LP&L takes serious step on smart meter rollout

<a href=”https://www.metering.com/news/lpl-smart-meters/”>metering.com</a> May 30, 2018

<strong>Lubbock Power & Light (LP&L) has announced its plan to install smart meters under efforts to modernise its energy infrastructure.</strong>

LP&L, the third largest municipal utility in Texas, is planning to launch its multi-year $40 million <a href=”https://www.metering.com/news/chicopee-city-smart-meters/”>smart meter project</a> in the next three months.

The project will be implemented in phases and will deploy more than 100,000 smart meters.

Funds to install the digital meters is being sourced from the $333 million that Lubbock city is in the process of collecting from a 5.75% rate hike implemented for consumers over the past four years.

The project will digitise the utility’s meter reading and energy billing processes. Lubbock city workers have to date been using binoculars to read meter data.

The new meters will reduce operational costs, help elimate human error and corruption associated with manual meter reading.

Consumers will be able to access usage data in real-time, a development which will help them identify energy efficiency potentials.

The new system will allow consumers to set electric usage alerts and select billing dates.

In addition, the smart metering system will automatically alert LP&L of power outages and identify the location and source of the outage, and allow the utility to accurately forecast Lubbock’s future energy needs.

Consumers wanting to opt-out of the project will pay an initial opt-out charge and a monthly fee to cover the cost of manually reading and monitoring the meters.