Terrace Review —

1988 27

Wednesday, Ansuss 3

Pacific Northern Gas seeks broader sales base

Following a board meeting of
Pacific Northern Gas directors
in Terrace last week, it was
reported that the company’s net
income for the first half of 1988
has reached the $3.32 million
mark, up from $2.82 million
during the same period in 1987.
It was also reported that after
providing for preferred share
dividends, earnings per common
share were $1.84 compared with
$1.62 in 1987,

It was also reported that
operating revenues were $40.2
million for the first six months

of 1988 compared to $39.4 fe

million last year, and the board
has declared a quarterly divi-
dend of 37.5 cents per share on
the company’s Class A and
Class B Common Shares pay-
able Sept. 22, 1988.

President and Chief Executive
Officer Robert O'Shaughnessy
attributed the increased profits
to colder than normal temper-
atures so far this year. He says
that the line capacity in the Nor-
thwest is 95 million cubic feet
per day, but last winter their
production peaked at 100
million cubic feet.

O’Shaughnessy said the pre-
sent direction of PNG is to ex-

ARTHUR WILLMS: You can
pretty well drive around the
province on natural gas
fuel now.

pand its residential and commer-
cial base in order to balance a
large percentage of industrial
users. He explains that of their
12,000 customers in the North-
west, industrial accounts use 90
percent of the daily production,
with Kitimat’s Ocelot Industries
alone using 60 percent of their
total production.
O’Shaughnessy says PNG
hopes to better balance their
customers by purchasing the

B.C. Hydro propane/air
distribution system in Victoria.
He says that PNG is one of
several companies being con-
sidered for the purchase and
they expect to hear Hydro’s
decision within the next four to
six weeks,

‘‘We really need this residen-
tial and commercial load to be a
normal iutility,’’ says
O’Shaughnessy, ‘“‘and we really
see Vancouver Island giving us
the residential/commercial sales
that would give us a balanced
company.’”’ He says that in part
Hydro's decision is based on the
success of West Coast Energy,
the parent company of PNG, in
its bid to build a natural gas line
from the mainland to Vancouver
Island.

Arthur Willms, executive vice-
president of Westcoast Energy,
says that another operation that
is helping the PNG profit picture
is natural gas automobile con-
versions. He explained that
PNG sells natural gas to in-
dependent retailers such as Far
West Bus Lines and in turn they
offer advertising support and
convert all their own vehicles to
natural gas.

He says that there are now

several natural gas outlets in
B.C. and a driver can easily find
a source of supply. If supply isa
problem, he said, it doesn’t
create any difficulty for the
driver. Converted vehicles are
designed to operate on natural

Cr

:

pas or ordinary gasoline. He
says that automotive conver-
sions in the Northwest are doing
well in relation to the rest of the
province, and B.C. is ahead of
both Canada and the U.S. in this
type of conversion,

This scene, photographed at the Hospitality Industry Race
on Sunday in the 4600 block Lakeise, was typical of the
holiday atmosphere that dominated Terrace over the
weekend during the Riverboat Days festivities.

Beer

2% tax

I] the Canadian-made items listed on
the left side of this page, no matter how trivial or
extravagant, no matter how healthful or haw
dangerous, have one thing in common: they're
all taxed at a rate of 19%, On the right side of
the page is an item that is taxed ata rate of 52%.
Despite the fact that over ten million Canadians
drink beer, and think of it as something less
than a luxury, beer and beer drinkers find
themselves in the 52% tax bracket, In fact, 52%
is the national average Since the recent provincia]

' tax hike here in British Columbia, we're actually
paying more than 56%, which is one of the
highest rates anywhere in the free world. Now,

- we wouldn't want taxes on al] these other
items to be raised. But something seems out
of balance here, and we wanted you to know
the facts. So next time anyone suggests raising
taxes on beer, you can ask yourself what’s fair.

Hard to swallow, isn’t it?

- IF YOU THINK THE TAX ON BEER IS UNFAIR, LET US KNOW.

We'd like to hear your opinion, If you believe 52% tax on beer is already too high, and you'd like to
see something done about keeping it from climbing higher please fill in this form and send it to us.

= Yes. I'd ike more
information about
beer and Gaxation,

CI Yes, I think the
tax on heer is
tuo high

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