ELECTRIC CURRENT

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 247, 12 July 1919, Page 6

ELECTRIC CURRENT

CIfAIiUFIS TO liF U.USKI) A HALFPENNY PKJt CNJT. Another increase in (he charge ot electric current was approved h v the Oily Council hist night. The Power and Tramways Committee made the following recommendations:~ That owing to the increased cost of generation, the tarili' lor direct current power supply be raised Id, per unit from the Ist instant, making the gross charge Id., less the present discount scale; Also, that Ihe price to the Harbour Board he raised lu -Id. tor tho day supply, and ijd. lor the night supply. At present tho charges are Sid. per unit and 1 id. per unit respectively. The council adopted the report without discussion. A report by (he Acting-General .Managed (Mr. Cable) slated that at present the average cod per unit of direct current power sold was :!.3d., and as Ihe average, price received from consumers was iL'd., there was a dead loss of .Id. per unit. On Ihe basis of the present volume of business, this loss would amount Io nearly .£lOllO a year. In view of this position, ho recommended that: the Inrilf should lie raised {A. per unit from July I, which would make Ihe gross charge Id., less the present discount scale of M\. to lid. per unit. In the ease, of the Harbour Board, which was at, present: paying 35d. per unit for the day supply and H.d. for the supply used at night at'the cool store, the rata should be raised to 4il. for Ihe day supply and Ijd. for ihe night supply. When the rate was raised by id. to private consumers in October, 1917. uo increase was made in the case of the supply lo the city pumping station, but in view of the.present high cost of generation he was of opinion that, the rate should now he !d., which would still ha jd. per unit below the.rate paid by private consumers.