MUCH WORK AHEAD.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 242, 10 September 1940, Page 8

MUCH WORK AHEAD.

POWER BOARD’S PROGRAMME. Because .of the increase in the load at its sub-station in recent years, the Mnnawatu-Oroua Power Board is faced with a large programme of work to increase the capacity of the lines and sub-station in the near future. Details of the programme which will have to be carried out were placed before the board -at its meeting yesterday by the chief engineer (Mr W. A. Waters), who pointed out that it would use up all the material available and require more.

“During the past two years the load at our sub-station Ims increased by 2772 k.v.a.,” said Mr Waters. “The load is now 9572 k.v.a. so iar this quarter. The increase in two years is iff) per cent. To deliver this load to our consumers and provide for future growth, it will be necessary to make extensive alterations to lines and the sub-station to increase their capacity.” The work would have to bo clone by next winter, said Mr Waters. As described by him, some of the main points involved were the erection of about two and three-quarter miles of 11,000-volt line from the Feilding substation to Colyton Road corner, the erection of a line to Monrad Street, changing the lines on the Foxton Line to larger cables, erecting a tie-line from No. 4 Line to Karere Road, changing the line across the paddocks to the Longburn sub-station, building about two and a half' miles of hew line across country and changing the copper wire on the balance of the. route to - Palmerston North. “This work, all of which is urgent, will use up all the pole material we have in stock and require more- besides,” Mr Waters said. “At the substation at Bunnvthorpe we will have to carry out extensive work as the load is 'now beyond the designed capacity of the sub-station. The Public Works Department is now engaged in changing the existing 9000 k.v.a. of transformers to a total ol 15,000 k.v.a. The new transformers arrived a few weeks ago.” The work to be done at Bunny thorpe as soon as possible, included erecting more cable from the Public Works Department sub-station, isolating equipment on feeder cables, altering the existing main switch to a feeder switch for the new Palmerston North lines, altering all wiring on three other feeders and running in new heavy cables from the sub-station.

“After the foregoing programme is completed, we will have to turn oui attention to changing the copper on the lines to FeikUng, Longburn and ltongotea. Thus it can be seen that we have a heavy programme in front of us- —some of it most difficult work to do and keep the supply going at the same time, but it has to bo done, or we will be in trouble with the supply to existing consumers. For the reason that ail available material is wanted for this urgent work, the matter ot supplies for extensions will have to be held over,” Mr Waters added. Mr P. G. Guy said he thought that the time had arrived for the board to give effect to a motion already on its books to go on with making its on n concrete poles. Mr Waters said that the board possessed some gear for making the poles and. he thought that it might have a few trial poles made. Mr J. Hodgens, M.P., said he thought that some poles should be made and Mr J. Boyce (chairman) was of the opinion ’that concrete poles would have to be used sooner or later. The supply of poles was becoming engineer was authorised to have a small number of poles made and to report on the cost to the next meeting of the board.