POWER BOARD ESTIMATES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 3039, 22 May 1926, Page 4

POWER BOARD ESTIMATES.

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS DISCUSSED. CONSTRUCTION BY CONTRACT. At Tuesday’s meeting of the llorowhenua Power Board the estimates for the present year were considered. As submitted by tho treasurer (Mr. P. W. Goldsmith) and Fiance Committee these were as follows: — ESTIMATED LOAN EXPENDITURE. 1926-27 £ Loan’s share of Interest 4000 » >’ ” Salaries 650 » ’> ” Transport 500 Poles ■ • 1000 Meters • • l" 9 Wire •• 900 Insulators • • 450 Transformers • • 800 Sundries and Contingencies 600 Wage Expenditure • • 2500 Total £12,400 ESTIMATED REVENUE, 1926-27. £ £ Electricity: Lighting and Heating .. 12,000 Power .. 13,000 St. Lighting .. 1,150 Meter Rents . • Rent of Houses .. 200 Profit on Trading Account .• 150 £27,600 Balance from last year 4*Bo £32,380 ESTIMATED REVENUE EXPENDITURE. 11926-27. £ £ Outside staff (wages) •• 3000 Salaries • • 2400 Outside Stations .. 150 Member’s Fees .. 430 Transport •• 1500 General Expenses. Insurances .■ 350 Printing and Advertising .. 180 Stationery and Office Supplies .. 100 Telephone, Postages & Exch’ge . . 230 Rent, Collectors, Interest on Overdraft • • 500 Material for Maintenance & Repairs • • 200 Interest and Sinking Fund ■ • 8000 Electricity • • .13000 Contingencies .. 1000 £31,040 PAYING THE INTEREST. Explaining the item “Loan’s share of interest,” the chairman said the Board had authority to pay the second year’s interest and sinking fund out of loan and (hero was no reason why the money could not be repaid to the loan account out of revenue when the Board’s affairs warranted it. It could then be used for construction work in the district. It was estimated . when they started operations that it would take ten years to see the completion of the whole thing. It was a legal way of borrowing £4OOO. For the information of new members he said the Board had not easily obtained authority to jmy tho second year’s interest out of loan, but had gone to some trouble to get it. He said the first three items on the estimated expenditure were the only ones they were certain about, the rest were purely estimates and problematical at that. Mr. Ross: What amount of expenditure is the Board committed to? The chairman replied by saying that the estimate did not particularly concern the fixing of three items of interest, salaries and transport, but rather the share to be bourne by the loan and revenuo accounts respectively. The remaining items were problematical, they might be less, or more. CONSTRUCTION BY TENDER. Mr. Ross (Foxton) questioned whether it might not be better for the Board to call for tenders for lines required to be constructed. It might be more economical than keeping a large staff on. The chairman said there must be a certain staff kept up for maintenance. the Board’s first duty was to supply current to consumers. The idea was that the staff should be ample for that and that when not required in maintenance work should go on with the construction of new lines. Otherwise what would they have for the staff to do? They bad to have a staff large enough to guarantee that the current would lie there fore consumers when required and they had a large district to cover. The current might be off for five minutes. What would that cost the Board in loss of units? It was not entirely the public convenience that required a sufficient staff but the reduction of possible loss to the Board. Mr. Matheson said the idea was for the maintenance and construction to be worked together. The engineer said it only meant about six men. Mr. Ross said the estimates provided for £2500 out of loan and £3500 out of revenue for wages which seemed a very large sum for the amount of maintenance they would have to do. The chairman said that until

they luvd a year’s working to go by they could not tell definitely what they would require. They would then be able to analyse the figures. The estimates for the outside staff were purely estimates and might be cut down on the maintenance side to £ISOO. The longest line they had to do was only one and a half miles and they would probably get no one to tender for it. Their present staff knew what they wanted and it might not be good policy to bring in outsiders who did not know. The Board would still have to pay for supervision if they let the work by contract. ' The secretary (Mr. P. W. Goldsmith) said that the estimates provided for Pott’s Road, Kawiu Road, Rahui Road, and the Soldier’s Road at Paraparaumn. Therefore it would be difficult to find any long pieces of work anywhere. The estimates were then adopted.