The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-10-26
ALABAMA POWER IS SERVING CAROL|NAS
 WITH ELECTRICITY
Steam Plants Transmitting Current 400 MiIes-Want Sheffield Plant to Help
 Furnish Fluid

Steam power plants of the Ala bama Power company at Gadsden and on the Warrior river are today serving distressed cotton mills, pub lie utilities and the like in the Caro- linas 400 miles distant from points where power is generated.
 Permission has been asked of the war department to allow the use of the sSeam power plant built by the government at Sheffield to help out in the emergency. Low water in southern rivers is cause of the dearth of water power, which the reserve steam plants are being substituted for.
 Fortunately for Alabama the Ala banla Power company's two steam plants have combined capacity of 90.000 horse power. If the Sheffield plant is also brought in commission Alabama will have 1S0,000 of horse power capacity to serve herself and sister states.
 Transmission Lines
 Supplying the other states with power is enabled by transmission lines connecting the Alabama Power with tho Georgia Power company, which. in turn, is connected up with the power systems of Tennessee and the Carolinas. Five states are thus enabled to serve one another.
 In connection with serving the Carohnas with needed power and ef- forts to get the Sheffield plant Into emergency service, Thomas w. Mar tin, president of the Alabama Power company, said last night:
 MT. Martins Statement
 "On account of the. extreme drouth in Alabama and other southern states the steam reserve plants of all the power companies have for some time been taxed to their utmost limit to meet the public demands for lighting and power service. We have so far succeeded in Alabama in supplying the communities and industries con nected with our system, but in the states of Georgia, North and South Carolina the power companies have been unable to do so. As a result number of industres in those states are operating on part time.
 "The transmission lines of all of the major companies in the states of North Carolina, South Carolina. Georgia. Tennessee and Alabama are interconnected. Several of these con- nections were made during the late war d the suggestion of the war in-. dustries board to assist basic indus tries and have been found of great value in enabling the several com panies to meet public demands under varying conditions which exist in the different watersheds.
 Serving the Caroiinas
 The Alabama Power company be- gan today transmitting 5000 to 10000 kilowatts of steam power to the Georgia Railway and Power com pany for partial relief of the power shortage in North and South Caro- lima, a distance of some 400 miles from points where the power is gen. erated. This is not sufficient to meet present urgent requirements in those states, and on account of the drouth, it may be necessary to discontinue such transmissions of power at any time. This arrangement Is recipro- cal and We hope later to receive simi- lar assistance from certain com panies in n7Georgia having large reser- voirs. and thus save the operation of our steam reserve plants.
 Sheffield Plant
 No further relief by way of fur nishing power can be given by any or the companies but the United States has at Sheffield. Alabama, a bp,Voo kilowatt steam plant which is now idle and application has been made to the government for permis- sion to operate the plant in the in- terest of the general public in Ala bama and the other southern states to enable the com mpanies to meet their power demands. The govern ment plant is connected by trans, mission lines with the system of the Alabama Power company and imme- diate relief could be given if this plant be put into operation.
 The Alabama public service com mission and the commissions of sey- erai or the other southern states have called the matter to the atten- ton of the secretary of war ana nave urged that the government con sider an arrangement by which tn. plant can be operated at once in the interest of me general public in those states"
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