After a successful installation of 35,000 commercial and industrial smart meters with no issues, SaskPower has announced it will be piloting that process for residential customers as early as this spring.
SaskPower is launching a pilot program to install smart meters for residential customers, scheduled to take place between May and August.
Customers in a number of communities are being selected to take part in the pilot, which will establish a concentration of smart meters in several geographical locations across the province.
“We’re looking forward to providing our customers with the many benefits of smart meters,” said Shawn Schmidt, vice-president of distribution and customer services at SaskPower. “For those who sign up, smart meters eliminate the need for estimated meter readings, provide detailed information on how an individual is using power in their home and over time, will improve SaskPower’s response to outages.”
More than 1,500 SaskPower employed and over 2,200 customers who have already requested a smart meter over the past year will receive one during this pilot.
All residential customers are welcome to apply to the pilot, and customers already participating in SaskPower’s Net Metering program and those who have received notice that they are due for meter replacement are encouraged to sign up.
Customers can volunteer for a smart meter online, and only volunteers will receive a smart meter at this time. Meter installation will be done with no additional cost to customers, said SaskPower, and the new meters have been thoroughly tested for safety and quality.
SaskPower is looking to the pilot to validate meter deployment, communication, scheduling and procurement procedures, as well as how to assess how meters within a community communicate and provide visibility into what’s happening on the power grid.
All of the smart meters currently in use in Saskatchewan have been tested according to SaskPower’s own safety standard. MET Labs, a third-party testing facility, has also verified that the new meters SaskPower is using meet safety standards.
SaskPower said that beginning the smart meter pilot program plays an integral role in moving towards a modernized power grid.
To sign up for the smart meter pilot program, visit saskpower.com/smartsignup.
