I just came across this story about the rollout of smart meters in New Zealand. However, my use of the word ‘smart’ is perhaps misleading, given that some energy companies over there are being lambasted for installing ‘dumb meters’.

In the words of one consumer, talking about his new meter, ‘it has not made any difference to my life whatsoever, except I think my power bill is a little bit higher than it used to me’. He goes on, noting that it is ‘smartly taking more of [his] cash’.

The energy companies in NZ are coming under fire because they have installed meters without the microchip that enables the meters to communicate with other devices, helping to reduce the amount of energy used in the home. However, as the meters do not have this microchip, there are no benefits to householders’ and only ‘benefits to retailers’.

The absence of the chip in these, so-called, dumb meters could be, in part, because the roll-out of smart electricity meters is being done without Government control. Considering that Gerry Brownlee, NZ’s Energy Minister, has said that meters should be ‘the smartest of smart technology with a consumer focus’, he can’t be happy with the current situation. Mr Brownlee has issued a soft warning to the companies to rectify the situation, but, so far, has not yet said he will regulate to ensure a higher standard of meter. This delay could be costly, given that retrofitting the meters after the rollout to nearly 1.3 million households would cost over $60 million (NZ).

So, what are the lessons for UK rollout from this? Three spring to mind:
1) Get the consumers on-board.
2) Specify the standards of the meters.
3) Set out clearly the timescales for rollout.

Now, although these are hardly ground breaking ideas, I’m pleased to report that DECC is in the process of dealing with these issues - and others - via its latest consultation on smart metering. Intellect is currently preparing its response to the consultation so if you would like to know more, or have any comments on the standards of the meters, timescales of rollout etc, please get in touch. However, I am concerned that no-one that I’m aware of is currently trying to win the ‘hearts and minds’ of the public; this will be crucial to ensure a successful rollout otherwise regardless of how good the technology is, if people won’t open their doors, they can’t be installed.

Tags: DECC, smart meters

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 1st, 2009 at 5:39 pm and is filed under Energy and Environment, Private Sector. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.