ixoellent Results: Advantage of Up-to-Date Plant: Benefits the Chinese Staff Enjoy The annual general meeting of the Shanghai Waterworks Ca. Ltd. was held on "March 26 in the shares of 3M. per share Es. 2/04 raaazae] To carry formant to new olliees of the company, 69 Kiangse Road, Me. H, Martin Little presiding, supported by Messrs. L. J. Cubitt, A.W. Burkill, A, J. Welch, Fessenden, and V. G. Lymai directors, and Mr. C. D. Pearson, rineer-in-chief and manager, and W. R. Walter, secretary. There 231,092 votes present. After Cie" notice convening the meeting: tis been read, the Chairman said:—The report and accounts for the year ended December 31, 1928, have liven in your possession for' some and I propose, with your per sion, to take them as read. rom the Working Account you will see that the Water Revenue, that ts from Intra-Agraament Con:
Ts, 2,947,855.29 as against 1,902,517.19 for the previous year; we had the benefit of the revised tariff of charges for the whole of 1928 whereas it was in force during the last months only of 1927, Expenditure "Tis, 926,090.65 st 920,416.20 in the previous year, a ery Satisfactory decrease "due the use of more economical plant and the adoption of more scientific methods: for we have supplied in 1928, 12,730 million gallons as. ayainst 12,139 million gallons With this increase in water revenue and decrease in expenditure, we have a balance on Working Necount of Tls. 1420,064.61 as against Tis, 973,100.99 the previous After adding half the profit ExtrasAgrecment Consumer ud other items and deduct ing interest, depreciation, ete. the nett profit for the year 876,207.20. Adding "Ts.
Wrought forward from 1927 and deducting the Interim dividend of 21 per cent, paid on August 8 last, we have an amount available for Histribution of Tls. 804,972 recommend be dealt with follows!
The. 39.
If you adopt these recommenda tions, the total distribution, exclading the interim dividend,' will £1-15-0. Gil. per "A" share and 1/2550. per "B" share.
Wile on the subject of dividends, I may mention that, in the antic that this year the financial fon will permit, we have decided idend thus the interim dividend on "A" shares will be 15: per share, as against 103. per share: paid in recent years and on "B" shares 9d. per share. There will be corresponding reductions in the next, final dividends.
The Balance Sheet stantially the same is on sub-last year; on the auditors, we ha Debenture suggestion of our added a note to that the instalments sre provided out of Depreciation Reserve real estate shows an increase of Tis 25,974.73; this. consists of expenditure on a strip of land separating the North Compound at Yangtszepoo from Rangoon Toad which we decided to purchase some five years ago and the greater part of which has nows been acquired in spite of Niculties caused by the num-her of owners and also a small area Kiaochow Road required for: future extensions of our pump house there.
Comparati few new works: were und taken during the year, though expenditure amounts to Tls. 3 525,510.98: the major item of importance was our new main pumping unit, No. 11 engine together with the water tube boilers, economisey, stokers and other auxiliaries required to provide steam, This engine ix the vertical triple expan sion type and is a departitre from the horizontal type we have hitherto employed: the adavi Inereaxed steam econom Ta, pay a Ginat div WAY run of 77S Dee cent. at x. 2/0 s52213.10 to pay "a final dividend aaron at 44 2/0) 38,109.07 ul ranifer to cquaization exchange pair costs and, an important matter ith present high cost of land, less area oceupicil.
We have adopted a steam pressure of 250 Ibs, per square inch and 200 degrees superheat and the whole plant represents the best modern practice.
The house containing the new Amount set aside Guiee Close 10 (1) 9 our Aare Sent Sat Muntsipal Counctt 17,104.44 914.6502 plant which provides accommodation for two additional engines of the same capacity wax opened August 30 last and the new 1 ery started, by Sir Peter Judge of LBM. Supreme Court of Chita.
If these recommendations are adopted, the dividends on Tutra-Agreement Consumers' Account for the year on "A" shares will T/10 per cent. and on "B" shares 7 per cent. We are thus enabled to recommend payment of the maximum dividends on both classes of shares as well as make up the deficiency of 7/10 per cent. in the dividend on "A" shares from 1927.
The computation of the exchange differences recommended tobe transferred to Equalization of Divi-dands Account is explained in the report. This portion of the Equalization of Dividends, Account will be drawn against in the event of the exchange at which we pay dividends Using blow the rate upon which the tariff of water rates is based. The amount to be set aside under the provisions of Clause 10 (d) of our Agreement with the Munici Council is 2 per cent. of the share capital per annum; we are enabled to recommend the transfer of the amount due in respect of 127, and a portion of the amount ae in respect of 1928.
On Extra-Agreement and Shi ners' Account there is a falling off in revenue owing to the decreased quantity of water sup-to Chapei, but the net prot jereased from Ts. 110,246.81 fey 1927 to Ths. 114,518.79 for 1928. railable for distribu:
Tls. 114,589.44 and this we recommend te dealt with as fol-
Tow "none "of 8/4 por shors pay a dividend on
93,136.59
Other new works completed during! the year were the equipment of the last" four rapid filters constructed in 1926 which was necessary. to provide for the increased demand fon our purification plant.
Mains have Neon extended as! occasion required, 4 1/5 miles being lid during the year.
'The provision of further capital' to liquidate our overdraft and to pay for future extensions has. cecusied, your Diretary attention for some 1i we have con-
Aulted. financial authorities both. in London and Shanghai and with the approval of the Municipal Council we have recently announced an issue: of 250,000 "C shares of £1 each par; full details appear in the eire: lar letter recently sent to you; these shares be entitled to a maximum dividend on Intea-Agreement Consumers' Account of & per cent. with the proviso, as in the case of "A" and "B" shares, that if in any year profits are insufficient to pay such maximum dividend, the: deficiency can be made up in a succeeding year. "C" shares will not participate in any extra on Extra-Agreement and Shipping Consumers' Account. They will rank for dividend from May 1, 1929, and in view of the fact that the Company will have the money for eight months only of the current year, the maximum dividend for 1925 will be 8/12 of 8 per cent. on the amount paid up on or before April 20 1929. We propose to pay a 8 final dividend the ease of "A" and The last date for recei ances and applications. is -April 22 next and I commend the issue to
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