Smart Metering technology has been introduced in India and Electricity consumers in India are about to experience a change in how they receive and pay their bills. Replacement of conventional meters with Smart Meters will have implications beyond addressing metering and billing issues in the sector. Smart Meters will be the main interface between consumers and DISCOMs. They hold the promise of performance improvement in the form of quicker detection of outages and losses in the system, better service quality, and load management. This was brought to the fore, when in the union budget speech for 2020, the Finance Minister announced that all conventional consumer meters would be replaced by Smart Meters.
According to National Smart Grid Mission (NSGM), Ministry of Power, Government of India, the total installed Smart Meters in India as of 28/04/2023 are 57,38,065 however still 9,97,83,249 Smart Meters are yet to be installed but only 7,46,688 meters are in stock. These statistics and the policy push show that the large-scale implementation of Smart Meter installations that has started in a few states, namely: Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Jammu & Kashmir and Delhi, will also take place in other parts of the country over the next few years.
At first sight, large-scale replacement of conventional meters with smart meters might seem like an advancement that smoothens out the creases in the metering and billing systems. However, the implications of installation of Smart Meters are having many feature and forms.
Source: Data compiled from year end review
According to these figures and the governmental push. In addition to this, it appears that operating Smart Meters only in prepaid mode has received a lot of attention recently. Prepaid meters will bring new challenges in terms of brief remote disconnections and obstacles consumers experience in timely recharging. Effective checks and balances are required to ensure the successful implementation of these programs in light of this development and the enormous financial commitment that has resulted from it. At first glance, the widespread installation of Smart Meters in place of conventional ones could appear to be a development that eliminates rough edges in the metering and billing systems. However, there are numerous effects of installing Smart Meters. They surpass the results of the earlier switch from electromechanical to digital meters.
In addition to system-level adjustments on the part of the DISCOM, this transformation also necessitates consumer system adaptation. The present metering and billing system must be technically upgraded in order for data that is automatically received from Smart Meters to be seamlessly incorporated. This requires sufficient testing by DISCOMs. As a result, meters set in the most remote locations will communicate clearly.
Source: NSGM
Why Smart Meters?
An ecologically friendly energy meter called a “Smart Meter” is used to measure electrical energy in terms of kWh (Kilowatt-hours). It is merely a tool that benefits consumers directly by enabling them to reduce their electricity costs. They are tasked with automatically reporting meter readings to the energy provider and are a part of Advanced Meter Infrastructure. Fig, 4 is a straightforward illustration of a Smart Meter. The addition of company advantages from the Smart Meter will result in accurate meter readings.
They track consumption based on hourly or less frequent intervals.
A Smart Meter contains features including tamper detection, remote connect or disconnect capability, non-volatile data storage, and two-way communication. They provide remote reports of the data they have gathered to the main meter. The performance of the Smart Meter is monitored by this central meter. The major advantages of Smart Meters are: i) Low operational costs, reduced reporting time for consumers and utility corporations to the energy providers for meter readings; ii) Payable of electricity bill online with an intimation policy, power consumption can be significantly decreased during the high peaks. The amount of power used during the high peaks can be significantly reduced.
The benefit of these meters is that they may give the consumer real-time information about their energy usage. Smart Meters enable customers to comprehend what energy they use, how they use it and most importantly how they could consume it more wisely by wirelessly transmitting this data to an indoor display or even a user’s smartphone.
Finally, a key objective of Smart Meters, particularly in the long run, is the promise of better customer service. Smart Metering can assist utilities in managing overall energy consumption patterns and addressing peak-demand issues by empowering customers to more effectively manage their own energy usage through incentive-based programmers like direct load control, interruptible rate agreements, and demand bidding/buyback. Smart Meter installations can successfully create the framework for additional customer-service features, such as wireless connectivity with thermostats to automatically adjust usage during peak demand periods, if the proper capabilities are included into chip-level solutions.
Source: Sweden’s Blekinge Institute of Technology’s School of Computing.
The Figure 4 above illustrates how household appliances used on a daily basis as tracked by a Smart Meter in a residence. In order to reduce customer power bills, a Smart Meter is installed outside the home and its hourly usage data is measured. This measurement tool transforms a basic house into a smart house.
Future of Smart Meters
As things stand right now, the world has to adopt a different perspective on sustainability. Human activity is creating enormous and maybe irreversible damage to our ecosystem, as underlined in the most recent COP27 summit. This change is being fueled by our creation of hazardous pollutants and excessive energy use. The transition to a sustainable future may start with Smart Meters. But as noted by renowned environmentalist and broadcaster David Attenborough, “We are, after all, the greatest problem solvers that have existed on Earth with our combined strength, we can undoubtedly save it. Additionally, the technologies we employ to monitor and manage our energy use are going to be crucial to our attempts to combat climate change. The construction of a more sustainable future will rely heavily on the use of Smart Meters, which will be a crucial component of the technology arsenal at our disposal. Mordor Intelligence predicts that by 2026, 198.53 million Smart Meters will have been shipped globally. Additionally, since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Smart Metre suppliers like Smart Metering Systems has seen a 20% rise in Smart Meter installation. But in order for this concept of the smart grid to materialize, it’s imperative that the grid’s meters be supported by two fundamental principles: dependable connectivity and strong cyber security. Smart Meters must always be linked, especially when they are part of a system where components are continually exchanging data. Any interruption in the connection could cause a delay in the data transmission to the utility company, preventing it from operating an energy grid as efficiently as possible. However, providers can guarantee that their Smart Meters stay connected round-the-clock during the course of a typical 10 to 15-year lifespan by using technology like IOT, eSIMs. The connectedness of Smart Meters has advantages and disadvantages. While allowing for the quick and precise distribution of real-time data to utility providers, this connectivity also makes Smart Meters vulnerable to hackers. The reported power grid strikes between two major nations in 2019 serve as a reminder that such attacks pose a very real hazard to all stakeholders, from consumers to governmental organizations. Given this potential risk, it’s essential that strong cyber security measures, such as giving Smart Meters their own digital identities, are put in place to safeguard both energy providers and consumers. Smart technologies are the first step on our path to a sustainable future, even though there is still more that can be done to support our efforts to preserve and renew our world.
Conclusion
In India, the 25 crore conventional meters are to be replaced with Smart Meters as part of the Smart Meter National Program. Smart Meters are interconnected via a web-based monitoring system, which will aid in boosting revenues, reducing commercial losses for utilities, and acting as a key element in power sector reforms. The present manual system of revenue collection used by EESL, which results in low billing and inefficient revenue collection, is being updated in order to implement Smart Meters. Power companies believe that adding intelligence to their grid is necessary as a practical and scientific response to the utility industry’s problems, especially in light of recent advancements in telecommunications and information management systems technology and the growing demands of various sectors of the power industry for monitoring and controlling all network components (from production to consumption). Electric power providers in the majority of developed nations intend to give priority to Smart Grid planning, and the first and most fundamental step in achieving this is to adopt Smart Metering Systems and energy management. Power companies will undoubtedly confront two significant obstacles in the adoption of Smart Grids and Smart Metering infrastructure: the cost of doing so and the complexity of doing so.
Swati Patro is an Assistant Professor at Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Parala Maharaja Engineering College, Berhampur, Odisha, India.
Dr. Sarat Kumar Sahoo is a Professor/ PIC Academic at Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Parala Maharaja Engineering College, Berhampur, Odisha, India.
