KC power prices up

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 13, Issue 601, 29 August 1995, Page 3

KC power prices up

King Country Energy is to increase its tariffs by an average 3.9 per cent from 1 October. Domestic customers will be paying 4.73% more for their electricity on average, while non-domestic customers will pay 2.5 per cent more. General manager Peter Till says the iricreases reflect the fact that no ECNZ bulk price increases are expected and are mainly to cover the costs of inflation. He said wages and salaries have increased and the company faces growth in its cost of compliance with legislative requirements such as the Occupational Health & Safety Act and the Resource Management Act. The company has also seen substantial increases in other costs, such as insurance premiums, which have risen from $85,000

in 1991 to $197 ,000 in 1995. "King Country Energy has a commitment towards self-sufficiency in generation and the company has been actively researching a number of opportunities over recent months," Mr Till said. The returns from the Kuratau and Piriaka Power Stations show the benefits, but in the meantime the costs of investigations have to be met from current cashflow." He said that in real terms King Country Energy 's tariffs have remained constant and remain in the lower quartile of electricity prices paid in the North Island, as requested by the trustees. The October increases will see the average domestic customer paying 11 cents more per day for their electricity and nondomestic customers nine cents more.