Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1928-03-25
GREAT POWER
DEVELOPMENT
MADE IN YEAR
Amount of Electricity
Used in South Texas
Reflects Develop
ment of Valley

Inc annual report fcceNtly re-
leased to stockholders Of the Central
Power and Light company given con
crete evidence Of the progress and
development that is taking place
throughout South and Southwest
Texas.
The gross operating revenue Of the
company fer the year ending Deem
ber 3l. 1927. totaled SS.040,654.15 As
compared with SIS, T56,4ix.2l for 1926.
This increase in revenue indicates a
healthy and progressive condition in
each community served hy the COM
psny.
Great progress was made BY he
company in effecting operating
economies during the year. While
electric energy generated during
1927 increased 80 per cent over that
cf the previous year. the increase In
production cost was only 1873 per
cent. The annual average production
cost per kilowatt hour decreased 25.2
per cent. The new steam turho-gen-
orators recently installed By th-
company showed a decrease IN pro-
duction cost Of generating electricity
Of 524 per cent. These results are
III line with the statement Of we'll
managed and privately owned public
utility companies that mass prDcuc-
ton OF electricity for wide distri-
button over high power transmission
lines. means economy and greater
efficiency of operation.
p More Communities Served
On December 81, 1927, 100 COM
munities were being served BY the
a net gain Of p COM
munltirs during the year. Of the
towns served iZ4 were being directly
served by the company and SIX 9TH
ers were being furnished wholesale
electric service.
on October Il. 1927. the company
sold its Panhandle properties ~ inc
the West Texas Utilities company as
a means Of effectins greater oper-
atin- economies fer this group 81
properties. With this transfer thir-
teen properties were lost 70 the Cen
trial Power and Light company. Had
this transfer not been made the gain
az new properties served during 1927
would have been 80 instead Of -.
The electric energy generated dur
ing 1927 passed. for the first time,
ne-hundred million kilowatt hours.
reaching a maximum Of i04,l54,423
kilowatt hours. In 1926 the electric
energy generated was only 66,645, ~
kilowatt hours.
Increase Despite Sale
The number of electric customers
increased from 43.76s 10 45.464 dur
ing the year in spite Ct the loss ot
7.D64 electric customers with the sale
~ the Panhandle group Of properties.
Water customers increased from
1n.6l6 to 1906. Customers using
electric ranges grew from 1875 m
1926 ~ 1886 JIM 1927.
III the manufacture and sale Of ice,
an important company activity, the
1927 onnagc increased 70 4e2'Sei
from the 1926 level Of 4lg.Sl5 tons.
Increasing shipments VI citrus fruits,
vegetables and other pcrishabie
products. along with development Of
the shrimp industry at Port Lavaca,
materially increased the demands Tor
icc. Car icing contracts with some at
the larger railway companies permit
the orerati0n of the ice plants OF the
company at capacity nearly all the
wear. Practically all ice plsnts oper-
ated hy the company are completely
electrified.
During the year the company
During the year the company
bought the electric. ice and water
properties ID Rio Grande City. Fal-
furrias and In Pryor; the electric
properties az Palacios and Waelde
and the electric and ice properties al
Flatonia service was supplied for the
ffs ttrmic qvu 4 " lgpt-Lo-
first time 10 Big Wells, Bandera,
Ailevton. Bloomington. Gregory.
D~riscoll. Hargill, La Blanca, I'd
couch. Elsa. La Villa. Fort Davis.
Retail Ice stations were built at Ber-
clair. Nixon. Blessing. HallettsNllie,
GN2-~r nfrnrn and lyman.
From Nome 10 2.27S Horsepower
Attention is called in the report
10 outstanding developments in each
section served by the company The
advent VI the Southern Pacific into
the lower Rio Grande Valley. bring
ing railroad service 10 a part Of the
Valley never served before. is noted,
along with additional acreage under
cultivation. canning factories. I'M
creased irrigation by electric power.
etc. Almost magic growth OF the
Winter Garden is summed up IN the
statement that In two years the use
vi electric energy for irrigation mad
grown from zero tC a connected load
Of 2.27S horsepower, al IN motors
unninr from 5 to 90 horsepower.
Another paragraph refers 20 the de-
xelcpmcnt Vii the lower Colorado
AAfNENn NHGAN ANNAAAHAtNA ENWt fM NN
ply irrigation for every farm pur-
nose. and especially for irrigation OF
It's many rice fields.
Hydro-Elcrtric Plants
III TIE Guadalupe Valley. pecan
rowin along with turkey and poui-
try raising. dairying and the estab-
lshmcnt Of splendid creameries, are
fccited as playing an important part
III stabilizing this territory and prov
ing the benefits cf Investigation.
There is a paragraph too depicting
the progress Of Corpus Christi, and
another showing the growth of La
redo.
tn Laredo the ~comrany's new
100000 gallons capacity daily I'll
tration plant is being built 70 meet
the needs Of n city Of 100000 people.
Tire expansion az the company ener-
ries about Del Rio and Uvalde large
IN because Of the Devils river hydro
urorect is also mentioned and ref
erence Is made &c the furnishing OF
mower for pumping great quantities
~ Oil from West Texas 20 tidewatcr-
With the Panhandle lroup went 81
miles Of transmission line, but IN
spite of this loss the Central Power
and Light increased its high line
transmission facilities from 6S3 20
las miles within the year. OF the
new mileage. IS miles was built be-
tween Corpus Christi and Victoria
ard "a miles between Schulenhurg
and Lulinr. thus creating n new
mower area in that section. "A TOM
rlete -interconnection between the
steam plants and the hydro plants
along the Guadalupe river was cf-
fccted and an ample power supply
was assured the communities Of this
norton Of the ~company's territory.
In the Rio Grance Valley the COM
nanv constructed 40 miles of $4,000
volt line along the Military highway,
r~ernlIel with the Rio Grande, be-