HYDRO-ELECTRICITY.

Taranaki Daily News, 23 January 1920, Page 5

HYDRO-ELECTRICITY.

£EW PLYMOUTH SCHEME. AMENDED ESTIMATES. THE WOEK TO COST MORE. A special meeting of the New Plymouth Borough Council was held last night, for the purpose of considering revised estimates furnished by Messrs. Blair Mason and Lee for the Borough hydro-electric extension works, and also for alternative proposals. The Mayor (Mr. James Clarke) presided, and there were also present: Crs. F. J. Hill, W. F. Short, W. A. Collis, B. L. Parkin, and A. E. Sykes. Messrs Blair Mason and Lee, and. the General Manager and Electrical Engineer, were ateo present. The following report by the General Manager summarised the estimates of the consulting engineer and the report upon them by the electrical engineer:— The complete estimates now submitted by the Council's consulting engineers, Messrs. Blair Mas&n and Lee, to take the ■place of the tentative estimates submitted by them in November, 1918, must necessarily cause the Council considerable embarrassment. The consulting engineers' estimates in each case dealt solely with the cost of the civil engineering portion of the work. These estimates were submitted to the electrical engineer, and he submitted inclusive estimates combining the oivil engineering portion of the work with the electrical portion, together with the cost of transmission lines, purchase of land and other incidental expenditure. It is to the latter reports, therefore, that we have to look to ascertain how the position has been altered by the amended estimates now submittei The position, without going into unnecessary details, is as follows:

COMPLETE SCHEME, D.I.

Estimates o£ November, 1018: Estimated horse power 8400 (including present 1000); civil engineering portion of work, £47,000; electrical plant, etc., £35,000; transmission lines, first year's interest, etc., and sundries, £26,000.Total, £IOB,OOO. Estimates for January, 1920: Estimated horse power 0000 (including present 1000); civil engineering portion of work as per consulting engineers' report, £125,049; clerk of works, £800; plant etc., contract No. 1, £2791; engineering allowances part contingencies ( £6877) etc., £14,877.—T0tal for civil engineering portion, £144,417. Electrical plant etc., £44,500; transmission line (one line deleted), £10,000; purchase land, £14,000; part contingencies, £3555, first year's interest raising loan etc., £16,830. —Total £233,308.

In regard to the above, the purchase money of the land acquired is set down at its gross amount; a large proportion of the land will be sold later, and it is probable that the Council will receive a reimbursement of at least £BOOO in regard to this item.

PARTIAL SCHEME, E.2

This is the scheme for which the Council raised a loan of £40,000 last year, and in connection with which work is now proceeding. Estimates of -November, 1918: (Total horse power estimated 1800, including present 1000). Civil engineering portion of work, £11,700; electrical plant etc., £10,987 10s; land purchase, £2000; transmission lines, £10,500; interest and contingencies, £4512 ,

Estimates of January, 1920 (scheme slightly altered): Total horse power estimated 1000, plus present 1000, total 2000. Civil engineering portion of work per consulting engineer's report, £49,917; clerk of works, £400; plant, etc., contract No, 1, £2791; engineering, allowances and part contingencies ( £2830) etc., £o33o.—Total civil engineering portion of work, £59,438, Electrical plant, etc (plant slightly larger), £13,500; transmission line, £10,000; land purchase, £14,000; interest £6500 and part contingencies £IB7B, and raising loan £U7C, £oss4.—'Total estimated cost of scheme E.2, £108,492. Eliminating all details, it will be seen, that when the Council embarked upon its present extensions it anticipated: (a) That the complete scheme would be cdtapleted for £IOB,OOO, whereas it is now estimated to cost £233,308; (b) That scheme E.2 would cost £40,000, whereas, with slight alterations, it. is now estimated to cost £106,492, . Having dealt with the estimates of the cost of the works, the next question to consider is whether it is possible or desirable to proceed with the complete scheme or with any of the schemes submitted. With regard to scheme 6, originally known as scheme E2, I gather that the electrical engineer is not in favor of .this scheme. He naturally looks at the matter from the commercial point of view, and this is* the correct view for him to take. If the Council were a company whose chief concern was the earning 'of dividends, there is little doubt that beyond completing the intake tunnel and undertaking a few minor works to obviate the present troubles at the old intake, notliing further would be done for several years, and the company would have been content to struggle along, earning as substantial a dividend as possible with the present installation until such time as it became a payable proposition to proceed with the extensions. Such a course, however, would necessitate that no further connections could be accepted, and that all new business would have to be declined. This would have a very detrimental effect upon the future of the Borough. FACTOR TOWARDS PROSPERITY Fortunately, however, the undertaking is not in the hands of a company but in the hands of a municipal body whose duties and responsibilities are infinitely greater than those of a company. The development of the hydro-electric works will prove an enormous factor in the future prosperity of New Plymouth, and, indeed, of the whole of North Taranaki. Bearing this in mind', :t would, therefore, seem that the question the Council have to consider is not so much the question of future profits as whether the extensions can be carried out in such a way that they will be selfsupporting, and not cast a burden upon the ratepayers. A careful consideration of the whole position will, I feel confident, disclose that not only can this be done, bjit that at the end of three or four years from the commencement of supply the undertaking will again be in a good financial-position and earning a good Tiia wa&k in risard t

to scheme No. 6 is that it is only capable of developing 1000 horse power in addition to the 1000 h.p. now obtainable at the power-house, the electrical engineer being satisfied that this would only be sufficient to supply the needs of New Plymouth for the next four or five years, leaving nothing for the outside ureas. If the work takes two years to complete, this means that in one, or at the outside two, years from the time of commencing to use the power we would be again working at the utmost capacity of the plant and of the water power then available. Turning to the details of Scheme No. C, as set out by the consulting engineers, it will be pern that provision is made for an earthen race, etc., conveying 50 courses of water between tunnels at a cost of £3250, this part of the scheme being classed as non-permanent work. As pointed out by the electrical engineer, however, in his report, the whole of the materials used in th'is work, although the work ,is not permanent, would not be wasted when the time arrived to proceed with the complete scheme. It is obvious that if this earthen race, etc., could be enlarged to carry 100 cusecs of water instead of 50 cusecs the available power would be increased by 1000 horse-power, thus giving a total horse-power of 3000, including the 1000 horse-power now being used at the present power house. This would probably double the total cost of the non-perma-nent work, and would also, at a later date, entail additional electrical plant, thus slightly increasing the total amount of the loan required to carry out this scheme. The maitter was referred to the consulting engineers this morning. At first glance they feel confident that the scheme is feasible, but they will consider the suggestion and endeavor to submit a definite report this evening. If this suggestion can be given effect to, it will provide, to my mind, a satisfactory solution of the very real difficulty which otherwise faced the Council. The additional 1000 horse power will enable power to be supplied both to Stratford and Eltham if desired by those districts,'and in- addition will delay for a short period the time when further extensions would become absolutely necessary. If the power be kept entirely for New Plymouth no further extensions should be necessary during the next seven or eight years. POLICY RECOMMENDED. The policy, however, which I recommend the Council to adopt is: (a) To proceed with scheme 6 (subject to the extra horse power being obtainable). (b) To supply their needs for the time being, subject to the transmission line to Eltham being erected by the Government or by ft Power Board (preferably a Power Board), (c) Later on, say in five or six years' time when a large demand for power has been built up, to proceed with the completion of scheme 1, comprising the development of a total of 9000 horsepower.

Turning to the financial side, I recognise that the policy suggested will mean a certain number of lean years for the undertaking. In his statement of the estimated receipts and expenditure likely to arise if scheme (i is adopted, the electrical engineer has erred, if anything, on the conservative side. Even then he shows that there would bo no actual monetary loss to the ratepayers, although no provision could be made for depreciation and renewals. With the extra 1000 h.p. the position is enormously improved, and there appears no reason why the revenue should not be ample to provide for depreciation and renewals, and also to leave a certain amount of net profit. The profit would be considerably less than the amount now being made, but the great advantages gained by assisting tlip development of the town and district should enable us to look upon this with equanimity. The strain, if any. upon the Department, would only be for a few years, and later on, when the complete (1000 horsepower is developed, there will be ample opportunity for those in charge of the undertaking to develop the business and to return a substantial profit to the ratepayers. ' GREAT INCREASE IN COisf. The Mayor said that the reports of tlie General Manager and the Electrical Engineer, which had been furnished when the consulting engineers' estimates were received, would allow that the work was going to cost a great deal more than was at first estimated. What the Council had to consider was what to do in the nature of temporary work tJhat would give the increased power necessary to meet the continual demand for more current than was being made upon the department. The Manager had pointed out that if the matter were in the hands of a company, there would be little doubt that, beyond completing the intake tunnel, and a few minor works, nothing further would be done for some years and the company would be content to earn as substantial a dividend as possible with the present installation until such time as it became a profitable undertaking to make extensions. If that were done, however, it would mean that no further connections could be made, and he did not think the Borough could afford to adopt such a policy. They must go on even if they only made, a small margin of profit for some years until they were justified in going in for further extensions.

dr. Collis pointed out that the increase amounted to over 100 per cent, and he asked if Mr. Mason could explain the reason of the increase. REASONS FOR THE INCREASE. Mr. Mason said there were two main reasons. Firstly, that when the first estimates were made the surveys were not complete, and then there was the more important matter of the heavy rises in the prices of labor and materials. It was believed that, with the close of the war when the first estimates were made, there would be a return to more or lees normal conditions, instead of which there had been an enormous increase in prices of materials and labor. In steel pipes alone the price now was about two-and-a-half times greater than in 1914. Labor had increased from 12s per day to 15s and 10s per day. The price of cement was also a big factor, and in the dam for the works, labor and cement were the principal items. He thought, with the price cement wag at present, public bodies and private individuals should be very careful of what they did. He Himself was hopeful that the price of cement would recede before long. Or. short said lie had it on good authority that there would be no fall in the price of cement. The Mayor said he could scarcely believe that the price of cement would remain at its present figure. Cr. Collis asked if the Council would ,h« instilled. ua4« djcusstawsviß

considering outside application* for immediate requirements of the Borough, and the contracts already entered into? MATTER FURTHER DEFERRED. • The Mayor saad he thought the Bor« ougli would be, as it would lead up toi the completed scheme, which could not be undertaken until the business was built 1 up, and while the present alternative might be sufficient for six or seven yean, it would ultimately become part of the big scheme. A general discussion then ensued on the advantage to be gained if the tern- 1 porary earthen race proposed by Mr. Mason for carrying 80 cusecs of water between two tunnels could be enlarged to carry 150 cusecs, and thereby h.p., including the 1000 now being'used at the power station. It was pointed out that if that was doue the additional cost would be about £3OOO, making £0230 for the race, but that the 300 ft of piping used in this, valued at £2260, would ultimately be used in the big scheme, so that the total loss on wot regarded as not permanent would be £4OOO. This, however, wonld have the effect of yielding an extra 1000 h.p. fog, seven or eight years. The matter was, therefore, ferred, pending Mr. Mason's examine tion on the ground, and report as to the possibility of enlarging the earthen i race.