POWER CHARGES.

Shannon News, 25 June 1929, Page 3

POWER CHARGES.

CONCESSION FOR LARGE SCALE LIGHTING. RAILWAY DEPARTMENT THE PRESENT. BENEFICIARY. REDUCTIONS FOR FIRE SIRENS AND MILKING MOTORS. Reductions in certain rates charged to consumers were decided on by the Horowhenua Power Board, at its meeting on Tuesday. The special committee set up to consider the matter reported as follows: — PROPOSED RATES AND REDUCTIONS. Paekakariki Railway Station: The charges to the Railway Department for lighting were very carefully considered. The present rates arc 8d per unit for the first 150 units per month and for all units used ih excess of 150 units, the rate is 6d per unit. On these rates the Railway Department asked for a reduction. The total number of units used at the Paekakariki Station for the twelve months was 14,799, the amount paid being £389 19s 6d —an. average of (5.2-id. per unit. The Committee endeavoured to frame a charge which would give a fair concession on the present rates. Various proposals were eventually brought down to two —viz.: Rate A—--Ist 150 units per month 8d per unit; 2nd 150 units per month, 6d per, unit All over 300 units p.m. 5d per unit.

On the basis of this "A" rate, on last year's consumption the Railway would have paid the Board £338 6s 3d, a concession of £46 13s 3d for the year, equal to an average rate of 5.48 d per unit. ' >

Rate "B" Ist 150 units per month 8d per unit; All over 150 units per month, 5d pe.unit. . If this B rate had been in operation last year, it would have meant a concession to the Railway of £54 3s 3d, or 5.36 d per unit.' A. few other large consumers would have benefited a little by this rate. The Committee recommended that the new lighting rate for the N.Z. Railways and large' consumers be as set out in "Rate A,'.' to-be effective as from the beginning of the present financial vear. OTAKI FIRE BOARD. The request from the Otaki Fire Board for a reduction in ordinary rates for power used for the electric siren motor, was considered by the committee which recomputed that the ordinary charge for this service be reduced to a flat rate cf £1 par annum. MILKING MOTORS! In refcieii.ee *o the charge for power for milking motors, it was decided to recommend to the Board, that, after the third bi-monthly payment of the present'financial year, the rate of 4£d per unit for the first 1,00 units per month, be reduced by one half-penny pen- unit to 4d per unit for the first 100 units per month. The rates for further units used to be as at present—viz., for tlu second 100 units 3d per unit, all over 200 units per month 2d per unit.

largest consumers for lighting. The following return was tabled showing the largest consumers *of current for lighting for the "twelve months ended March 31st, 1929: N.Z. Railways—

Average for" Paekakariki, 6.24 d per unit:: for the three stations, 6.58 d per unit. Other Users.—Otaki Sanatorium 5852 units, De Luxe Theatre 3028, Grand Hotel, Levin, 2082, W.M. Clark Ltd. 1854, Jubilee Hotel, Otaki 1176, Theatre, Otaki, 1108; C. M. Ross and Co., Ltd., Levin, 955; W. Kirkland, Foxton, 854; Wilkinson and Hyde, Shannon, 581 units.

Mr Blenkhorr. moved and the Chairman seconded that lighting rate A be adopted.

The Chairman stated that this was the decision of the Committee by hu casting vote; it was desired to retain the charge of 8d a unit for a certain number unm'ber of units, and he had not thought it wise to drop the subsequent 6d charge. Apparently the proposal did not benefit anybody but the Railway Dej:artment at present, as the Sanatorium lighting would be' divided.

Mr Vincent said he dii not see that there was any particular virtue attaching to the 6d late. The Chairman: Only that it is more than sd.

Mr Vincent said that the reason why he preferred the B rate was that it would give a iittle concession to tho large users. People who were paying £3 a week for lighting were entitled to some consideration. The Chairman: The Otaki Sanatorium is losing a certain amount of its lighting. The hospital is taken over by another authority.

(Mr Vincent: The B rate is also simpler than the other. We have enough complicated returns as it is. Mr Seifert said that, as a. member of the Committee, he had thought that the B rate was nice and simple, and it would certainly have brought one or two of the Beard's large consumers into the 5d rate; he thought they. wera 'deserving. Jit would aiso do away with the complication of three charges. Perhaps there would be extra consumption that would make up for the concession.

)Mr Vincent said that, as near as could be ascertained, the B rate would

mean a reduction of about £75 a year over all.

Mr Morse suggested that in the A rate the minimum of 150 units be reduced to 100.

The chairman replied that the reduction proposed by means of the A rat-j would just about take the Board as far as it could go this year. The estimates provided for a credit balance of £575, and the proposed reductions would absorb £SOO of it. Probably the estimates of income werj framed on the conservative side. The question of a reduction to 100 units had not been considered by the committee. Mr Morse said that the reason why he had brought the point up was that the committee had dealt with the rate principally to serve Government consumers, who were practically new consumers. The others named in the list were old consumers, who had been tjakinig joiirren.it .Txractiically since the inception" of the Board, and he thought that they were due for some concession.

Mr Barber: Before being put into operation, I thiiik it ought to be referred back to the committee to go into thoroughly. .The Chairman:. We cannot say what effect it would jhave to reduce the minimum to 100. I don't think that the finances of the Board just at present could stand it. Mr Seifert: I think it would be risky to make a reduction to that extent until we have seen the effect of the present proposal. I think it would be just a little tco/much.

The Chairman: We can find out for the information of the Board*

Mr Morse: I would He very glad, and at some future time would bring it forward.

,Mr Blenkhorn said that, as the mover of the motion, he approved the principle, and that was, in the main, what they had to look at. The policy of the Board was, where possible, to reduce the charges. He did not think, however, that it would be a Avise policy to make the first step in that direction a very long one. No doubt these rates would be considered ft'om time to time and the polby that the Board had now established would be worked'tni: that was, thfifc when the lime arrived—and they hoped and thought it was in the not very distant future—further, reductions should be made; then the other consumers, who did not take so much the Government establishments, would reap tho benefit. The committee had quite an open mind on the matter. He recognised that this move was in the nature of an experiment 3 but what, the Board had brought under the notice of the public was that it was out to make reductions where possible, but that those reduc lions had to be very carefully considered before thi Board could go very far.

The motion to adopt Rate A was ear ried on the voices. CUREENT FOR FIRE SIRENS.

'Coming to the recommendation that the charge to the Otaki File Board for power for the siren motor be reduced to a fiat rate of £1 per annum, the Chairman staged thjat the raite was previously £3. The new rate would apply, to all Fire Boards operating electric, sirens' in the power district. The Committee h&d felt t.iat the operations of Fire Brigades were of very great, advantage to this Board, which had some thousands of pounds' worth of material, such as the service lines and the meters installed .in buildings. This Board lookel to the Brigades for protection, and with their help and an efficient water supply there would be less prospect of losses. The Chairman moved the adoption of the recommendation.

The motion was seconded by Mr Morse, and carried.

In moving the clause for the reduction of charges for milking motors, Mr Vincent said his main object in doing so was that the proposal would bring the charges into line with the rest of the commercial rates in the Beard's area. Some yearj ago the dairying people were given a promise that, as soon as possible, their rates would be reduced. The Chairman stated that this was an unanimous decision of the Committee and was in fulfilment of a promise to the dairying industry. It was probably going to cost the Board over £4OO a year, but it was one of the reductions towards the making of which the Board had been looking forward for .some time. The dairying industry was fast becoming, to a very large extent, the backbone of the Board's system, and was one of the things that would ,be with them always. The rate was now bi ought on a par with that of the small industrial motor. The reason for ■the extra £d per unit charged to the dairyman in the past was that it was considered that he used his motor night and morning only, and not all day like industrial users. However, of the industrial motors in the district .ran intermittently, and in some cases they might be out of use for a few The dairy motor ran regularly. The .motion, which was seconded, by Mr Barber, was carried.

Paekakariki: Loco. Pept. Units. .. 696L 7838 14,799 14,799 units cost ... Shannon: 1501 units .. Otaki: 2098 units (partly estimated) .... .£384 .19 6 50 0' 6 69 18 4 £504 18 4 l