Evening star., 1942-08-22
PowerCriisiis
BySpring Seen
Pepco Head
Halt on EnIoreine
Buzzurd Point Plant
Ordered by WPB


A power crisis by next spring was
seen today by James H. Ferry, gen.
eral manager of Potomac Electric
Power Co. which was informed YES
terday by the War Production
Board that it must halt work on
future enlargement of the COM
pany's Buzzard Point plant here.
The WPB order suspended or
halted work on total of 86 public
and private power projects. con-
fronting civilians with a probable
widespread curtailment of elec-
tricity.
Mr.. Ferry explained that the
four-turbine Buzzard Point plant
was to be increased to a total of
six 0,000-kilowatt turbines by the
spring of 1914. Turbine No. WIS
ordered some time ago and should
have been in operation this winter.
A sixth turbine had been ordered.
he said, and was expected to be here
by September of next year.
Hopes to Get Fifth Turbine.
The company is still hopeful of
getting the fifth turbine, perhaps by
December, in time for operation
next year. The sixth, however, Will
have to be Cancelled, Mr.. Ferry said.
The WPB order also halts plans for
an additional plant projected in
Alexandria and originally scheduled
to be placed in operation in 1945 or
1916, he said.
Our load is increasing daily" Mr.
Ferry said. by next spring I'm
afraid we are going to be short of
power In the event of machinery
failure next year and subsequently,
I'VE are going to be bad Off" he
added.
C. Melvin Sharpe. executive as
sistant of PEPCO, pointed out that
the Buzzard Point plant is the COM
pany's major generating unit here
and that it produces about half of
the city's electricity. THE order is
one of considerable concern to u.s."
he said. Earlier. Mr.. Sharpe had
said that as far as he knew at that
time the order would not affect the
local plant.
Program Readjusted.
ReadJusting its entire wartime ex-
panslon program 10 reduce the
amount of power available for war
work as well as essential civilian
needs, the WPB announced last
night that its action had sub
stantially enhanced the probability
OF widespread curtailment" in luxury
uses of electricity.
The revised program, WPB said.
gave the green light only to sufficient
power prospects to assure elecritcity
for war and indirect war production
with "a small margin" allowed for
possible additions to the present
munitions schedule.
Can't Maintain Standards.
Demands of the war program, the
board explained, made it impossible
to preserve the standards of reliabil-
lty OF service observed in peace
times"
Civilian inconvenience and sacri-
fice,' it added, must be expected,
particularly during periods of
drought or other adverse weather
conditions. or in the event of serious
accidents affecting utility systems"
Accordingly, WPB stepped up pri-
orlty ratings on power projects re-
earded as urgently necessary and
acted to bar others from obtaining
critical materials needed for war
purposes. !
In addition. % Government prof.
ects authorized by Congress were
reduced to low priority ratings or
retained in their present low-rated
or unrated status. Work on these
projects will be continued only where
materials are unneeded for war uses
New Capacity Provided.
The program provides for a total
Of 5,500,000 kilowatts of new capac-
ity until early 1914, including 3,400,-
900 kilowatts for private projects. |
The IS projects suspended or halted |
represented total of 100000 kilo-
watts scheduled for operation in
1943 and 1914.
The readjustment permitted con-
ktruction operations on Federal
projects and hydroelectric develop
ments which did not call for great
expenditure of war materials.
In trimming the amount of power
available for war work and essen
tial civilian needs. the revised power
program fitted WPB's previously
announced policy of stopping con-
struction of mcst new war plants
which could not have been COM
pleted within the next II months.