Electricity Department's Profit and Estimates for 1921: The Coming Budget In continuation of its report for last year and budget for 1921, the Shanghai Municipal Council has now issued Part III: Electricity and Finance Matters. This is such a complete and bulky volume that detailed consideration of it has of necessity to be reserved, but the following summary gives some of the more interesting features, As a frontispiece to the report there is a big panoramic photograph of the northwestern district, designed to show the intense industrial development which has taken place there. Within a few years, in what was before open country, there have arisen undertakings which have concluded contracts with the Electricity Department for the supply of 31,400 horse-power in the aggregate, individual requirements being shown on the picture.
The Engineer-in-Chief reports that the year's business, after providing for interest on loans, Tie. 464,306, and depreciation, Ts. 575,816, resulted in a net profit of Tle. 781,916, which will be appropriated as follows: To Miunicipal general funds, Tls. 630,000; general reserve, Tls. 72,800, general funds—equalization account, Tle. 78,200; carry forward, Tls. 916, The gross profit on revenue account was Tls. 1,290,121, which represents 10.34 per cent. on the capital outlay and the estimated net profit for the ensuing year is Tis, 1,029,816.
The Engineer laments that the power-house had to operate under very adverse conditions, due to plant shortage through delayed delivery. The same reasons produce a further regret "hat saving has again been lost b, me inadequate coaling plant. He adds: "The most economical running conditions have to be sacrificed to the need of producing electrical energy to the utmost limit of the available platt, Summarized statistics of the year follow: Load factor improved from 42.39 per cent. to 46.7 per cent. Units sold, 144,539,632 (considerably more than in Sheffield and Birmingham and nearly twice as much as in Liverpool). Units generated, 179,619,458. Of the units sold, 116,839,147 were for power.
The net sales increased on the year by 41 per cent.
Estimate for 1921:—Revenue: Sale of electricity, Tle 6,596,022; rent of motors, meters, ete., Tle. 117,000; total Tls. 6,703,022.
Expenditure: Generation, Tls. 3,475,485; distribution, Tle. 421,500; Management, Tls. 293,450; rents, rates and taxes, Tls. 60,000; in-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.