HYDRO-ELECTRIC POWER

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 54, 28 November 1918, Page 6

HYDRO-ELECTRIC POWER

['.THE NORTH ISLAND SCHEME

WHOLE COUNTRY TO BE SERVED

THREE BIG INSTALLATIONS

I The scheme of hydvo-e!o:-liie power for ithe North Island was presented to Par- ' liament yesterday by tho Minister of I Public Works (Sir William Fraser). The {scheme has been prepared by the Chief ['Electrical Engineer (Mr. Parry), and it (.provides for the establishment of three i great generating stations, which willdis- ; tribute powor to the whole ol' the North !■ Island. ;.'■ The Scheme of Development. j: The scheme of development, as regards fthe sources of power, is practiuilly identical with tho scheme advanced in Mr. ; Parry's interim report on this subject. 1 Briefly, it comprises tho development of ! three principal power .' sources, at ! Mangahao, Wailtaremoana, and Arapuni, i'lrith. tile reservation that if ithe construction of tho dam required for the '-latter is found impracticable or at least ' inadvisable, Arapuni will be repteed by : Aratiatia, 'which is the next in order of f merit as regards size and location. ! "Of the three sources, Jlangahao is ■ the best situated in respect to the load, i and'it is to be regretted that this 'source : is not capable of yielding a larger amount • f of power,' - says tlie Engineer. "The ! general scheme falls short of the ideal •in two other respects, viz., (he lack of i'a moderately _ large source of power, in the Taranaki district ami in the 1 AVhangarei district. If it were ;\>ssible i i to obtain 50,000 h.p. or more - from !. Jlangahao. and a source of about 20,000 • h.p. in the Taranaki district and about ' 10,000 h.p. in the Wliangarei district, i the scheme herein outlined would be materially improved, but the ideal is I never attained, and the scheme here ad- : rocated is tho best under the circum- • stances, and, while being adequate, eco- . Domical and eminently practicable at tho : etage described, can be still further de- ' veloped and enlarged as required. '. - "It is recommended that in the interest J of national economy .and production the ! scheme should be planned in such a man- : nor and on such a scale that a supply of ; power shall be available with , the co- : operation of tho local authorities for . every householder in the North Island i'or tor any industry requiring, the supply '• of power temporarily l or otherwise, for ; mam-line electrification, light_ railways, ; coal and other mines, for winding, punip- ! ing, ventilating, and smelting, and for i any other purpose. "In order to provide for the requirei ments outlined above a total sub-station :■ load of 130,000 h.p. is-necessary, requiring a plant capacity in the main power ■ stations of 160,000 h.p., -nllc-.p.ted as fol- ' lows, viz.:—96,000 h.p. at Arapuni, 40,C00 h.p. at Waikaremoana, and 24,000 h.p. at I Jlangahao. The power to be provided is equivalent to one-iifth of a' hors'ei (power per head of the present population : of the North Island, which provision t is ample for ordinary requirements, but r not sufficient for such extraordinary de- : velopments as have taken place in Tas- | .mania. The sources mentioned have, however, greater potentialities than it is i, proposed to develop under the present . scheme, wjiich can b<; developed later to . satisfy extraordinary demands for power over and above those now provided for. , The route length of transmission lines is : 1421 miles, and the number of orim.try ' 6ub-stations is 29- The system of trans- , mission as designed, together with a ■ system of distribution radiating from ' the main sub-stations, is sufficient to : ensure a supply of power to the whole of the island. "The total capital expenditure is estii mated . at ,£7,593,141, including interest . during construction, working capital, and . .a sum to enable financial assistance to be afforded to power users anjl local au- ' thorities. It is pointed out that , the I whole expenditure is recoverable in from ['six to seven years in coal only, productive power is increased and economy se.■'cured, country districts settled, ' and I"closer settlements' accelerated, whilst .at [ 'the same time the undertaking is self- ; supporting after a reasonable interval '. for develqpment and growth. Ou the j. basis of 1\ per cent, per annum the i capital charges will amount to <£5i7,728, '' and .working expenses aro estimated at j- '£220,000 per annum, .making a total of .£767,728, requiring an average return of i .£5 9s. per h.p. of sub-station load; which i is under consideration, but the details : return should be easily secured, i "A similar scheme for the South Island : have not been worked out. It would : consist of. a systom of power stations, 1 all linked together; starting from Lake i: Coleridge, this power house would bo. c linked up on the north to a power sta- • tion in the Marlborough district and to i Westland, and in the south to a power fi house intermediate between the present t. Waipori power house and Lake Cole- •| Tidge; this would in turn be linke'd up •. to the Dunedin corporation's plant'at '• Waipori, and Waipori to a power 'house ; in Southland. The inclusive cost would i Tie less, if anything, than the North '.-Island scheme." Mr. Parry deals at some length with ihe growing tendency 9f great nations ]■ to, organise for production,' and lie 'quotes illustrations of the changed attititde of public authorities throughout i the world towards 'hydro-electric power, j New Zealand, at the outset of its career , as a nation, has a unique opportunity ' of securing the .utmost possible efficiency | for all time by developing its.wateripow- ; e'rs on such a scale and by providing for j such a wide-reaching system of distribution that electric power shall become : available to every householder throughi out the Dominion, and available at any ' point whero circumstances require the . application of power, lie savs. The func- ' tions of that Department of State which • •'deals with the generation and distribur tion of power involve great, re- : eponsibility and wide range of knowledge, ! ns it touches every phase of national life in its industrial aspect. It has to generI .'.nte and transmit electric power, it has ' .to make contracts with local authorities j. and other State Departments and indivi- ; duals, it has to negotiate terms with industrial organisations outside New Zca- ; land which mjiy be desirous of taking • advantage of the supply of hydro-electric i power, it has to finance local authorities to enable them to reticulate their disI' tricts, it has to finance power users to ; enable them to convert from steam or ' other power to electric power, it lias to i assist industry by carrying out experiments in industrial processes on a com- , tiiercial scale, for the lack of which' a i great deal of talk concerning. industry j and science is lacking in cohesion. It .may further bo required to undertake j the'manufacture of . a special class of ' product in tho national interest. ' | After mentioning the wood-pulp indusi try, and electro-chcmical and clectroI 'metallurgical industries, the engineer ; says that the provision of an adequate ■ and dependable supply of electric power : is indispensable to the Railway Depart- ; ment if it is to be enabled to keep pace with the development of tho country. , Railway electrification does not mean tho ; displacement of steam locomotives alto- !' gether and at once, but the gradual sub- ; stitution of electric haulage for steam haulage on grades and in tunnels whe?. ! and as the limits of steam haulage aro • reached, after making every possible im- . provement short of entire duplication ; fad. extensive regrading. Suburban Railway Electrification. "The question of suburban railways electrification," says Mr. Parry, "is already an urgent one in some cases, as for instance between Wellington and the : Ttutt. There is no doubt ill 'my mind : that had the lav/ permitted of it an electric tramway would have been in opera- ' tion between theso two centres long ago, r and it is evident that before loin* the need of a more frequent service will be--1 come so great as to necessitate a removal ; of the present legal obstruction, unless a, service of the same general character '; is provided by the Railway Department. ! In course of time,' in all probability as a .result of the growth of the population. 1 an electric service on both the road and I the railway will .become a necessity, j' There is of course no question as to the ■ advantages of electricity where frequent !„ service is required—this is a matter of f common knowledge—bnt at the same ; i 'me. although' tlie necessity may be

great, it. will bo found that the actual conversion is postponed until the matter becomes an, acute one unless facilities in the way of obtaining a supply of power are available- Theso delays may not have the same direct retarding influence as delays in main line electrification, but the argument in favour of a provision of electric power' is equally valid. Agricultural Railways. "Another branch of electric haulage which may possibly have an important influence upon the destinies of New Zealand is the construction of light railways, which would relieve {lie roads of heavy traffic and would promote exchange hetween town and country and form an important link between producer and consumer." Distribution.Referring to the distribution of power, Mr. Tarry says it would be possible to supply the whole of the North Island t'roni one central generating station, such as Aratiatia or Arapitne, but this would not be the best method. The current can be transmitted at 100,000 volts up to 150 miles without serious difficulties, but greater distances give nse to troubles. He lays down as a general rule for New Zealand that it ivill-jmy to do'velop any sources yielding 20,000 horse-power on a 50 per cent, load factor at a cost of .£2O per horifc-power er under, as an. alternative to obtaining tile power by means of a transmission line over 130 miles in length from another source.

"The statistics kept by the Inspection of Machinery Department show that, excluding the railways, there are 65..716 h.p. in boilers and 78,513 h.p. in machinery other than that driven by steam in use ir. the North Island for power purpo;- .< Careful records have been taken over a considerable portion of the Wellington district, and from records_ of the fuel consumption, etc., a relation between machinery rating and continuous power output has been ascertained. Applying this relation to the recorded power above indicates that if the existing machinery were connected into a general system it could all be supplied from a common source of 68,100 h.p. capacity after allowing for losses .in transmission, transformation, and distribution. The scheme outlined below for the supply of the North Island, 44,000 square miles in area, .provides for a maximum demand of .2 h.p. per inhabitant on the'present papulation. During the period of construction, however, the population will in all probability increase by at least 21 per cent, per annum, or 25 per cent, in ten }aars, which would be about the time necessary to completely carry out tho proposals sug gested.. The electrification of the railways as the present lines become taxed to the-limit of steam locomotives and the development of special metallurgical and chemical industries when cheap power is generally Available may increase this load as the scheme develops. _ The scheme of generation and transmission does not provide for such large special metallurgical processes us are referred to above, but is confined, to providing for the ordinary lighting, heating, and industrial ' load, together with limited amounts for railway electrification, elec-tro-chcmical and electro-metallurgical industries. Each of the two main generating sources, however, has a considerable capacity in excess of what it is proposed to develop, and this can be cheaply drawn upon to meet further special demands as they may arise. The system can also be further extended by developing other sources, such as Aratiatia lJapids and the, ICaituna River, if necessity arises. The possibility of' having considerably increased loads in certain localities has been carefully considered' in laying out the main system of transmission. The scheme submitted herewith has been designed and estimated on the basis of being able to supply .2 h.p'. per unit to a present-day population of 650,000, or .16 h.p. to the pro-' speotive population 10 years hence. The maximum demand/on the system would be 130,000 h.p., requiring a plant capacity of 160,000 h.p. in the generating stations. Scheme of Generation. "The Mangahao power station is v almost ideally situated for the supply of Wellington district,'' says Mr. Parry, "as it is within a few* miles of tlie centre of gravity of the load : ; so also Waikaremoana Is very favourably situated for tho supply of the East' Coas't district. Arapuni, or alternately Aratiatin, is rather far south for the most efficient supply of. the Auckland districts, but when, we consider that Mangahao is unfortunately rather small for the ultimate requirements of Wellington ' and Taranaki, which will later, have to augment their supply from sources further north, these Waikato -stations are particularly well situated. "To make the arrangement of generating plant ideal we would need to have a source of 50,000 h.p. in place of the present limit of 24,000 at Mangahao, a. cheap sourtse of about 20,000 h.p. capacity in the Taranaki district, and 10, COO h.p. in the Wliangarei district. A search for a suitable and economical source in tho 't'aranaki district of the desired size has proved fruitless. Smaller developments are possible and at comparatively, great expenso for the linfited ,h£ni:\it oi' power obtainable, and it is found that the Taranaki district can be more economically and better served by transmission from Arapuni and Mangahao. Waihi Company's Plant. "The need for having an immediate market available for the power to be generated iu these generating stations is particularly marked in tho case of the Waikato schemes, whether Arapuni or Aratiatia is developed. Either of-these schemes, which have very large ultimate capacity, and which will later become tiie main source of supply to the island, involve heavy expenditure in the earliei' stages, and will take some time to construct. Tho acquisition of the Waihi Company's plant at Hora Hora suggests ni possibility of obviating this difficulty to 6ome extent. At present this plant is only working to'half its capacity, and the Waihi Company's main interest being gold-mining, 'no great efforts aro made to develop the 1 power business and so dispose of this surplus power. It is probable that if this plant were, taken over by the Department and lines built into Hamilton tho balance of power would soon bo absorbed there and in tho mining districts on tho company's' existing lino. Tho license issued to Ihe company gives tho Government the right to take over these works at any time at valuation. Mangahao Development. "For tho supply to the southern districts the Mangahao ltiver has been selected as tho best available source of power. Tho power is obtained by «Jiverting the waters of the Jlangahao by a tunnel one mile long from a dam on tho river through the hills, first into a large regulating and storage reservoir formed by damming tho Tokomaru Creek near the old sawmill, and then from this reservoir through a second tunnel 1 mile 26 chains long out on to the hills at the back of .Shannon. From the end of this second tunnel steel pipes 56 chains long will carry tho water to the powerhouse at tho junction of flic Mangaoro and Mangatangi Creeks about three miles from Shannon, and give a fall of about 1100 feet. The flow in the Sfnngahao River is very variable, .mil provision has had to be made for storing water . tQ carry over the'periods of low flow which occur periodically. The main storage will be in a dain at the tunnel intako on the 51ang?hao, which will lie directly connected with the other main dam on the Tokomaru. Further up the Jlangahao will bo a second dam, not directly connected to the tunnel, but. which will also store a large quantity of water, and which will, in addition, stop any shingle which is being carried down the river. When working on such a high head storage capacity is of very great value, and the extent to which this value is to be depreciated by moving shingle filling up the reservoirs -has been very ' carefully considered. Tho greater portion of the

drainage area of the Mangahao above.tho proposed intako is in. standing bush, mainly forest reserve, which- protects the slopes from detrition, and although the river is subject to great fluctuations in flow our observations show that it carries a comparatively small amount of debris. "The difference between tho stream and some of the other Wairarnpa rivers, particularly tfio Mangatainoka, which flows in tlie next valley to the eastward, is, very marked. It will be noticed at' orico that where these two rivers emerge from the hills on the Wairarnpa side tho Mangahao runs in a deep valley, only changing its course occasionally as it el-Odes away one or other of the banks, while the Mangatainoka runs on a level almost with the surrounding,country, and is constantly changing its course in floods. The difference between the two rivers is due in the main to the fact that Mangatainoka brings down from the hills more shingle than it can transport across the flatter grade into the Jlanawatu, while tho Jlangahao brings down scarcely enough to keep pace with the erosion from its lower reaches, and so has no tendency to build up its bed. It is to be expected, however, that th ero will be some filling up of the upper reservoir, but this will keep the main basin lower down on the Mnngahao clear for a considerable nuinlier of years, whilst the reservoir in tho Tokomaru, not 1, 'i]g in the main river, will be clear at ah times. By the time any filling up of reservoirs will have materially depreciated the storage value the Jlangahao scheme will have become lijAed up with the large schemes to the north, so that a small reduction in output on that account will i not be of serious moment. It is also quite possible to build smaller dams as required higher up the river to prevent shingle reaching,oven the upper dam as now designed. . "Very careful observations of the river during the dry summers in 1916 and 1917 suggest 24,000 h.p. as being the maximum plant capacity to instal on this scheme, and during very dry summers one of the units, 6000 h.p., would need f .o be a spare. The complete installation for delivery on to the main transmission lines is estimated to cost .£■138,651. This amount, which is equivalent to .£18.3 per h.p. of plant capacity, though not quite so cheop as for_ some of the larger developments, at Waikaremoana and. on the Waikato, in generating cost, is quite a reasonable figure for a development of this size, and w'hen in particular wo considei that it is almost at the centere of gravity of a load which will in a very short lime absorb tho whole, of the power available the development becomes a particularly good one. "Compared with Coleridge, the capital cost per h.p. to' deliver on to tlie transmission line if the complete development is put in is less'than at Coleridge at its present stage, though not quite so cheap as it will be in its ultimate stages. The running cost per h.p. on account of the larger development will also be cheaper at Jlangahao, while the average distance over which the power has to be transmitted is also less, and though the cost of transmission per mile will bo somewhat greater, there is no doubt but that at rates comparable with Coleridge •the scheme would be paying all charges in a very short time. Waikaremoana Development. "For the East Coast district Lake Waikaremoana is undoubtedly the most suitable source to develop, and from the_ hydraulic point of view is an exceptionally good development. It is calculated that a minimum flow of not more than 420 cubic feet per second can be relied on. The most suitable position for a powerhouse is on what is known as the Whakamarino Plat, above the junction of the lvahutangiiroa and Waikaretaheke. For the first stage of development it is proposed to divert the Waikaretaheke through a short cutting into a small lake called Kaitawa, and- from there pipe it to the powerhouse 670 feet below. This small lake has very little storage value, however, so that the amount of powor to be obtained from here is limited to about 29,000 h.p. To' carry out tho scheme proposed more than that amount of power is required to be drawn from Waikaremoana, so that provision has been made for controlling the flow from the lake to provide for the_ varying demand during the day. Still more power can be obtained later by extending the pipes from Kaitawa to connect through the diversion tunnel directly to the lake, iind by this means, and by sealing as far as possible the leaks as the water lowers, the power may ultimately be increased to provide a plant capacity of l.;i>,000 h.p. " . "The worst feature of the Waikaremoana scheme is the distance that has to be traversed through difficult country before getting any load. On tho basis of this report, viz., one-fifth h.p. per inhabitant. of present population, there is only a load of 9191 h.p. that is nearer to Waikaremoana than to either of the other schemes, whilst, on the same basis there is a prospective load on Jlangahao station of 50,139 h.p. The latter, however, has not a capacity sufficient to supply all this, so that Waikaremoana andArapuni. have to be increased to each carry u portion of the lond to the northeast and north-west of Palmerston. f J.o provide for all contingencies of the scheme it is proposed to make the Waikaremoana development 40,000 h.p. as above. | Waikato Development. "For the Auckland and Main Trunk district supply, and for tho bulk of the Taranaki supply, two alternative sources have been selected, namely, the Arapuni Gorge and the Aratiatia Rapids on the Waikato River. Of these two the Arapuni is the- better one, provided our investigations: prove the construction of the big dam re*C|uired to be practicable. It also has tlie advantage that it; is fortyfive miles nearer the main market in •Auckland, whilst at the same tinie it is not much further from tho other nicirliet in Tnrauaki. The transmission line south to Taranaki and the Main Trunk districts does not have to cross the same Amount of undeveloped country as from Aratiatia, but will everywhere traverse country that is in process of development along the railway routes. Ihe scheme of development proposed is to 'build a dam in the gorge of tlie river, raising the water about rIQ feet, and diverting the river into an old parallel channel at a higher, level. Some .sixty chains from the dam this old channel approaches within eight chains of the existing channel and at an ele\&twn of IGS feet above it. Here a low weir will be built across the channel, and. the woter required for power will be taken through pipe tunnels to a powerhouse on the present river bank. From observations made during tho low-water flows in 1915 it is estimatod that we could ultimately instal! a plant capacity of 162,000 h.p. ill this station. To fill its function in the universal scheme outlined 111 this report a plant capacity of 96,000 h.p. is required. ' At this stage the development becomes an exceptionally economical one, and the cost on to the main transmission lines, ns in' the other cases, is estimated at ,£1,078,700, or ,£10.78 per h.p. If the scheme were ultimately extended to its limit it is likely that the whole plant capacity h.p. might be installed for <£1,126,707, or .£8.78 per h p Partial developments of this source would be relatively more expensive owing to the cost of the large dam having to bo incurred from the -inception, but it is estimated that even a .partial development of 37,500 h.p. can bo put in for .£2O per h.p. "The Aratiatia Rapids iuso afiorded a very good source of power, and up to a limit of 66,000 h.p. can be developed in successive stages without unduly loading Ihe earlier stages of development. The limit of 66,000 h.p., however, is not sufficient to fit in with the scheme of distribution herein proposed, and another sciiemc of development has to be adopted This necessitates building a dain at the head of the rapids which will back tho water right into Lake Tuupo, drowning out tho Huka' Falls. Willi this scheme a fall of 175 feet becomes available, and with the regulation afforded by the storage in Lake Taupo the plant capacity can be increased to 135,000 h.p. Tlie development will be a fairly economical one at the ultimate stage, though owing to the heavy cost of dam it will be somewhat expensive at earlier stages. Unless exploration work proves special difficulties to exist at Arapuni it is unlikel;- that Aratiatia .will prove a better source for generation. Transmission System. '"('lie main transmission lines will be of tho suspension typo carried for tho main on ironbark nolcs, though steel tower construction will have to be adopted in sonio cases where special construction is necessary. Tho lines have been laid out to servo existing markets in- tho most economical way, whilst as far as possible

at the samo time tho routes best calculated to (surve prospective railway and special development loads have been adopted. The scheme provides for a total length of 1112 uiilc-s of main transmission shown on drawing, also for 309 miles of branch mains at lower voltage to supply disconnected main sub-sta-tions. Tue configuration of the country is not so suitable for transmission us it is across the Canterbury Plains, where the lines can practically everywhere iollow roads. A considerable length of the main lines in the North Island will have to go across country, and provision has had to be made for tho extra difficulty of patrol under these conditions. A substantial typo of construction has been decided upon, and depots and linesmen's quarters at freqtient intervals have been allowed for. Tlie total cost of the main transmission system is estimated at 41,795,2-10. , , - "The main sub-stations connected to the main line will transform down the power to 11,000 volts for distribution to the local sub-stations and surrounding districts. Prom the • main sub-stations lines mostly at 11,000 volts will radiate out to smaller low-tension sub-stations and pole transformer sub-stations supplying all the local authorities and large power users. From this point the balance of low-tension reticulation should be carried out by the local bodies or whatever body obtains the license to supply certain areas, and the expense of • such retail business should be controlled directly by the licensees, except in so far as the Department may, as mentioned later, advance sums on short-period loans to assist smaller licensees in putting in the reticulation nithin their areas,, or to assist manufacturers in the installation of their electrical plant. Tt is proposed to make provision for having a maximum of ,£IOO,OOO available at any one time for this purpose. Assistance to Local Bodies, ' "To assist local bodies in reticulating their supply area and so help to. build up the load on the power supply system and make it the more quickly come to the profit-earning stage, it is suggested that a fund should be provided for issiio on short-dated loans to local authorities, or alternately to hear the cost of the Department carrying out reticulation work which will be taken over by local authorities as soon as it has been'put into operation. ' Capital. Expenditure. "The complete estimate to provide for the general scheme of electricity supply outlined herein then becomes:— Generating stations (total plant capacity, 160,000 h.p.): Per ■ Cost. h.p. H.P. £ £ Mangahao 24,C!j0 438,654 18-3 Waikaremoana 40,000 544,369 13.16 Arapuni 96,000 1,078,700 10.8 Total amount and —~ cost per h.p. 2,061,723 ,12.88 Main transmission lines shown on drawing 1) 1116 v- J' 553 ) 850 Extra branch transmission lines at lower volt- 11.22 age to main sub-stations not on main lines 24-1,360 Main sub-stations ■ 838,fcflS 5.24 Distribution lines and ■ secondary sub-stations... 2.086500 13.04 6,781,771 42.38 Interest during construction 271,271 1.69 Assistance to local authorities and power „. sors 100,000 0.62 Working capital 150,000 0.94 Totals 7,303,042 45.63 In tiie event of taking over the Waihi Company's Hora Hor'a works a further •sum dependent on the terms arranged with that company would have to be added. "Throughout this report estimates navo been based on a rate not exceeding 12 per cent, above prices. With tlie present unsettled condition of markets and supplies, it is impossible to .estimate exactly on works destined to bo completed some time ahead, but even if rho present high prices remain after the war the balance will still be in favour of such a scheme of development, for although the' cost may be greater the cost of all competing powers will also be greater in much the same proportion, and the revenue obtained will _be increased in tlie same proportionIt will probably take 10 years to" carry out all the works included in the estimate. The initial expenditure on headworks would-be heavy, but, on the other hand, the plant would only be installed as required to meet the growth of tlie load. The average rate of expenditure on the above assumption would be about .£730,000 per annum. Financial Result. "It may readily be inferred that, inasmuch as tlie estimated capital expenditure per h.p. does not exceed tue expcndiciire per It.p. on tlie Lake Coleridge undertaking, that the financial result will be satisfactory. The capital charges for interest, depreciation, una sinking fund at 7i per cent, will amount to ,£517,728 per annum. The working expenses should not exceed .£220,000 per annum, making a total annual expenditure of' i' 767,728, requiring an average return of .£5 9s. per Ji.p- per annum per h.p. of maximum load. "The last year's return on the Lake Coleridge expenditure amounted to «£5 per horse power per annum, but this retui;u is influenced adversely by tlie predominance of the concentrated city load over the more diversified general supply.. It is anticipated that in the larger scheme, with a bigger range of distribution and a greater variety in the use of power' and the consequently greater diversity of. demand in the systeiiK a-.re-, turn of at least ■£!> per h.p. can be easily obtained at the same,rates as those prevailing in the Christchurch district. General Remarks. "Referring to the estimated capital expenditure of .£45.63 per h.p. oi plant, this rate is somewhat less tnan the present inclusive expenditure upon the Lake Coleridge undertaking, which is about .£SO per 1).. p., ami as the success of the latter is already assured there is every reason to believe that the larger development will also prove to be a financial success. The significance of the figure may readily.be appreciated by comparing it with the cost of a steam plant. The figure mentioned is not at all an uncommon one when all expenditure incidental to the installation of tho steam plant is included. The significance of the proposed expenditure may also be appreciated in another way. It would require at least 1,000,000 tons of coal per annum to do the work of the proposed hydro-electric plant if burnt under existing conditions. Coal would therefore be conserved to that extent, and if its value on the average be assessed at ,£1 per ton tho sum of .£1,1100,000 per annum it invested at 23 per cent, would amount in seven years to .£7,600,000, sum which is slightly in excess of the capital required.

"'Further, the total capital charges, Including interest, sinking fund, and depreciation of 71 per cent:, amount 'to seven-eighths of a penny in the pound on the present unimproved value oi ■-in? in the North Island. Wo know, huwever, by experience of the Lake Cole-i-id'.'i' undertaking, that even at very low rates for power, which compare favourably with rates charged in any part of the world, sufficient revenue is obtained at ah early stago of development to meet all capital charges is well as working expenses, whilst at the samo time values arc enhanced, production increased, and expenses of production diminished."

THE REPORT DISCUSSED

STATEMENTS BY MINISTERS

QUESTION OF CONTROL, When presenting tho report to the House of Representatives yesterday afternoon the Minister of Public Works (Sir William Fraser) said it had been undcrstoo' when Ihe Government undertook the Lake Coleridge scheme in Canterbury tjmt in the event ol' the experiment being a success the next move would be to supply Wellington and Auckland with hydro-electric power. The Canterbury .scheme had "been an absolute success, financial and otherwise, and Mr. Parry had now outlined a scheme for supplying electricity fo the whole ol' the Nortli Island. The total cost was going to be large, but members should understand that it would not loquire the ■whole of the expenditure proposed, over

.£7,000,000, to provide tlie cities of Wellington and Auckland with current Mr. Parry, added tho Minister, was strongly of opinion Unit the huge scheme should be managed by ft board, which could devote the whole of its attention to tiie work. The scheme wan a great business undertaking, and it ought to be managed on business lines. Properly managed, it would be a source ol gi'eat wealth and prosperity to theicountry. It it were not managed or, business lines it might involve tho country in actual loss. He regretted exceedingly to have to tell the House that Jlr. Parry had decided to leave tho service of the .poniimon. Ho had been offered an important position in the United Kingdom, and although the New Zealand Government had offered him inducements to lemain here, lie had privato reasons for wishing to return .o England. Tho Government was not to blame for losing him. Jlr. Parry had mi id that it was not a question of money. He wisjied the change for private reasons. But the country had been very fortunate to have had Jlr. Parry's services, which had been of great value to the country. As to the general scheme, it would be futile to vote a little money every year. The proper course w-ould bo to bring down a Hill providing for the whole scheme, enabling the money to be spent as required, lie believed that the yoking up of our water power would be of liiore benefit to this country than even t!ie most sanguine imagined. It would be well for the House and tho country to remember, however, that if these schemes were to be successful they must be run not like ordinary Government Departments, but as big commercial concerns. For the Jlangahao scheme reading would be necessary in order to get stores and plant up to the works, and this reading would lie proceeded with at once. With regard to the Awapuni scheme, the' same would be done, in order that when labour was available- largo numbers of men might bo put. on the works. Wellington Concerned. Jfr. J. P. Luke (Wellington North) said he wished to congratulate the Minister on the breadth of view lie had sfoown in connection- with this matter, and. especially on his idea that the work should not be carried on by.annual doles, merely. Wellington could nbsorb naif the output of the Jlangahao scheme without considerable extensions, and be did think that it would be a good thing for the scheme to have such a big customer ready at hand. In his opinion the utilisation of water power was second in importanco only to the repatriation problem. The matter was of special urgency for Wellington, because the City Council had refrained in the war period from providing power already necessary. Sir. C. H. Poole (Auckland West) pleaded for simultaneous' consideration for Auckland with Wellington Tho Minister: That is intended. Jlr. Poole said that he hoped the Government "\fould no't be deterred by._ the protests or indifference of people interested in gas production or such enterprises. ... ... ' Jlr. J. A. Young (Waikato) urged the Government to consider the question of taking over the Horo Horo works the property of the Waihi Gold Mining Co. Jfr. C. H. Statham (Dunedin Central) and Mr. G. J. Anderson (Mataura) urged the Minister to have the report on the South Island presented as soon as possible. ■ Jlr. ,T. Craigie (Timaru) said that ho believed the Government should "go baldheaded" for the scheme, nnd not leave the development of water power to local bodies and syndicates. If. the Government could not go on with the t whole scheme, let it go for one part of it at a time. He would not like to see the Government allow the control to pass from the Government. The projects should all be nationalised. The Lake Coleridge scheme 'had given Christchurch a tenyears'start over all other cities. I Jlr. J. V. Brown (Napier) said that it seemed to him that tho J6150.000 provided on tho Estimates ivas a mere bagatelle. We should borrow right away five millions and go on with all of them. Experience had proved that we could borrow large sums of money locally, and if these development works vere not pushed ahead New Zealand would go down. Cheap electricity for light and transport would help poorer people by reduction of the cost of living. Jlr. Brown urged the Minister not to delay oyer long with the Waikaremoana scheme. Words of Caution. Sir Joseph Ward (Jlinister of Finance) said ho wished to interpose, because it seemed* that the Government was going to be pre-judged as to its proposals. It appeared that honourable members thought the Government was not going to carry out the works for twenty-five years. Wherefore members demanded that they should all be dono now. Did honourable members realise what this meant? It would mean an expenditure of seventeen millions! The Jlinister of Public Works was being criticised because only ,£150,000 was being asked for in respect of two works. But before the works could be done the preliminaries would have to go through, and these would occupy longer than the Parliamentary recess. In any case there was no labour nowv available. Ho Was a strong believer® in nationalisation of water power, but he would not be a party to any move to prevent getting water power for ten or fifteen years, and this was what the de' y would be ;t public bodies were .-lot i 6 be allowed ! ue something. Ho would ask men bt-rs to wait for the Bill wli'cli would come before the House'in a few days. Did members realise that the money-requir-ed for uncompleted railways was about forty millions sterling? Did they know what repatriation was likely to cost? Jt might cost from ten to twelve millions. ' I'or the remainder of our war expenses we might require ns much as nineteen . or twenty millions, nnd this would have to be obtained here.

An lion, member: You've got twelve millions at Home. Sir Joseph Ward said that this would not be used for these purposes. It would be used to help this country by giving relief from the war burdens lying upon it. Ho went, on to say that one of the advantages of the proposal to allow public bodies to carry out their own schemes'was that tho local bodies would get much of their loan money beyond New' ZeaiaiuL How could_ the large sums be obtained within this country? Would any honourable member suggest that compulsory loans should be continued except for war purposes? That was very well for- wnr pui; noses, but it could not be tolerated for othijr purposes. It would bo idle to expect the people who had subscribed to the wnr loans to iind five millions for water power, and more millions for railway construction. •In .the scheme to be submitted later to the House there would, be provision for the State resuming any of the works or systems that might bo set up by local authorities. At present no labour was available, but in the next twelve months 60;000 men would come back to this country. The local bodies ought to.be allowed to go on when the only alterntative was to tell them they must wait for ten or fifteen years for power. Mr. AV. 11. Field (Otaki) said that the North Island certainly had first claim on the Government, now that the Lake Coleridge scheme had been completed. Mr. J- JPCombs (Lyttelton) said that water-power schemes should be first tho concern of tho State and not of local bodies. He suggested that it would bo just as difficult for local bodies to raise money as for the Government to raise money. Development Our Only Salvation, ■ Mr. E. Newman (Rangilikei) said he could see no objection to local bodies being allowed to develop the water power resources of the country. Only by tho development of the resources which the country possessed could the war debt be liquidated. Jfr. J. Payne (Grey Lynn) advised the House not to hear of the proposal to allow local bodies to go on with their own little schemes, Jlost of them would not bo worth while, nnd the cost would he unnecessarily increased.

Dr. A. K. Newman (Wellington East) said that the people of Wellington district were most anxious fo have cheap iKiwer. and to have it sooa. lie feared that the Government would go on dawdling and dawdling with Ihe scheme, and that nothing would be done. He would not accept tho statement that no labour was available. What the .Government should do was to put on, say, a couple of hundred men nt. Mangahao lo build the dam and plit up buildings apd poles in order to be in readiness against, the time when machinery would bo procurable Delays about theso things ought not to be tolerated. The "Government stroko" in alfejrs of this kind, was n deplorable infliction, and it would be

almost criminal if the House did not insist 011 the. Government pressing 011 with tho work. It' the Government lint its heart into this scheme, current could l>e supplied in four years. The Government was exaggerating the difficulties, and had made them appear worse by including Waikarenioana. Some day the power at Wailcaremoann might be used, t but not for many years. It was 100 far distant from populous centres. Impressed tho Prime Minister for a pledge to overcome the hostile altitude of some of his colleagues and indifferent attitude of others. Prime Minister Refutes Charges. The Right Hon. W. F. Massey (Prime Minister) .said that he rose simply because he could not allow to go uncontradicted the statement that some of his colleagues wore hostile to water-power schemes. This statement was Hot true, livery Minister was enthusiastically desirous of going 011 with water-power schemes, but t'lioy could not liavo gono 011 with them while 100,000 men- were taken out of the population for' the Army. He had a very full realisation of what was possible in the development of water power, but New Zealand could not have dono her part in the war and at the snino time carried 011 a vigorous public works policy. When our men came back we must go in for a development policy, otherwise we should never bo able to bear our war burdens. Already there was work in siglit for 15,000 men when they came back. They could all be placed in a week. With a proper scheme of developments we could double our exports, and wo would not then feel our war burdens. Ho assured the member for Wellington East that tho Government would not hang back in the matter of hydro-electric schemes. If the Government did hang back, the people of the country would find nnother Government. Mr. H. G. Ell (Christchurch South) advised the Government to drop the scheme for permitting public bodies to develop their own jchemes. Public Works Minister Replies. Sir ,Williuin Fraser, in reply, said that ,it was not true that the Government was selling power at less than cost at Lake Coleridge. In point of fact, the revenue last year paid nil working expenses and ■) per cent, interest "on the cost- He wished also to refute the statement made that labour was not scarce. Labour was unprocurable in the country at tho present time. Was he to take men from the road works for these enterprises? What would the settlers in the roadless districts say to that proposal? Was he to take men from the railways? He was, he considered, a fairly courageous man, but he would prefer not to put his head into that particular hornets' nest. (Laughter.) Men could not be found. As to Lake Coleridge, the limit of that scheme had not been reached. The present maximum was 8000 h.p., but by turning the Harper Kiver 'into the lake the power could be doubled. The report was laid on the table.