TAUPO'S HYDRO-ELECTRICITY SCHEME

Taupo Times, Volume II, Issue 52, 14 January 1953, Page 1

TAUPO'S HYDRO-ELECTRICITY SCHEME

How Rural Areas Can Have Own Power

Taupo's hydro-electricity station on the Hinemaiaia Stream at Hatepe, some seventeen miles distant from the town, currsnt from which was ceremonially switched on at a gathering in Rickit's Hail on December 23rd last presents an interesting example of a rural community establish'ng its own source of power suppiies. In the following text the history of the scheme, and other aspects of the project are reviewed as a matter of record and public information

History Of Scheme j From Huka Falls To Hinemaiaia The history of Taupo hydro-elec-trieity scheme goes baek many years. The idea had been diseussed off and on by citizens and members of the loeal bo-dy until at last, in 1939, a definite move was made to induce ihe Government of the day and its expert advisers to do something about providing the growing Taupo com nunity with electric lighting and power. The obvious source of supply was of course, Huka Falls, and it was on the strength of Mr Mandeno's arecommendation that proposals for harnessing these for power were submitted to the Government. The first approach was made in June, 1939, when interviews took place with the authorities in Wellington with re« gard to a combined power scheme from the falls to serve the requirements of Taupo and Wairakei. From that date ornvard the story covers a protracted pericd of negotiating, ccerrespondence, reports, and so on, up till November of 1950 when final approval was received from the Lceal Govemment Loans Board for the fmamcing of the scheme as it now stands.

The Govemment, having on the advice of the State Hydro engineers, decided to rejcct the Huka Falls project after agreeing to a temporary installation to serve Taupo's needs imtil the general power supply position was adequate enough to admit Taupo to come in, finally agreed to support the ide& of a rural power scheme foi Taupo. The idea at that time was that money should be obtained from the Loans Board to cover the construction of a power . station and equipment, plus a water supply scheme to the total amount — — £81,836 for the hydro - scheme, and £45,750 for -the water-supply The Loans Board was against grantinsr the full amount, and suggested that Taupo should get on with its hydro-seheme first, and at sorne later i date add the water-supply scheme. The Long Long Trail It was not until August cf 1946, | after an interval of years during j wh'ch a second World War had beenj started and finished, that the Govera-'

-r 1 — ment made up its mind that the Huka Falls project was out of the question, and the Tcwn Boat;d compelled to look round for a project of its own. Then ensued an exploraticn of possible sites for the hyd o headworks. The cotmtry about Rangitaika, Pueto. Waitahanui and other streams was patiently investigated until finally a site on the -H'nemaiaia Stream not far from Hatepe estuary was discovered and thought most suitable. The next step was to have a draft preliminary report by Mr Mandeno submitted to the Govemment for approval. Then there had to be geological tests, and reports on these to be considered. However, by November 1947, the position had been eajrried to sv point where a licence to construct the headworks, etc. had been approved by the Minister of Works, and formal application submitted to the Government Loans Board for authority to borrow the money. That body in July 1948 then stipulated that tenders must not be let or the work eommeneed till final plans and specifications had been approved by the State Hydro Department, and satisfactory geological ireports.

The Marlne Dep&rtment came into the picture in June 1949 with a reqtiesfc for a clause in the licence to provide for a "fish pass." The fcllowing October that same Department wrote to say that it did not want the "fish pass." So that was that. In the meantime the Town | Board had to see about the geologi- j ea! reports required and had to get permission to borrow £2500 to pay for these. Then came a day in December 1949 when it was discovered that a better] site for the headworks had been found higher up the stream, and a great deal of official routirie required before approval was given for it had to be gone over again. Long before ;his of course, the ratepayers had ^oted dn favour of the loan proposal 5or the hydro scheme-— in November, 1948. These odds and ends of history are dtragged out of the foureaucratic pigeon-holes to show how much | water miist run under the bridge be- ; fore at long and weary last, a job i can be commenced by a commun'ty ; prepared to pay for it with its own money.

PubMe Meeting and Cr'ticism In February 1950 formal application was made to the Local Government Loans Board far authority to proceed with the development of the uppe^site in lieu of the lower. Later that month a public meeting was held to explain the reasons for the change of site. There was a large attendance, many questions were asked, and some criticism was levelled at the Board and its consulting engineer (Mr Mandeno). The proceedings ended with a vote of thanks to the Board for calling ihe meeting. Followed several more months of coGTespondence and reporting, until finally, in November 1950, the Taupo Town Board was notified by the Local Government Loans Board of its approval of the change of site, \Subject to approval of the Minister oi Works of detaiied plans and specifications of ihe Civil Engineering Works. n

Moimtmg Costs At the r time the public meeting above referred to was held '(February 1950), the estim&ted co-st of the power (station, transmission line, and town retienlation, inoluding allowaraces for contingenci.es-, was £82,000. Tliis estimate of cours.© was based on the wrage-s scales' and materials cost-s then current. By the timo the project got real.ly under w iay costs in botih categories had spiralled to an extent that an extna tsuinii not far short of £40,000 had to be borr.owed to ertiaible the job to be completed. This fact in itself is evidenco of the amount of money ; lost in protracted oificial negotiations under out existing isj&tem of State | paternalism, which insists on local I authorities "asking daddy" before j they are allowed to do anything for ' ihemselvGS. j Whai About the Ratepayers? I 1 . j The Town, Board has obtained the money for the project by pledging j as sccurity for the loan a rate on j all rateable pi*operty in the Town ' Disctri-ct. The rate of interest pay- ' able is lhrrited to 94%, and the ! Board must, in addition, pay off parfc 1 of the loan in each year, so that the loan must be pai-d oif within 30 years. Ifuring the first tvvo (years after1 each mstalment of loan money is

raised, interest thereon will be paid: out of loan. Besid-es that, repaymentfe of eapital do not commenc© I till two years after raising that panticular inetalrnent. If the estinmted tofcal income of the Board from sa l& of electricity is insufficient to meet the estimated expenditure the ■ Board may collect a irate. No doubt anticipating opposition at the fall on this poinit, the Board assured ratepayers in a printed circular tliat such a course was only lemotely posfeible.

"All the other 90 public authoritiesv s'elling electricity in New ZeaS,and;,, it h pointed out, have had to. provide for a rates security in tfoe same way as- your Board intends to do, but the amount of rates fthey have had to collect is negligible. The revenue of the various New Zealand power -retlail ing autfhoiities in 1947 was £7,300,000, and the total rates they collected for electrieal purposeswaig only £2,201 — -90% of which was collected in the South Island. So, you see that, whilst no authority has been able to guarantee its ratepayers that it world collect no rates, the fact remains tlmt practically none are in fact being collected by ihem. Faying for Power. The public has yet to be toki whai the coat per unit for lighting and power from the Hatepe Scherne will be. In view of the fact that various Power- Supply Boards in New Zealand iinked to the |Main State Hydro System have either put up their raies or are eonsidering doing so, it is obvioufe that the first estimates of costs as supplied to the ratepayers prior to the poll must necessarily be sensed in the light of increased costs. Equally clear is the argument that the more cur-( ren't the Town Board can isell iK> consumers in relation to overlOaded costs. A interest and loan -repayments, the better ohance of getting it more cheaply. On the other liand if it is gomg to be an e-xpensive business getting eonnected up, tand paying a high rate for currant, owners of private lighting systems may, not unnaturally, decide to stick to their own way of doing. These are questions to be c&refuily considered, and a long view taken.