Smart meters roll out
JOHANNESBURG - City Power has given the green light to begin installing its new electricity billing system across Johannesburg in November.
This follows an eight-month business trial during which City Power installed 153 smart meters in >Ferndale and 2 500 with large power users in Johannesburg.
Sol Masolo, City Power communications general manager said, “The purpose of the business trial was to ensure that the roll-out takes place efficiently and smoothly. During the business trial we also deployed meter data management software to collect meter reading information and provide it to the City of Johannesburg’s billing system.”
As part of the business trial, City Power trained staff responsible for deploying, operating and maintaining smart metering.
“We are training emerging micro and medium enterprises to complement core staff, thereby enabling City Power to deploy between 10 000 and 12 000 meters a month across the City of Johannesburg,” he said.
City Power plans to complete phase one of the project by installing 50 000 smart meters by the end of June 2014.
Smart meters are electricity meters which are linked to computer systems and report the exact amount of electricity used during a particular period, without requiring physical visits to properties by City Power technicians.
City Power has begun a pre-installation audit, with 50 suburbs audited. Community engagement will commence soon.
City Power has advised that the installation should take no longer than an hour and will be carried out in consultation with residents.
