Real-time tracking of power usage

KUALA LUMPUR: A “revolutionary” smart meter system from Tenaga Nasional is in the works. It will allow the utility company to offer flexible tariffs to consumers and to be automatically alerted if there is a power outage, among others.

If a pilot project launched in Malacca last month proves to be successful, the smart meter, which has already been installed in some 180 million homes worldwide, will be destined for mass usage here.

 

Sources said that if everything went well, TNB would be ready for a national rollout as early as 2016.

The smart meter is said to be a tool that could effectively reduce disputes between customers and power companies over bills.

This is because the utility company would be able to measure the amount of electricity used through a real-time central monitoring system, allowing the company to check power theft.

The system will help TNB, which has lost an estimated RM5bil in thefts in the past decade alone, to halt the losses.

It is learnt that the smart meter system allows a power company to automatically disconnect supply to a customer in the event bills are not paid as practised by telco companies.

The new system will also do away with the need for employees of its utility company to be physically present to read meters at the 8.4 million premises nationwide since the smart meter will automatically relay this to the power company.

Consumers, meanwhile, will be able to monitor their power consumption via a home display unit.

They will be able to tell how much it costs to use the hot water shower, kettle or air conditioner over a particular period.

TNB distribution division senior general manager (customer service) Kamaliah Abdul Kadir said the uti­lity company had commissioned the pilot project in Malacca involving 800 households last month.

Plans are underway to do the same in 200 households in Putrajaya.

 

Kamaliah said in an e-mail interview with The Star that the smart meter project was still at its infancy stage.

“The main objective of this project is to enhance sustainable energy and energy efficiency adoption among Malaysians,” she said.

Kamaliah said the smart meter system could educate customers to do their bit on the efficient use of resources and help minimise energy usage during peak load.

“What’s crucial for us now is to get public acceptance of the project and for customers to see the benefit of having these meters installed,” she said.

“Customers need to see how the system can add value to the existing electronic or mechanical meters as it teaches them to learn to adjust their consumption behaviour based on the information made available by the home display screen.”

Kamaliah added that the smart meter system would also allow TNB to introduce detailed billing based on consumption profiles.

“As the pilot project implementer, we at TNB want to find the best technology within the smart meter’s features that best suit our custo­mers’ expectations and meet the objectives set,” she said.

Kamaliah said TNB would have to conduct a series of complex tests related to cellular technology, radio frequency and power line ­carrier communication (for data trans­mission) before the system could be successfully implemented.

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