Three months for new fuse?

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 11, Issue 488, 1 June 1993, Page 6

Three months for new fuse?

King Country Energy lines staff wanting to change a fuse on a roadside pole are supposed to publically advertise the fact and go through a consultative process lasting up to three months, under one of the conditions of the Resource Management Act. This startling fact was revealed at the May board meeting while discussion was taking place on the ramifications of new legislation following the deregulation of the energy sector. Chief engineer Colin Martin said power companies had lost their previous statutory rights to carry out work on lines sited on road reserves and

now had to negotiate with district or city councils. Any work on road reserves also required consents under the Resource Management Act - and this included the act of changing a pole fuse. Director Tony Palmer said glitches like this occurred with all new

laws, and it often took up to 10 years of common sense being applied before laws could be amended to reflect reality. New supply charge Individual customers requiring a new power supply for a house or small shop from King Country Energy will not have to pay the first

$3000 it costs to get the power line to their boundary. That's the limit of the investment the board will make in providing what is deemed an "uneconomic supply." In effect this means providing a new connection for urban houses and those rural houses close to an existing line will be free, although stan-

dard inspection charges still apply. General manager Peter Till told the May board meeting that this is in line with past practice under the former 1984 Electricity Supply Regulations which have now been repealed. The figure equates to the average usage over a five year period.