HOPELESS PROPOSITION

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1007, 25 June 1930, Page 12

HOPELESS PROPOSITION

NO POWER AVAILABLE FROM WAIKAREMOANA COSTLY LINE REQUIRED Waikaremoana, as a source of supply for power to help Auckland out of its present difficulty, is a hopeless proposition. It would take at least IS to 20 months to lay a power line between that station and Arapuni. Even then there would not be any power available. It is believed that the original intention in the proposed scheme to link the two stations together was for Arapuni to supply power to Waikaremoana, not the reverse. If a line were laid between Waikaremoana and Arapuni, a distance of over 120 miles, it would be a difficult and arduous undertaking. Mountain ranges would have to be crossed and this would mean that huge towers would have to be erected to carry power lines across the valleys. Their strength would also have to be sufficient to withstand the falls of snow which, in the winter, would add extra weight to the cables. At present a light line runs from Arapuni to Opotiki and it was the intention of the Government, apparently. to link only the light line from the Opotiki terminus to Waikaremoana. It is believed that estimates have been prepared for the power lines linking the two big stations, but these have not yet been presented to Cabinet. As the line would run through virgin country, it would be a costly undertaking. SHORT OF REQUIREMENTS There is no hope of getting any extra power from the station at AlcLaren’s Falls, in the Tauranga district, or from the Grand Junction Aline plant at Waikino. Every possible unit of power is being obtained from these stations at present and even their total capacity is short of the requirements by several thousand kilowatts. At present there would be no power available from Waikaremoana which, even when linked with Mangahao, cannot supply Wellington wjth all the power it requires. Recently the Wellington City Council’s steam plant was called on to augment the city supply for the evening peak load. Neither Alangahao nor Waikaremoana has any margin which could be passed on to other centres. There are difficulties at Waikaremoana which must be overcome before the scheme can supply the full power from the three units, which were contemplated originally. The No. 1 powerhouse there has two turbines and generators developing 20,000 k.w. No. 2 power-house has three generators. Only two of the three generators in No. 2 scheme have been installed and up to the present nothing has been said about installing the third. An immense leakage of water from the lake will have to be stopped before the whole scheme can be completed and this presents great difficulties to the engineers.