Now, imagine being able to check energy use at anytime during the billing period, the impact that this will have on the monthly charges and the manner by which consumers will modify their power consumption behavior in the process. This will be possible with the implementation of the Smart Grid system that is currently in Continue reading →
Opower has its public face: the behaviorally fine-tuned, decision-tree-optimized home energy reports that it mails, emails, SMSs and web-hosts for about 75 utilities, and 15 million or so utility residential customers, across the globe. But the Arlington, Va.-based startup has also invested pretty heavily in the back-end software and analytics that create all those customer Continue reading →
BC Hydro is getting close to the end of its installation of 1.7 million wireless electricity meters, but the “smart grid” won’t be functional until next spring. Until then, meters will still be read manually or consumption estimated for billing purposes. And for one more winter storm season, people will still have to call BC Continue reading →
Maxim Integrated Products Inc. ( MXIM ) recently launched a complete smart-meter system-on-a-chip (SoC) called Zeus for the smart grid. The new smart meter SoC will provide reliability, accuracy, faster processing power and advanced security for communication protocols. A smart meter keeps a record of the power consumed, provides information about usage and helps utility Continue reading →
Echelon Corp. has rolled out new Control Operating System (COS) software for its smart meter portfolio. Smart meters from Echelon and from its Open Smart Grid Protocol meter partners worldwide can now be upgraded in the field to function as multi-parameter grid sensors, in addition to serving as billing devices, according to the company. These Continue reading →
There are nearly 410,000 apartment and condominium units in Ontario that could be—but aren’t—individually monitored for their electricity consumption. Instead, the buildings in which they’re located engage in “bulk” billing, meaning a single bill is issued for an entire building. The amount on that bill is equally divided by the number of individual residential units Continue reading →
Siemens Smart Grid division announced that Wabash Valley Power Association (WVPA) is the first customer to go live with the Siemens Demand Response Management System (DRMS) solution. According to a release, Siemens DRMS provides WVPA the ability to shed load across multiple distribution systems utilizing several different demand response programs, verify load shed, calculate baselines, Continue reading →
The Department for Energy and Climate Change has said that 30 million homes and small businesses will have smart meters by 2019 The move is claimed to enable all consumers to have access to accurate information and bringing an end to estimated billing, according to a statement by DECC via 30m homes to have smart Continue reading →
The Wabash Valley Power Association (WVPA) is the first to go live with the Siemens Demand Response Management System (DRMS) solution, which Siemens reports enables the utility to “shed load across multiple distribution systems utilizing several different demand response programs, verify load shed, calculate baselines, and automate customer billing and settlement without cumbersome processes that Continue reading →
The future of Fort Collins Utilities and how it interacts with customers is getting energized. City utility crews in March launched the first round of a yearlong project that will install new advanced or “smart” meters in homes and businesses. The new meters will have capabilities beyond their primary purpose – measuring the use of Continue reading →
In the future, the City of Alachua may see an easier method for electric and water billing for both the consumer and the city’s public service department. During a Tuesday workshop, the Virginia-based company Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) presented a plan for the city to implement a Smart Grid, which would bring improvements to Continue reading →
The city of Covington continues to explore different billing options for its utility customers, and the council approved a pilot program Monday to test out pay-as-you-go electricity billing. The city will solicit 10 volunteer customers for the program, which will allow customers to prepay for electricity in the same way people buy cell phone minutes Continue reading →
China-based Linyang Electronics is integrating Cinterion’s BGS2 in their smart metering products and power utilization management terminals, to provide secure wireless data communications for a range of Linyang products and services including load monitoring and control. The services provider help utilities and consumers conserve energy, simplify reporting and billing procedures, and anti-theft and alarm applications Continue reading →
Central Vermont Public Service (CVPS) and Green Mountain Power (GMP) has selected CamAmp to supply its Fusion-LTE router for their mid-tier networks to enable broadband communication for Smart Grid advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) and Distribution Automation applications. Fusion-LTE was chosen as the communications link between the electric utilities’ AMI concentrators and their core communications infrastructures Continue reading →
Dear Editor, It is obvious many people do not really understand BC Hydro Smart Meter Program and the recent changes to property values under the BC Assessment Authority. Smart meters are expensive to install, but over time will pay for themselves and offer savings to BC Hydro customers. There will be no more need for Continue reading →
The utility industry is one of the last industries to go digital as the advent of smart grid meter technology is bringing it into the modern age. A secure wireless network for two-way communication is used between smart meters installed on the outside of customer homes and businesses and OG&E Energy Corporation for billing and Continue reading →
Starting next Tuesday NV Energy will begin installing smart meters at every customer’s home in the state. And with a few more clicks on the computer you can easily watch and manage your usage. “It gives them their bill on a daily basis. So they no longer have to wait until the end of the month to know Continue reading →
British Gas is to accelerate its smart meter rollout with the deployment of 100,000 smart meters in 2012, the company has announced. The accelerated rollout forms part of a new Fair Billing commitment for small businesses, which makes improvement in accurate billing a number one priority. In particular the aim is to ensure that customers Continue reading →
According to a think piece published on the YourHoustonNews website by Catherine Dominguez, consumers may not have any legal standing to refuse smart meters—or any measuring device their local utility chooses to use. The issue boils down to legalese contained in the contract homeowners agree to when establishing their electric service, In the article, Domingues Continue reading →
Kosciusko REMC has selected Landis+Gyr’s Gridstream RF advanced metering solution for its smart grid infrastructure project that will begin installation in early 2012. Kosciusko REMC plans to deploy Gridstream™ RF mesh network technology, E350 FOCUS AX-SD residential meters and E650 S4e commercial meters to all of its member customers over an 18-month period beginning early Continue reading →
