THE CITY'S POWER

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 33, 9 February 1933, Page 12

THE CITY'S POWER

CHANGE-OVER ENDED

NOT ONE APPEAL

,"The changing over of the electric supply system of the Harbour Board buildings to-day' from . the 80-cycle, single-phase, system to the.. 50-cycle, three-phase, system, marks the completion of the change-over of the whole of the city's electrical supply, and the switching off of the 80-cycle supply is an epoch in the electrical development of the Dominion, said the Mayor. Mr. T. C. A. Hialop, to-day. . • '' Wellington was the first - city in the Southern Hemisphere to go in for" a system for public and private supply. For this we were indebted to the Gu'lcher Electric. Light Company, ot Loudon. The Bill granting the company ion-- 5 Was Passed °y Parliament in 1892, and the supply, was first available to the public in 1894. Prior to this date the streets were lighted from a water-power plant. The original steam plant was situated in Harris street. The undertaking was acquired by the city in 1907. J "The then Mayor, the late Hon. T. W. Hislop, my father, against strong opposition, purchased the undertaking on behalf of the city for. the sum of £160,000. This liability was wiped off quite recently, and to-day1 the city possesses an undertaking worth approximately one and a half millions. CONSEQUENT UPON HYDRO DEVELOPMENT. "On the development of the hydroelectric scheme by the Government one of the biggest problems the .city had to consider was the changing of our system of supply from 80 cycles, single-phase, to 50 cycles, three-phase," said Mr.. Hislop. "This was necessary if we were to take advantage of the New Zealand standard system, and entailed the changing of the. voltage for private supply from 100 volts to 230 volts. ___ . "After calling in experts, electrical and legal, it was decided to'i make the change,]'and an Order-in-Council was issued m November, 1925. This order gave the city the necessary legal authority to change over the system, and a period of ten years was allowed. The work has. been completed in a little over seven years, and we are to be congratulated on the smooth a _ efficient manner in which this big.undertaking has been carried out under the direction of Mr. G. Lauchlan, assistant general manager and distribution engineer. Approximately 30,000 connections were dealt with, and it is indeed noteworthy that on not one occasion was it necessary for the Board of Appeal for which provision was made, to'be called together to settle a dispute between the department, and a consumer.»_ <'' -