SMALL POWER SCHEMES WORTH ENCOURAGING

Taupo Times, Volume III, Issue 149, 3 December 1954, Page 9

SMALL POWER SCHEMES WORTH ENCOURAGING

TAUPO'S UNATTENDED STATION A change in opinion by the State s Hydro Electric Department as to the part which small power schemes could play in New Zealand was noted by Mr Lloyd Mandeno, consulting engineer to the Taupo Borough Council and the Wairere, King Country and other Power Boards, in a recent address to the Te Kuiti Rotary Club. "We on the outskirts are doing our bit to augment electricity supplies, and although the difficulties posed by the Department to the McLaren scheme at Tauranga were general for some years, I think

now there is general agreement that the local schemes, as developed by local people with local advantages and knowledge, are worthy of encouragement," he said before going on to give a few facts about the Taupo scheme where with 100 feet head, 1600 h.p. had been developed for two years now in an unattended station 20 miles from Taupo. At the moment he was working out details concerning the Kuratau scheme, near Tokaanu, for the j King Country Power Board, where it was hoped to get 5000 kilowatts from a river about the same size as the Mokau, but with a two hundred feet head. Once it had been thought that j all the worthwhile hydro power in the North Island lay on the Waikato river, but such rugged areas as the King Country contained | very great scope— after all, not a gre"at deal of water was required to secure a high power output if up to 2000 feet of head could be found.

One of his "hobbies" had been low-cost reticulation, possible with the single wire high tension earth return system, otherwise known as "Mandeno's clotheslines," which had been used extensively by him in the Tauranga area 30 years ago and having proved its worth, was being found of great value to the King Country and Wairere Power Boards. Being inexpensive to I build and reliable in service, the system was also being much used in Australia. Mr Mandeno confessed to feeling satisfaction still at switching on in remote country districts, knowing as he did wHat electricity meant. As an instance he quoted | the transformation of Taupo since the power was installed two years ago. Apart from remote mills and one or two very isolated areas, lines j well under way at the moment would complete the reticulataion of the Wairere and King Country Power Board areas.