KUROW CHOSEN.

North Otago Times, Volume CVII, Issue 17170, 30 March 1927, Page 3

KUROW CHOSEN.

\'o SITE FOR POWER SCHEME. ANNOUNCEMENT BY M1NISTEB OF PUBLIC WORKS

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TIMARU, Last Night. Ilon K. Williams (Minister of Public Works) visited Timaru today iu company with Mr Kissel, ^hief electrical engineer, and tonight made a statement as to the source from which the Lake Coieridge power would next be supplemented. He stated that a site on the Waitaki river a few miles ahove. Kurow had been chosen. This statement was made to representatives of the South Canterbury, Ashburton and Waitaki Power Boards. The Minister congratulated the delegates on being united in the matter, and thanked them for their consid- 1 eration in allowing the Government , on the advice of its ollicers, to do- ; cide where the next source of i power should be. One had to look j to the futurc as far as possible and it would be disadvantage'ous to have I all their eggs in one basket. As far as he was concerned the schemc could be started as soon as they could get the money to do it. Further investigations were necessary, and it would 'be some time bofore a start could be made. He realised that the money to do the work could not all be spent in one year . but at the earliesf possible date. He would put his coticlusions before Gabinet arid the Minister of Finance and ask their consideration for embarking on the scheme. Coleridge was not yet fully overloaded and another ten thousand horse-power could be added without a great deal of expense. This would ensure getting more power there while waiting for the development of the other scheme. Mr Kissell, cliief electrical engineer said they were still investi'gating a spot about seven miles above Kurow andi it was jusE a question which of the two would best lit into the general scheme. By 1940, 8700 horse power would be required. This amount was 51,000 h.p. ii excess of the present capacity oi the Coleridge plant which had gone jp from 33 per cent. in 1918 to 125 p ir cent in 1926. . It was antiripated that the .present capacity would he fully utilised inside four years. They were not considering anything less •than 30,000 or 40,000 h.p. but it wa? not intended to put in the wholo plant at one time. They would1 start with the headworks. The scheme tentatively proposed would be about four miles above Kurow, but they might yet have to shift it a few miles further up the river. The scheme consisted of building a dam across tbs river with a power house 1700 feet long at one end. The dam would be approximately 500 feet. It was proposed to instal two 1500 killowatt units, and the station could •be extended hy various' stages of 1500 up to 106,000 h.p. The stages of development would co'nsist of thc building of low dams at the outlet of the three lakes so as to regulate the flow at all periods. The dams would become part of future extensions as it was intended to erect power stations Ydr flie outkts to the lakes them'sclve^ at Tekapo. The dam would be part of a scheme for development there along lines similar to that at the . headworks. The Tekapo scheme was: ot great interesl to South Canterbury, apd they had not neglected that source. They liad1 made a survey which disclosed that provision could be made for the d'avelopment of 35,000 h.p. with a tunnel from the lake to a power house a short dist'ance down the river. It was unfortunate that they could not get the h.p. cost at Tekapo down to anything like that -which they could get at Waitaki. The development at Waitaki in the initial stages pointed to the cost being £27 per horse power, running back to £22 or £23 in the' larger station. The development at Tekapo i would run into something like £38. 1 • ' — I