CUT IN RADIO HOURS SAVES LITTLE POWER

Chronicle (Levin), 18 July 1946, Page 7

CUT IN RADIO HOURS SAVES LITTLE POWER

WELLINGTON, July 17. | fl was dillicult to arrive at an ■equii ! 1 able ineaiis of power conservation, sanl ] itlie Electricity Controller, Mr. E. T. M. i ; Kissel, yeslerday. He did not thinK : itliat a reduction in broadcasting would alleviate the position very cou- ' • siderably. When broadcasting -was cut oll' lud wccii 5.15 ii.ni. and 5.45 p.nt. in 1913^ an estiniateil saving of 11,00) kilowatts t : was recorded in a total peak require j nient estimaled at 300, 000 kilowatts. | This meant that only a very sinai i j 1 percentage of the total unit consunip ; tion was saved by a half liour's silence i on the air. Broadcasting ofiicials wciv ' of Ihe sanie opinion — that further re | ductions in broadcasting tiuies would] niake negligible did'erence to the totai ; pow er consuniption. it was pointed out that sucli reduc ; tions niiglit liave a bad psychological - elTect 1)4 the public who would be ! iriclined to tliink that the sacrilice of | radio in itself was suflicient to con- ■ serve power. ; : The present piwvcr crisis, said Mr Kissel, had been precipitated not by a j fnlling oll' in ihe output but bv l h« i highly increased rate of consuiniit ion. ! Over 33, ()()(), 000 units of power had been j generated in the North Island last week j and this figure was alinost the same as j ; that for the corresponding week in j 1945. Despite the present restrictions , ja sulistantial incredse in consumption j ■was continuing. ] In 193(5 there were 35(5,000 eonsumers of power in New Zealand, and Ihe average domestie and industrial coti- ■ sumption per head was 217.8 units. This 'vear there were 485,000 eonsumers and the consuniption per head last vear was 3850 units. The doiuestic consumption alone amounted to 2383 units per household. or 1 ]31 units per head of population. These iigures showed that New Zealand today made tremendous use of electric ppwer, which was oue of the few conimodities that had decreased in iprice during the war. • The average price of a unit today Avas below a penny.