Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-06-24
CURRENT /.
DEMAND INCREASES
Development of !. Auxiliary
Plants Follows Gain in
:, I'y9 9p0SH
Use of Power

Demand for electric current on the
part of industry is so insistent that,
consumers now must be assured that
there shall be no lack In the supply, ~ z
Manufacturers and owners Of indus
trial plants are loath to spend millions,
of dollars for electric equipment and
for the identification of old plants uns-
less they are assured that power will
be available to run those plants at all r
times, without regard to weather con-
ditions or the level Of streams from
which water power is developed. Asa
result there has been a development OF
auxiliary plants, the latest form Of
which is the floating plant located on
Shipboard and moved from place to
place as the need for supplementary
current arises.
Auxiliary Plant
This development grew out of a de-
mand from the Pacific Northwest last
year that naval vessels be docked at
Tacoma and other ports and supplement-
local electrical service from the ves-
sells engines. Now the Atlantic Coast
has followed suit by the installation Of
an auxiliary plant on the 7,000-tor1
cargo ship Tacoma, owned and operated
by the New England Public Service Co,
which supplies power to large portion
Of Maine and New Hampshire.
Inc Tacoma was bought from the
united States Shipping Board and
equipped with the new oil-flred pres
sure boilers, two l0,000-kilowatt turbo
generators and all the equipment of an
up-to-date central station power plant
In case drought reduces the supply Of
| hydroelectric power available in a To-
cality, SO that service to customers fs
threatened, this vessel will be moved
to the nearest available harbor and con-
nected with the transmission wires serv-
ing the community, adding 10000 kilo.
WAITS TO the power available to the
hydroelectric plants. '"
For some years it has been a policy
OF many public utilities to build .
steam generated plant for every hydro-
electric plant put into operation. These
were intended to supplement- each other.
Inc steam plant producing power when
the nyoroelectrlc plants were operating
at low efficiency, owing to drought. Diff
nculty arose from the fact that stean,-
generated plants must also be located
on fairly large bodies of water in order
mat supply of condensing water may
De available. These new floating power
plants nave the entire ocean TO draw
Saving Is Predicted.
According to Arthur d. Little 4, Co.
me chemists and industrial engineers.
tnlS means a large saving along the
Seaboard for auxiliary plants. The saw
ing In the cost of transmission is large.
since the vessel can be anchored close
70 Ine place where the current is used.
On long lines drawn from other central
stations located inland, the loss in cur
rent frequently is as high as 20 per cent.
| Inc cost of building one of these
noatlng power plants is estimated to be
less than that of subsidiary land plant,
since foundations are not REQUIRED and
the equipment is virtually the same. It
Is possible that this development will
provide market for a number of YES
Sels stu remaining to be sold by the
United States Shipping Board. Speed
obviously Is not requirement.
Electrical engineers declare these
noatlng power plants will be adspted
| 70 operate along the lakes and rivers
OF the country as we'll as along the At
lantlc, Pacific and Gulf Coasts.
! (copyrisht, lsSoJ