POWER BOARD.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 18897, 12 January 1927, Page 4

POWER BOARD.

SPRINGS-ELLESMERE. The monthly meeting 'ot the Springß-E'lcs-jnero Electric Power Board was held on Monday evening, when there were present: Messrs J. Cunningham (chairman), A. E. Langdale Hunt, J. W..Kime, arid G. Maginness. Mr L. C. Vicary, general manager, was in-attendance. Tho • Electrical Engineer, Public vVoika Department, notified the Board that its agreement tor the purchase of current from the Department would oxpire on March 3ist. It was agreed that the chairman, Mr Magiunesß, and the engineer ahould confer with the Public Works Engineer in regard to a new agreement. .Replying to a letter from tho aboard, in reference to a settlement with regard to the Motukarura eub-etation, the Banks Peninsula, Power Board accepted the suggestion that representatives of the two bodies should confer on the subject, with a view to arriving at an amicable settlement. They further suggested meeting at the Peninsula Board's office at Little River on January 25th. It was decided to accede to the Poninsula Board's proposa l , tlio members appointed at a previous meeting to make the trip to Little River accompanied by the engineer. A complaint from tho Yaldhurst School Committee, regarding tho imposition of the penalty for non-payment of an account for current within the specified time, was referred to the engineer to investigate while visiting the Yaldhurst district. A copy was received of an Order-in-Coun-cil altering the term of tho Paparua £IO,OOO loan to ten years. The debentures for the loan are to be issued in denominations of £IOO, with a currency of ten years, interest at 5| per cent. In regard to an application from J. -b. Musgiave, of Sockburn, for a supply c-t current without ft guarantee, the Board decided that the engineer should go into the matter personally with tho applicant. Mention was made by a member that several people had complained to him that they could not obtain information from the meter-reader relative to their connected load and other such matters. The Board's officials did not appear to think it their business to answer questions asked them by consumers in the course of their moving ahout tho district. The engineer said that the meter-readers could quite easily work out the connected load of any consumer who was in doubt as to whether the load he was charged with was the correct one. It was good business to gain the confidence of the consumers, and this was one of the ways in which it could be done. Provided it did not take up too much time, the meter-reader could very well give information upon connected load and other matters with which he was familiar.

The financial statement showed No. 1 loan account to be in debit to the extent of £ll4 la 4d. No. 2 loan had a credit if £149 Cs 3d, and No. 3 loan account a credit of. £1039 Hs 3d, with accounts for pavment £55 Ua lid. Tho power fund account had a debit of £375 5s sd, with iccounts for payment '£33o Ua lid, plus advance to No. 1 loan account £74 4s Id, and No. 4 loan account £24 19s 6d.

In his monthly report, the general man ager, Mr L. C, Vicary, stated that during December, 23 new consumers had been added to'the Board's mains, and additions made to twelve existing installations. The additional connected load was made up of 347 lighting points, 27 heating points. 7 ranges, 2 water-heaters, and 12 motors, making a to'nl nf 15,756 kilowatts. The works completed included alterations to lines to supply two consumers with ranges in Leeston, ■ alterations to poles at Dunsandel Domain, transformers and service for range »t Sedgemere, a, ihort extension to supply Hornby Tail-

way station, and an additional twelve, services in the Board's area. The Southbridge extension had been inspected by the Public Works Department, and had been passed as satisfactory.

On the proposal of Mr Maginness, a vote of thanks was accorded the chairman and other members and the engineer for their work in connexion with the loan proposals campaign. The mover mentioned that, with the sanctioning of this loan, and the additional sum of £IO,OOO authorised for the I'aparua area, tho Board was adding to its financial responsibilities to tho extent of £30,000.

Tho chairman commented that the result of the recont poll gavo much cause for satisfaction.

The charges for current mado by the Public Works Department were again discussed, and it was mentioned that, in selling current to supply authorities or rolail purposes, the Department used a eliding scale of charges, under which the body buying a largo quantity of current obtained its supply at a much cheaper rate than tho body with a small maximum demand. This arrangement operated very much to the advantage of supply authoqjties in the cities, where tho demand was naturally much greater than in the country districts There was a feeling among some of the Power Boards that more favourable treatment should bo given the country distriota in the matter of wholesale charges, in view of what country Power Boards wcro doing to make life more attractive in the rural areas.

It was decided to request Mr David Jones, M.P., to toJfo up tho matter with the Public Works Department again, stressing the. point that Power Boards wore doing work tho Government stated it was desirous to see done—the making of country life move attractive and the arresting of tho drift to the cities. In tho letter to Mr Jones, it is to bo stated that Power Boards bought current from the Public Works Depart mont at per kilowatt, the first 200 kilowatts being at the rate of £lO per kilowatt, after which any additional current was charged at £8 per kilowatt, and the charge was further reduced to large consumers. At present, the Springs-Ellesmere Board was paying for 200 kilowatts at £lO and 50 kilowatts at £B. The Public Work's Department stated that the Board wna being charged tho same rate as all other simply authorities in Canterbury, including tho Christchurch .City Council. The lalter body bad such a laTge consumption that it was able to get down to the bedrock scale- of charges, and was thereby enabled to sell current at very attractivo rates. At the present time, the Public Works Department was retaining for itself certain la r gp consumers. If the amount of current used by these people h«l been crerlilocl to the Snrin<rs-TC!!rsmere Board, if would have come into a seduced scalp of charges, which would have helped the finances considerably.