Installation of the first 30,000 smart meters in Enel distribution areas has begun, thus paving the way for the broader process that will require be installation of 2.7 million of such meters. Smart metering system allows the performance of contractual operations, such as remote connection and reconnection. Customers will be billed based on consumption recorded to date, and estimated or adjusted billings are eliminated. Also, customers will have access to updated and detailed information about their electricity consumption, according to Bursa.
The quality of energy supply service is also monitored, as smart meters collect these data and transmits them to the central dispatch to signal any interruption in power supply, as well as anomalies or malfunctions which may be caused by fraud attempts or theft of electricity.
Enel Group began installing more than 30.000 smart meters in Romania through its local electricity distribution companies. The move follows the approval by the Regulatory Authority for Energy (ANRE) of this pilot project. Installing digital meter on a large scale is scheduled to begin in 2016, depending on ANRE’s approval, and will cover, gradually, in the coming years, the entire Enel distribution client base of 2.7 million customers in Romania/
“We are extremely proud to announce the launch of our flagship smart metering project and we want to continue the implementation program implementation of this technology for a greater number of customers, from next year”, said Toni Volpe, Enel Romania Country Manager.
“Enel was the first utility that created a smart metering system, in 2001, that now serves over 30 million customers in the Italian network for electricity distribution. In Romania, Enel will install the most advanced equipment of this kind, which it has developed so far.
Our investments in network modernization and automation, combined with a solid infrastructure for smart metering, is an effective and proven way to increase quality of service, a solution of best practices that the group has obtained in Italy and in other countries and that now brings in Romania. Smart meters pave the way for the development of advanced digital technology that combines environmental protection, energy efficiency and economic sustainability in an integrated model – the smart city”, he says.
Enel will install about 11,400 smart meters in Muntenia region, of which over 10,500 units are allocated to residential customers and another 900 meters will be installed for business customers. 10,000 smart meters will be installed in the Călărași County and in one of Constanța districts. Meanwhile, in Timiș, over 4,100 customers will benefit from this new technology. Also in the Banat, a total of 3,100 units will be installed in Arad, while other 2,800 new meters are scheduled to be replaced in Deva.