Hydro announced Tuesday that it has also awarded a $65 million contract to global technology and consulting firm Capgemini to provide information technology and telecommunications support to integrate the new metering system into Hydro's grid.
The Corix contract "will result in an estimated $30-$40 million in direct wage benefits in B.C. through the hiring and training of a labour force of over 350 to complete the project," Hydro said in a news release.
Hydro said installations will begin later this year. Corix is replacing Hydro's existing mechanical meters with digital ones that can collect a greater range of power consumption data than is possible at present.
For example, Hydro believes the meters will serve as a deterrent to electricity theft.
As well, Hydro will know almost immediately if there's a local blackout instead of waiting for customers to phone them with the information.
Corix will open seven regional offices to facilitate the installations - in Surrey, Prince George, Terrace, Victoria, Burnaby, Kamloops and Cranbrook.
"Corix has both strong local knowledge and broad experience and has performed over 10 million meter exchanges and other device installations and retrofits for various gas, water and electric utilities, helping the utilities make smooth transitions from traditional meter reading to automation. The contract is worth approximately $73 million over the next two years," Hydro said in the release.
"Capgemini will provide project management services and systems integration, along with the information technology and telecommunications to support the integration of the smart metering system into key BC Hydro business functions such as outage management and customer billing," Hydro said. "The three-year contract is worth approximately $65 million."
"The Smart Metering Program will modernize our electricity system and provide extensive benefits for our province for generations to come," Hydro deputy CEO Bev Van Ruyven said in the release. "Smart meters give us a valuable opportunity to work directly with our customers and it was essential that we have experienced and specialized companies like Capgemini and Corix to ensure the program is successful for everyone involved."
Hydro said it is still researching potential companies for the smart meter manufacturing and the meter data management system.
Meter deployment across the province will begin in mid-2011 and conclude at the end of 2012.
"Early this year, customers will begin to receive notification that meters are coming to their community and information about what they can expect. For most customers, installation will be simple and will only take a matter of minutes."
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Smart meter growth prompts Ember revenue growth
http://www.masshightech.com/stories/2011/01/24/daily22-Smart-meter-growth-prompts-Ember-revenue-growth.html
Ember Corp. said revenue in 2010 grew by nearly 300 percent, fueled by worldwide smart meter deployments.
The Boston-based company, the leading supplier in the small but growing ZigBee chip market, said it shipped more than 10 million ZigBee chips during the year.
ZigBee is considered the leading technology for the wireless communications behind smart meters and other "smart home" devices. The technologies monitor energy use in buildings with an aim of reducing consumption and cost.
Ember did not disclose its revenue figure for the year, but Robert LeFort, the company's CEO, previously said the company had been seeing revenue of $9 million to $10 million per quarter.
Ember achieved profitability in the first quarter of 2010, and grew its staff to 50 from 40 during the year, he said.
Kathy Nelson, Red Bluff: SmartMeters
Special to the Daily News
Editor:
We were part of a volunteer study sponsored by PG&E. The study was to see the accuracy of the SmartMeter in comparison to the analog meters. The study ran for about six months. This is what we learned.
1. PG&E has a tolerance on their meters which is 2 percent. Our analog meters are on the minus side which means it's in the customer's favor. The SmartMeters are on the plus side which means it's in PG&E's favor. Thus increasing your bill.
2. When PG&E installs these meters your analog meter is disconnected and they take it away. Unless you read your meter, to know how many kilowatts you've used, you'll have no idea the actual amount you've used before PG&E adds the kilowatts on to your new SmartMeter. Thus increasing your bill.
3. These SmartMeters are digital and they have a transmitter/receiver which will increase your kilowatt usage. SmartMeters are wireless and transmit to a receiver which then transmits to a satellite which then is read by PG&E and this can be done every 2 minutes.
People are challenging PG&E over the EMF radiation that SmartMeters give out, sighting health issues and the jamming of emergency radio frequencies. Marin County put a one-year moratorium on the installation of the SmartMeters but PG&E is ignoring it saying they only get direction from the CPUC.
So PG&E is allowed to continue installing them. PG&E claims the health issue is a mute subject because of all the EMF radiation that everyone is exposed to on a daily bases. It would be hard to differentiate the amount you're receiving from the SmartMeter from the amounts you receive from other radiation.
Example, cell phones, iPods, iPads, computers, TVs, WiFi, microwaves, outlets, etc. The SmartMeters' receiver gives PG&E the ability to send a signal to the SmartMeter to turn off the electricity if the bill isn't paid in the allotted time. Or turn on the electricity for a new customer. It also can turn off or on your electricity anytime day or night whenever PG&E deems it necessary.
If anyone wants to know what a transmitter/ receiver looks like, that reads then transmits your SmartMeters' information, go to the corner of Walbridge and Baker road at the top of the utility poll you'll see a box with antennas sticking out. Thus increasing your bill.
4. Manipulation of PG&E's billing also comes into play. They choose how many days will be charged on every billing cycle. I was billed for 34 days in one billing cycle. When they've received raises they've inserted them in the middle of the month. Then they put in how many days they billed you at the old rate and how many days they billed you at the new rate. They've received more then six raises in 2010. Thus increasing your bill.
5. Customers of PG&E were to receive a decrease on their January 2011 bills because of over charging. However, on Jan. 1 PG&E received another raise so we won't see a reduction. PG&E has three more raises within the first part of this year.
Kathy Nelson, Red Bluff
