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TWO POWER SCHEMES

THE CITY'S CHOICE

EXTENSION OF EXISTING PLANT

FAVOURED

Sonw two months ago the City Council, after much serious consideration, decided by eight votes to six to carry on its electrical undertakings by extending v!in l )rEsen t plant, at a cost of under X.00,000, ninrking time until the power, jroni Mangahao is available rather than investing 'some diGOO.OOO or ,£700,000 in a now steam-driven plant to be erected at a poiut on Hie harbour front. • The deeisiov considered by many to bo a correct one, is to be reviewed, possibly ac tlio next meeting of tho City Council, on a rescinding motion by Councillor J. Hutchison. The expenditure of the better part of half a million pounds sterling of the ratepayer's, money may bo involved , in the council's .decision, which is, perhaps, sufficient reason for publishing the conclusions of an expert on the subject. . ™ le Dominion's informant stated that if the Government hydro-electric schemes for the North Island meant anything, they were to assure the Umpire city an adequate supply of power. It was not possible to review the city's power problem without bearing that in mind, and taking .it into the fullest consideration. That was what was prompting the extension proposal rather than tho new scheme, which would still leave thai city dependent on "Old King Coal." Mr. J'jvan Parry, in his report, ' promised tho development of 18,000 kilowatts from Jlangalia-.' (without tire stand-bys to be provided by linking up with the Wnikaremoana and Awapuni schemes). Now it w.'.s computed tljat of. the . power developed at Mangaliao, approximately ha.f would be available for, Wellington, which would give the city, about 0000 kilowatts. The present demand from all services equalled, about 6500 kilowatts, and when all waiting applications were attcnde.l to\ perhaps another 250 kilowatts would bo required, in all G750 kilowatts. Taking then the growth that might I>a anticipated in the 5 next .five years (based on the growth of tho past), th'i year 1925 would still find tlio city well- within tho range of power that Slangahao could supply. That was estimating the demand on its peak--1 load measurement.' which was not really the amount of current that would be required for any lengthy period of tho year. That would ,bo the maximum pull for a few days in mid-winter. Tho mean or average pull would bo fcumcthin;; ii the, neighbourhood of 4500' kilowatt?, which was all tho city would require to. take from Mailgahao, and any demand over and above that could be met by (he stand-by plant (which "with the plant now proposed to be acquired for extension purposes would be more tliau adequate).

Stand-by Plants Unnecessary. Whilst speaking of 'stand-by plants our informant stnted that such plan's were not really necessary .at all,, except to provide peak-load power, for invariably ,in any, emergency the trouble was adjusted "before (lie stand-by plant could be brought into action. This was an argument against the consideration of a large expenditure of over half a. million on a, new steam stand-by plant. On this point it was interesting to see what Mr. Lawrence Birks (Chief Electrical Engineer) said In his 1919 report on the Lake Coleridge works. After dealing with 1 he,hold-up occasioned by the effect of a phenomenal snowstorm, Mr. Birks said:> "Apart from that due ,to the snow, no interruption of service of more than a few seconds has occurred during the yenr." From that it could be seen that stand-by plants for accidental stoppages in the flow of current.,were a negligible factor, mid were only really necessary and valuable when they were called upon to take a load in mid-winter. Then (still considering stand-bys) the Government 'scheme to make Waikaremonna and Awapuni automatic stand-bys must be always borne in mind. -. "Indeed," feaid the expert,"ono must consider the Government's, major scheme, in reviewing Wellington's power requirements, unless one is to regard it as fantastic or impacti-:able, and no one yet has so regarded Mr. Parry's scheme as outlined in his 1918 report.' No expert or public body could alt'ord to jettison the Government scheme from the range of his consideration, and when Messrs. W. H. Morton, G. Lauchlan, and M. Cable submitted their joint report favouring the extension of the existing plant, rather than advocating a new power-house altogether, they must have made that recommendation with the Government scheme as a background to their intentions, and it vrill need a lot cf solid argument to make these gentlemen alter that decision. If Maiigaiiao is to give us ; 9000 forts., there would be sufficient to keep.,us going for over a decade more. If only 4500 kwts. were taken in the winter, 3500 kwts. only would be required I in the summer months, and it would | take us ten years of lively growth to exhaust tho said 6iipply, and by that time Awapuni and Waikaremoana would be harnessed to feed the increase of years to come. Lake Coleridge Example. "No one who knows what the Lake Coleridge supply has done for Canterbury would think' of discounting the value of Mangahao to Wellington. Remembering Mangahno/s promised 9000 kwts., it ..is illuminating to see what Lake Coleridge's COOO-kwt. supply does, for Canterbury. Here is its work in kilowatts for 101819:- ■'■.■■ '..■-•' ' , Kwts. Tramways •' 4195 Freezing works (3) .' 1G72 Flour mills (3) 235 . Dairy factories (2) 98 Quarry '••'• 125 Tanneries and fellmongerics 714 Seed cleaning (3) ..."...'. 1)2 Brick yard • 78 Railway workshop 78 Harbour Board l-'lfi . Institutions (8) ..:... 293 Sonpw'orks \ 10 Sawmill 22 : Bacon factory 31 Woollen mill 4 ' Carbide works ' 100 Caustic 6oda works 43 Aviation Company 21 Total connected load 7997 ' "The bodies supplied are the Christchurch City Council, Wniniairi County Council, Riccnrton Borough Council, Lytlelton Borough Council, Sumner Borough Councils Woolston Borouch Council, Kniapoi Borough Council, Hcathcoto, Kangiorn, Papavna, Halswell, and Eyro County Councils, Tni Tnpu district, Lake Coleridge, and power-house and substation. Thus it would be seen that Lake Coleridge was supplying a good deal more current over a wider area tihan Mangahao would lie called on to do. Indeed, it was open to doubt whether Wellington would ever become a pi-cat manufacturing centre owing to tho high ■ cost of land, compared to such cost elsewhere. On the other fend 'it must always be the main distributing centre, but power for distribution purposes was not to lie compared with the steady drain that an evenly-worked manufacturing centre demanded. It had to bo steadily borne in mind that Mr. Parry bad promised tliiec times as nvueh power from Mansaihan as ivas obtained from Lake Cotorid"P. Why. then, should Wellington not build on it? "Whatever happened AVellincton could never expect to be supplied with current from hydro-eleetric or steam sources as ihiaply' as it was being simpliod' at ?it.he!' Dunodin or Invereargill, for the simple reason that existing Plants eo*t only a third of what new ones would se=f. to-day, and 50 to GO per cent, of the sost in .Inyin? down a' hydro-cleotfjc. plant was capital charges (as against .11 to 40 per' cent, in fhe.cnse of a steam plant). For example, heat and power were obtainable in Dunndin last yeai nf .7vSlld.'per . unit (a little over' IVoe rnrtihinjn?). wherena tho cost in Wellington was 2.22 d. The cost for electric lightIn? was 3.479 d. per unit ns compared ivith s.'i-?d. per unit in Wc'lingfon. Yet' ic-spito th« comparative clieannto*. of power in Diincdin, tho demand had not increased vctv niiicli., and. soberly liid?>d, there was no .won to anticipate, in the Wellington district, the enormous demand that some minds were fvmring on. Essential objects and purposes would wnnt current for light or power, or both, >ut, over and above that the growth vould be gradual, as in Dunedin,

moro gradual ihere because with the liic increase in tihe capital cost of instituting any 'tis scheme o.loofrricity was not going to be nearly as cheap as it was in Christchurch or Dunedin, and perhaps not.oven so cliean as it was at present in Wellington. That was why citizens onri councillors must weigh very carefully the difference between speeding ,£150.000 to ,£200,000. «s against .CliOO,000 to ,£700,000 in capital cost, if oreover, was it not the duty of the powers that lie fo get rid of the paralysing clnMi of 'Kin? Coal' alii all hazards, instead of building him another pa'acc at Evans Bay."

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DOM19200519.2.74

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 200, 19 May 1920, Page 8

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,386

TWO POWER SCHEMES Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 200, 19 May 1920, Page 8

TWO POWER SCHEMES Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 200, 19 May 1920, Page 8

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