GREYMOUTH HARBOUR BOARD.

Otago Witness, Issue 2810, 22 January 1908, Page 71

GREYMOUTH HARBOUR BOARD.

" GREYMOUTH, January- 1&. The Greymouth Harbour Board is pusty ing on energetically with." the construction of the' Greymouth. docks. It » interestingl to note that the debt of the- board amounts to £265,000, and there remains £85,000 o£ debentures authorised by parliament, which can be obtained as required 1 - Against this total of" £350,0000 of borrowed money, £85,000 of which is unexpended, there is an. accrued' sinking fund of £37,719. Thia sinking fund- is, against the first loan of £100,000, which falls due in 1925,, and which 1 will be extinguished ere due. bythe sinking fund. In addition to the £85,000, tha board has a cash credit of £12,055, and £7000 of revenue^ now duej -making a total credit of ',£104,055". '- Against this there are liabilities, including a new dredge, of possibly £50,000, leaving £54,000 for the lagoon! docks. For &ome-y-ear9 the, revenue of tha board fell off,* but nowy^pwing to theroyaltjß. from the State coal mine being paid, ana - the coal and timber export increasing, the income.' is again s coming up rapidly. | Int 1906 the revenue -proper of the. board, ex-clusive-of loan.- money, wa5 '£18,570,,. while last year it- had increased to £2^^871, the* railway revenue alone; showing &a- inoreass of £40QD, ' while . royalties - increased byt ■ £3000. The actual sum paid for interest' and sinking- fund on loan last year was" £11,000. When* the present' loans are ex* pended, 'the interest charges will be £14,000. Departmental and: maintenance account^ amount to £4000, so that with the revenua -even as at present, without ahy further in>, crease, the board would be quite capable of paying interest and 1 sinking fund on a! half -million loan. It willtake the greater! part of this amount to complete the works . in hand.