The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1920-11-19
; CHANGED THE SCHEDULE
ELECTRIC AND GAS RATES
WILL BE INCREASED
Announcement Is Made Today
BY Northern States Power
Company

Gas and electric rates In Mankato
Will be increased with the bills that
are rendered by the Northern States
Power company for the month of
December. These accounts will
reach the consumers shortly after
January l. Circular letters inform
ing the patrons of the Northern
States Power company that the raise
IN rates was decided on are being
The reasons for the increase and
the amounts thereof are explained
in the following interview which
was had by The Free Press with R.
r. Brown. manager Of the Northern
STATES POWER company today:
Inc change In our schedules
wnlcn we have Just made, we were
the very excessive price Of coal, Ia
Cor and everything entering into the
manufacture and operation of our
gas and eletcric business. We regret
II was necessary. For a great many
months We thought that the high
prices OF these commodities were
only OF short duration, but instead
or this being a fact they continued
10 get worse instead of better. For
instance, when our company chang
ca our price Of gas from s1.10 to
our gas coal price from $5.35, Man.
kato. to 1857, which we were com
PEELED to pay for same in 1918. Since
that time the coal has advanced so
that today we are paying S14S3 for
this same gas coal delivered in Man
kato.
TO take care of our customers
and to see that we had enough coal
for their requirements for the sea-
at this high price for one year be-
fore they would deliver for Us on the
docks in Duluth the coal. at this
price.
This present price Of gas coal ia
seventy one per cent higher than
we were paying in 1916. Our labor
costs for the manufacture Of gas is
100 per cent more than two years
ago and the increase which we are
asking for amounts to thirty. three
ana one third per cent over the
present schedule.
New Schedules In Wisconsin,.
In Wisconsin where public utili-
ties are controlled by the state rail
way commission they have put into
eject new schedules and with very
few exceptions they are more than
the schedule which win go into ef-
feet December 1st In Mankato. For
instance La Cross. q city q great
sht rasss es ssa than N at Ss1s Ese
a rate Of $2.05 given to them. Chip
pewa Fails $2.35. Eau Clair, $3.50,
Plattevale. $3.50. We sight this to
you only TO show that our price is
even below towns Of corresponding
size and yet nearer to the mines
than we are.
''Winona, a city almost twice as
large as Mankato has recently teen
granted by the courts $2.15 price
ule has been increased on the gem
eral lighting Of about eleven per cent !.
and on the power schedule about +
twenty seven per cent
Coal Price Increase.
Our coal which we use for gen
Grating electricity in 1916 delivered
to our generating stations cost US
SO and now costs US 1927. and we
win state that the labor cost in 1919
our company increased sixty eight
per cent over 1916. Three fourths
of our electricity In this division Is
generated by steam. Yet we intend
10 go on with the construction of our
large steam plant which win neo-
essitats an expenditure In Mankato Of
about one million and q half dollars.
This plant when completed will have
o capacity Of about 10000 horse
power. The nrst unit to be put In
will have $1,000 horse power cap
acity. This viii lie a great i'm
proyement for the company and will
also be q great benefit to Mankato
and surrounding towns.
"The difficulty Of getting delivery
and the unrest Of the money market
and labor situation were the causes
for the delay and the postponement
of the construction Of this plant
this season-, /
"Tha experiences of every con-
sumner and businessman has had in
the last three or four years, we
know that they will see the justice
Of the advance in our rates.
I'VE have endeavored to transact
our business and continue our op-
erations without making any changes
In our schedules, but we find that 1t
Is impossible to do so any longer A
fair return upon the vast monies
which we have in our business is
and Is all we are ask /
Ing