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Christchurch City Council. Municipal Electricity Department. (1920-1989)

 Organization

Dates

  • Existence: 1920 - 1989

Parallel Names

  • MED

Biography

In 1903 the Christchurch City Council established a small scale public supply of electricity. In subsequent years other local councils established similar departments. The Electricity Department was restructured in 1920 and was renamed the Municipal Electricity Department in 1922.The Municipal Electricity Department took over the responsibility for the distribution of electricity to Waimairi County in 1946.

On 1 February 1989, the new company, Southpower, was officially formed by the amalgamation of the Christchurch Municipal Electricity Board and the Central Canterbury Electric Power Board. With the addition of the Port Hills Energy Authority and then Riccarton Electricity in November, it became the second largest supply authority for electricity in New Zealand.

Southpower was both a lines company and a retailer of electricity. Following government reform of the sector, in 1998 Southpower sold its retail activities and retained its network activities. In December 1998 the company was renamed Orion New Zealand Limited.

Orion New Zealand is a community owned entity with two key shareholders - the Christchurch City Council, through its subsidiary Christchurch City Holdings Ltd (89.3%) and the Selwyn District Council (10.7%).

Found in 124 Collections and/or Records:

Wellington Gas Company: Outsized album, 1940 - 1960

 Item
Identifier: Arch 1050/1/14 a
Scope and Contents

5 black and white photographs housed in an outsized album including photographs of Trade Fair installations, anf a cookery demonstration. Photographs credited to The SWellington Photographic Works.

Dates: 1940 - 1960
Found in: Christchurch City Libraries Archives Collection / Municipal Electricity Department records / Series 1, Company records and photographs

Wellington Gas Company: Prints, Papers, Receipts, Timesheet, 1870 - 1970

 Item
Identifier: Arch 1050/1/14
Scope and Contents Approx 126 black and white and 9 colour photographs related to the Wellington Gas Company. Includes promotional shots, Trade Fair products, Welgas Bus marketing photographs. Includes 5 black and white photographs of the 1948 Wellington Gas Company construction of the building and plant. 9 historical receipts and timesheets from 1870 - 1909, including a timesheet dated 15 October 1870 for work lauding material from the Firth of Clyde ship by labourers Capland, McGee, Wilson, Davidson and...
Dates: 1870 - 1970
Found in: Christchurch City Libraries Archives Collection / Municipal Electricity Department records / Series 1, Company records and photographs

What Does MED Mean?:Advertisement for the Municipal Electricity Department

 Item
Identifier: Arch 1050/2/2
Scope and Contents From the Collection: A collection of published and unpublished material relating to the Municipal Electricity Department including photographs of Christchurch and surrounds taken in the course of the business from its formation in 1903. It also includes material from bodies that merged into the department as local body reorganisation, and electricity reform occurred up to the formation of Orion New Zealand.The images document the building of the M.E.D. building in the 1930s, various types of the...
Dates: Majority of material found within 1920 - 1980
Found in: Christchurch City Libraries Archives Collection / Municipal Electricity Department records / Series 2, Photographs, Film, Digitised content

Yard Buildings, 1925

 Item
Identifier: Arch 1050/5/50
Scope and Contents

Very large oversize black and white print, framed, yard buildings 1925

Dates: 1925
Found in: Christchurch City Libraries Archives Collection / Municipal Electricity Department records / Series 5, Framed photographs, staff portraits

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