The Independent-News, Volume 106, Number 41, Walkerton, St. Joseph County, 19 March 1981 — Page 9
R.E.A.L. SERVICES NUTRITION PROGRAM North Liberty Community Bldg. Phone 656-3353 the day prior for reservations. And STARKE COUNTY NUTRITION PROGRAM Koontz Lake Conservation Club Phone 586-2376 for reservations. MARCH 23 - 27 MONDAY
Ws ran® lEasy Way "Telling It Like It Is” Is The Only Way
w-’ a H FUEL COSTS UP Electricity is a manufactured product Fuel to make electricity the major cost for a generating company such as NIPSCO. is increasing rapidly The average cost per ton of coal purchased by NIPSCO in 1976 was sl6 29 In 1980 the average cost per ton was $39 26' There’s no easy way to announce a rate increase. Nobody likes them, including those of us at NIPSCO. And since no one likes price increases of any kind, we know our request for an increase in electric rales on February 23. 1981, didn't make anyone happier. But we had to do it. We think you should know why, and we re telling it like it is. Obligation to Serve First, we have an obligation to all of our customers to render reliable and adequate electric service - and this means energy for the mills, factories, shops, offices, farms and schools, where people of Northern Indiana work and live. liecause of NIPSCO's unique mis of industrial, commercial and residential customers, the use of electricity in our service area is expected to increase at a rate of about 4 percent annually tn the next five years. This means that we must plan and build the facilities necessary to meet this growth. In addition. we must continue to replace worn-out equipment which is costing two and three times as much as before. It’s Costing More to Borrow To provide reliable electric service we must build new facilities and to build we must borrow millions of dollars annually and at increasing rates. A generating unit placed in service at our Schahfer station in 1976 cost approximately SSX) per kilowatt. Units at the same station under construction are estimated to cost approximately 5i,200 to 51.500 per kilowatt. In 1976, we sold 30-year, first mortgage bonds to finance our construction program at an interest rate of BVs percent. In 1960, we sold these types of bonds at an interest rate of 11 1 4 percent. Anyone trying to secure a mortgage for a new home knows what we re talking about.
f 'b. This ad paid for by the stockholders of Northern Indiana Public Service Company i| Nortihorn Indiana Public Service Company
Oragne juice Baked liver Spanish stv Ie Mashed potatoes I hree bean salad Rye bread Pear half Milk. tea, coffee TUESDAY Apple juice Double beef pattv with mush room sauce Mixed vegetables
I ime perfection salad mold White bread ( hocolate fudge cookie Milk. tea. coffee WEDNESDAY (Slate Nutritional Awareness Dav) Tomato juice Oven fried chicken quarter Potatoes au gratin Broccoli Whole w heat bread Banana
• " * I^**^ I II Ip l&V 1 ? 1 •w- • *'^3 Itl T JI; 4m T 1 B___8 ___ 1 CONSTRUCTION-ENVIRONMENTAL COSTS UP Inflation and higher environmental costs are driving up the cost of power plant construction A generating unit completed at the Schahfer Station in 1976 cost about SSOO per kilowatt Units under construction there are estimated to cost between $1 200 and $1,500 per kilowatt' It’s Costing More to Serve Everything required to generate, transmit and distribute electricity is also costing more today than it did just a year ago. Essentially, the production of electricity is a manufacturing process, just as the making of steel or an automobile. To convert a raw material such as coal, oil or gas to electricity, it takes hundreds of people. buildings, trucks, and all types of machinery and equipment such as turbines and generators. All of these items have escalated in price due to double-digit inflation, consequently the cost to produce, transmit, and distribute electricity is increasing every day. To provide you with an adequate and reliable source of electricity NIPSCO uses mostly coal and that cost has gone from $16.29 per ton in 1976 to $39.26 per ton in December 1960, an increase of 141 percent. This is only one example of increased costs—you are familiar with others such as labor, materials and supplies, automobiles, trucks and all the other items necessary to serve you in your homes, offices and factories. You know what inflation has done to your budget; well, it’s done rhe same to ours! It’s Also Costing More for a Cleaner Environment To protect the environment we are being required to spend huge sums for the installation and operation of equipment which will clean the air and water. Between 1981 and 1985, we will have to invest $365.3 million for such equipment. Although it does not produce one kilowatt of electricity and, in some cases, reduces the efficiency of our generating plants, society has decreed that these expenditures are necessary and must be paid for by all who use the service.
MARCH 19, IM< - THE INDEPENDENT NEWS -
Milk, tea, coffee THURSDAY Blended fruit juice Spaghetti and meat sauce fossed salad with Italian dressing Garlic toast Apple crumble Milk, tea. coffee ERIDAY
1 f * • •* CC a w / INTEREST RATES UP Interest rates for borrowed money forced up by double-digit inflation, are a continuing financial burden for utilities In 1976 NIPSCO sold bonds at an interest rate of 8S percent In 1980 the same type of bonds sold for 11 percent' Higher Prices are Needed to Offset Higher Costs If you're thinking it wasn't t<x> long ago that we requested a rate increase, you are right. It's almost a year ago to the day that we petitioned the Public Service Commission for an electric rate increase but that request was based on higher costs experienced in 1979. We had to prove those costs were real and that the rates in effect at the time were inadequate. It's true* the Commission granted us an average 11.2 percent increase on August 27, 1980—six months after our request - and by then we had already suffered eight more months of inflation' What Can You and We Do To help hold costs down, you can continue to use energy wisely -a job most of you have been doing very well. You can be sure you have surveyed your residence and that you have proper insulation, storm windows and dixirs, caulking, etc. to save energy. A credit on your federal income tax return encourages you to do so. Here at NIPSCO we have instituted several programs to increase productivity at every level of our operations. We will continue to look for opportunities to cut waste and increase efficiency. Well, we said it wasn't going to be easy, and it wasn't. But we have to keep doing our job. Financial stability is essential to achieving this goal. If we cannot obtain sufficient capital investment to install needed facilities to meet the energy needs of this heavily-industrialized and employment-sensitive area, shortages could occur. Energy insufficiency and its adverse economic, social and cultural consequences to the people living and working in our service area is unthinkable.
Pineapple juice Smoked sausage and baked beans ( abbage slaw C ornbread Apricot halves Milk, tea, coffee (lassificds Sell Anything And Everything.
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