Evening star., 1934-07-22
Greater Economic Strength
ForeSeen in Far-FIung
Federal Program.
RESULTS FOR PRIVATE
INDUSTRY UNCERTAIN
Most of Projects Will Not Be
Ready to Furnish Electricity
for Years to Come.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
NEW YORK, July 21.-Visions of
giant superpower systems in the
United States are being revived by
students of the public utility industry,
The large hydro electric projects
being pushed by the Federal Gov
ernment or mapped out on paper are
stirring the imagination of observers,
who see in far-flung electric power
systems an ultimate source of great
economic strength.
In 1929, before the stock market
crash. "superpower" was a word to
conjure with in Wall Street.
Formation of huge public utility
holding companies in the final stages
of the bull market, such as Niagara
Hudson, the United Corporation and
Commonwealth g. Southern, were ac-
companied by a great deal of talk of
development OF superpoWer systems
in the East, the Middle West and
ultimately the West.
The depression deepened, curtailing
the demand for electricity, the decline
of securities cut off the source of new
capital for power development, and
public utilities drew the fire of critics
at Washington and elsewhere.
Inspired by Government.
When Superpower began to exercise
its lure for public utility students
0f G
the Federal projects-the Tennessee
Valley development, the Grand Coulee
and Bonneville projects on the Co.
lumbia River in the Northwest, and
the Fort Peck, Mont. development.
In a study just made of the public
utility industry and Federal power
plans. the Standard Statistics Co.
concludes that broader development
is indicated which may become, at
least on paper, "a sort OF Federal
superpower system"
THE Tennessee Valley Authority,
however, emphasized" the study says,
lis evidently only part of much
broader program and the next Con-
gress probably will be presented with
additional details of the adminiStra-
tion's long-term plans for the devel-
opment and conservation Of natural
resources.
AN interdepartmental committee
is now preparing a report on this sub
ject and hint of its probable con-
tent was conveyed in an Executive
message forwarded to Congress during
the closing weeks of the recent ses-
sion.
Long Period Required.
"This report can hardly avoid deal
ing extensively with water power and
the probabilities are that it will pro-
pose the setting up on paper of a
sort of Federal superpower system
embracing the Tennessee Valley,
Boulder, Grand Coulee, Bonneville,
Loup River and st. Lawrence as a
nucleus and, perhaps, suggest other
sites to be developed and added to
the system.
This will be very long-term pro-
gram, the execution of which must
necessarily extend over several ad-
miniStrations, with the consequent
possibility OF interruption from time
to time"
Since most of these projects will not
begin to furnish power for some years
to come and others have not progressed
beyond the paper stage, the conse-
quences for the private utility industry
are still difficult to judge, it was
pointed out in other Wall Street
quarters.
Public utility men say the industry
now is over-supphed with capacity
to handle what business Is in sight
at current levels of economic activity.
In the last year the industry has
added 100000 domestic customers to
its rolls and, has been promoting the
sales of electric household appliances
to encourage use of electricity. There
is no indication yet that the long
term growth of power consumption in
the United States has ceased.