HC Deb 22 December 1919 vol 123 cc1140-1

(1) The Electricity Commissioners may on the application of a district electricity board by Order exclude from the area of supply of any power company any part of that area which at the time of the application is not being supplied by the company, and which it appears to the Electricity Commissioners could be better served by the district electricity board, and in consideration there for may, if they think fit, confer on the power company power to supply electricity for all purposes in other parts of their area of supply which do not at the time form part of the area of supply of any authorised distributors: Provided that if the power company, or any county council, local authority, or authorised undertakers which appear to the Electricity Commissioners to be interested, object to the. proposed Order, effect shall nut be given to the proposals except by special Order. (2) Where a generating station of a power company, is, by virtue of this Act, vested in a district electricity board the date fixed for the vesting thereof shall not be earlier than one year after the Order constituting the board comes into operation, and if within that year the power company so require the district electricity board shall purchase the whole of the undertaking of the power company upon the terms et paying to the power company the fair market value of undertaking as a going concern immediately before the date of the constitution of the district electricity board, that value to be determined in default of agreement by arbitration in accordance with the Arbitration Act, 1889, together with, if the arbitrator thinks fit, such sum as the arbitrator determines to be the costs properly incurred by the company in or as incidental to the arbitration and the transfer of the undertaking, and no part of the undertaking of the power company shall vest in the hoard until the completion of the purchase. For the purposes of this Sub-section the undertaking of a power company shall be deemed to include the undertaking of any subsidiary company which is under the control of the power company, whether by reason of the majority of the voting power being vested in the power company or their nominees or shareholders, or otherwise, and is operated in connection with the undertaking of the power company. If the area of supply of the power company (including the area of supply of any such subsidiary company) is situate partly in one electricity district and partly in another, each district electricity board shall purchase the part of the undertaking within its district at the same time, and if the price is referred for determination by arbitration shall be determined at the same arbitration, and the amount to be paid to the company shall be apportioned between the district electricity boards in such manner as the Electricity Commissioners may think just.

Lords Amendments: In Sub-section (1), leave oat the words "district electricity board," and insert instead thereof the words "joint electricity authority"[twice].—Agreed to.

Leave out Sub-section (2).—Agreed to.