Smart Meters in GHMC Area; Private Agencies to Install and Maintain

Hyderabad: The department of energy, government of Telangana has decided to make smart prepaid meters available across the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation.  The Power Distribution Company will be handing over the installation and maintenance of these meters to private agencies without burdening the consumers.

According to the senior official sources, the Central government which has allocated funds to the Distribution companies, in this 35-40 per cent of the funds will be spent on smart meters.  The cost of smart meters could be reduced if they are made available in large numbers.  The Telangana Southern Region Electricity Distribution Company (TSSPDCL) hopes that there will be no problem in selecting agencies for setting up and maintaining smart meters and handing them over to those companies for a few years. It has set a target of making smart meters full available by 2025. 

It may be recalled that prepaid meters are already available in government offices, hospitals and in parks in Greater Hyderabad.  A year and half ago, more than eight thousand home users were fitted with single phase meters under the Smart Grid project in the Jeedimetla Industrial area.  Here, electricity bills in the form of SMS are sent directly to consumers, cell phones through smart meters.  Each unit can be accurately calculated.  Officials say slab rates are unlikely to change.  Consumers will be able to know the information that consumes the most power at any given time.  Consumers will have the opportunity to regulate the extra load online.