POWER CHARGES

Hokitika Guardian, 8 October 1931, Page 6

POWER CHARGES

STAtE ELECTRICITY. DISCRIMINATION ALLEGED. OAM A HU, October 6. As a sequel to the Waitaki Ppwgr Board’s decision to increase charges i ,a Hour mills, one mill has decided to discontinue the use of electricity, resulting in a loss of revenue of £SOO to the board. Another company proposes to transfer one shift to Christchurch, involving a wages loss to Oamaru ot £I2OO at least, and a loss of revenue to the board of £250. Interviewed to-day, Mr 1, Dalmer, engineer-manager of the Waitaki Power Board, said that the big point lie noted was that Christchurch was supplied hy the Government with power at under £5 10s per kilowatt per annum, compared with a charge to country power boards generally of about £3 10s per k;v.a. per annum, a kilowatt being greater than a k.v.a. The city could distribute cheaper and, it was hopeless to expect country boards in smaller towns to compete with cities while such discriminating charges were made by the Government, he said. They tended to cripple secondary industries, and the smaller towns and country districts had to pay lor that discrimination.