont v. Katua, Manaia a bye. May 15: Egmont v. Manaia, Katua v. Nolantown, Hawera a bye. May 22: Manaia v. Katua, Egmont v. Hawera, Nolantown a bye. May 29: Nolantown v. Manaia, Katua v. Hawera, Egmont a bye. Junior A. May 11: Riverlea v. Manaia, Oeo v. Otakeho, Auroa a bye. May 8: Manaia v. Oeo, Otakeho v. Auroa, Riverlea a bye. May 15: Riverlea v. Otakeho, Auroa v. Oeo, Manaia a bye. May 22: Auroa v. Riverlea, Otakeho v. Manaia, Oeo a bye. May 29: Oeo v. Riverlea, Manaia v. Auroa, Otakeho a bye. Junior B. May 1: Tokaora v. Egmont, Nolantown v. Whakamara. May 8: Whakamara v. Tokaora, Egmont v. Nolantown. May 15: Tokaora v. Nolantown, Egmont v. Whakamara.