COMMENT ON ELECTRICITY SITUATION

Chronicle (Levin), 6 May 1946, Page 4

COMMENT ON ELECTRICITY SITUATION

■ . # —Press. • Association

By Telegraph-

AUCKLAND, May 5. "No. responsible person will ■ aceept Mr. Kissel's statement that he cloes not think the power situation will be any \»orse this winter tlihn last winter; as any offi'cial assurance, ' ' said the general manager of the. Waitemata Eleetrle Power Board, Mr. A. Main, * after cammenting 011 the statement of Mr. F. T. M. Kissell, Electricity Cohtroller. ' ' Mr. Kissell states that' by the middle ,ot0 June of tliis year supply authorities will* be receiving the same amount of power as at that time last year,". Mr. Main continued. ' ' Perhaps they will ■and p'erhaps they won 't, but the most important factor Mr. Kissel has overlooked Is that all boards have put on larger loadings since last winter, ■ Ln the case of my board; it is 11 per cent. extra. There- will, aecording to Mr. Kissel, be no additional units for this extra loading and anyone must appreeiate that the shortage of power this winter must be worse than last. "It helps little when the faets are placed fairly and. squarely before tlie public and helpful metliods suggested, for Mr. Kissel to make a statement which discounts or tends to nullify the urgent plea made for economy. i\ty statement, although jjerhaps too alarming for some people, was intended to be and I am sure construed by most people as a eonstructive and helpful one in the national interest. With all Boards going round last winter disconnecting districts and enforcing hardships, any statement, particulhrly at this juncture, that this winter will be' no worse than last,. is not helpful. His Minister bad already drawn attention to the dangerously low levels of the lakes and neel for every possible economy if we are to get through this winter. "It would have been easier for me to have done nothing other than to enforc.e disconnec-tions when instructed by Mr. Kissel but, knowing the full faets of the position, I again make an appeal to all eonsumers to eeonomise in every possible way, otherwise today 's dangero.usly low reserve of wa'ter at Arapuni will be used before the heavy winter demand is on us. "As I stated before," coneluded Mr. Main, "the alternative to immediate economy by everyone will be unemployment in every class of industry, so lec us all help. ' '