HUTT POWER BOARD AND TRADING

Hutt News, Volume 1, Issue 6, 28 June 1928, Page 3

HUTT POWER BOARD AND TRADING

DISCUSSION BT? MEMBERS. BEPOKT TO BE MADE. When, a proposal was made at the meeting of the .Hutt Valley Power Board on Thursday that it should embark on trading in electrical appliances the chairman (Mr W. H. P. Barber) said he thought the time had gone by 'when it would be profitable to the board to do so. A report is to be made on the subject, however. The discussion arose on the question of the disposal of the balance of £14,830 standing to the credit of No. 2 section of No. 1 loan (£200,000). The secretary reported that the money could only be utiilsed in financial assistance to consumers, provision for purchase and installations, and interest and sinking fund on the loan during period of construction. The money could be utilised temporarily (1) by investment on fixed deposit; (2) by being used to pay amount set apart for depreciation fund for investment with Public Trustee and adjusted prior to March 31 by a paymp-u*- from the power fmad account. . Mr. A. Anderson mov&J that the ;board make inquiries as to the results of trading. He thought the money -could "be profitably used in that way. ! Mr A. J. MeCuxdy pointed out that tthe of the board was not to trade. If the money was invested temporarily and. flexibly they could get it if they wanted to handle it.-'

Mr J. W. McEwan thought the board should consider the question of going in for trading. One point which had deterred him in the past av;is whether there would be sufficient current available, and he thought it would be some time before that position was aTrived at. The chairman said that at one time he was of the opinion that the- board should go in for trading, but that time had gone past. They should have done so at the initiation of the scheme, but so many traders had come into being ' that he doubted if it would be worth while, for they would have to carry,a lot of stock. Some of the traders had found trade so bad that they had become insolvent. The demand was slipping back. Mr Anderson: They sprang up like mushrooms, doing what we should have been doing. Mir Lf. Stewart thought the board could supply ranges and save the consumer at least £6 on the price from the shops. Demand Beyond Wildest Dreams. The chairman replied that the board must make a. profit on the ranges to meet the cost of display and supervi- ! sion. No one anticipated that the demand for current would increase at such a rate, and it had been the same with water. The districts had in- " creased so that the authorities could not keep pace with the demand. In his wildest dreams he never anticipated that the demand would reach such a stage, but the trading had slackened off to such an extent that a lot of tradespeople were becoming insolvent. It would be wrong to push consumption when the supply was limited as at present, contended Mr A. J. Hobbs, and he thought inv-estment of the money the wisest step. They were not likely to get power from Waikaremoana until June of next year, and at present they had all they could do to supply tlie demand. He moved that the money be invested, as reported in clause 2. Mr A. Walker seconded this, remarking that the board was there to sell current, and the supply of ranges had been reduced to a point where the board could not give the concessions to consumers. To go in for trading would mean an increase in staff to sell the ranges, and "tout" for business, and there were plenty of firms in existence doing the business. Mr. Stewart objected to what he described as the "bogey" of "not enough current when the board was supplying all the fresh applicants who came along. He was assured they could get plenty of current. The Chairman: We can just now. Mn Stewart: Why is this bogey raised everytime? If a private firm had the monopoly this board has it would make a profit of £20,000 instead of £6000. I don't say' the policy of the board is wrong, but it is not as progressive as it should be. After further discussion it was decided to invest the money as proposed in clause 2 of the report, and also to obtain a report as to the results of trading by other authorities.