Smart Electricity Meter: Understand Your Energy Habits

A smart electricity meter is an advanced meter that you can use to track your energy usage. 

A smart meter will help you to better understand your energy consumption habits, allowing you to identify patterns and take steps to reduce your energy usage, ultimately saving you money on your electricity bills. 

With this article, you will understand why you should switch to a smart energy meter. 

We will contrast it with a traditional electricity meter and help you understand how a smart electricity meter will save your money. 

What is a Smart Meter?

A Smart Meter is an advanced device that provides real-time data on energy consumption, allows for remote monitoring and facilitates automatic transmission of usage information to the utility company. 

Smart electricity meters in India are also known to  relay alerts about power outages between the power company and the consumer, enabling seamless customer service.

With a Smart meters you can monitor your consumption trends and use it to to cut down wherever possible and save money. Additionally, some meters even provide an in-home display that helps with monitoring usage further. 

How a Smart Energy Meter will Help You Save Money

Let's take a look at how Smart Energy Meters can help you save money–

1. Constant Monitoring

Smart meters have a two-way communication capability relaying data between the utility provider and consumer. The indoor unit and mobile app with the smart meter can pinpoint users to the most resource-hungry devices.

2. Electricity Deals

A smart energy meter can also alert users about the latest deals when it comes to using electricity. 

For instance, after installing smart cities in Indian homes, the power companies can incentivise domestic consumers to change their electricity usage patterns to use the power grid's capacity more efficiently. Such discount schemes are already implemented in many developed countries.

3. Goal Setting

The smart electric meter app that is part of the smart meter technology can be used to monitor your power usage deeply and set thresholds. 

You can use it to Target lower electricity bills.

For instance, the Delhi Government charges its users ₹4.5/unit if the consumption is between 200 and 400 units. However, the price per unit shoots up to ₹6.5/unit while using between 401-800 units. You can use smart meter data to lower your billing bracket and reduce electricity expenses.

Additionally, meters can point to defective devices that consume too much power, and users can choose to replace or repair them.

Smart Electricity Meter: Advantages & Disadvantages

Let's take a look at the Advantages and disadvantages of Smart Meter Technology–

Advantages of using Smart Meters

1. Improved Meter Reading Accuracy–Many electricity suppliers use the estimated billing method to charge their customers. However, with the installation of new smart electricity meters, the accurate reading of every user can be considered while billing. 

2. Instantaneous Fault reporting– Due to the connectivity feature, the meters can alert the authorities if anything seems out of the ordinary. This can also help solve power outages faster.

3. Wireless pairing– Some smart meters allow users to control a multitude of devices from a single interface.

Disadvantages of Using Smart Meters

Smart electricity meters also have a few disadvantages–

1. High Initial Cost–The initial cost involved is the main pain point behind transitioning to smart meters. But this is something that will be recovered over time.

2. Data Privacy–Since a smart energy meter records data and sends it to power companies, there exists a threat to personal data. By obtaining the details pertaining to power usage, anyone could gain access to a lot of information. For instance, the usage data can be used to conclude if the home is empty leading to a potential security breach at your home.

3. Data storage concerns–Speaking of data, it also needs a ton of storage space. Figuring that out lies with the power suppliers as usage data from thousands of homes are updated every fifteen minutes.

Here’s a quick comparison between the advantages and disadvantages of a Smart Electricity meter.

Advantages	Disadvantages
Real-time data on energy consumption	The initial cost of installation
Allows for remote monitoring	Limited compatibility with certain types of electrical systems
Facilitates automatic transmission of usage information to the utility company	Privacy concerns with data collection
Helps to reduce energy consumption and save money on electricity bills	Dependence on a stable internet connection to function properly
Eliminates the need for manual meter readings	Potential for technical issues that may require maintenance

To sum up, the disadvantages are mostly based on tech developments that can be executed over time. In the long run, most of them will become advantages. 

The Smart Meter National Programme in India

The Smart Meter National Programme is an efficiency-aimed project under EESL (Energy Efficiency Services Limited), a joint venture launched under the governance of the Ministry of Power of India. 

The programme aims to replace 25 crore traditional meters with smart meters. 

These smart electricity meters will be connected via the web and aim to reduce utility losses, increase revenue and restructure the power supply sector.

As of October 2022, the EESL has successfully installed 30 lakh smart meters in various states of the country. This has been done by signing agreements with numerous state governments and utility suppliers. This programme has successfully installed smart meters in Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Bihar, Rajasthan, Andaman and Haryana. 

EESL will also establish Smart prepaid electricity meters. The prepaid smart meter movement's advantages can be attributed to a lesser peak power purchase cost and a drastic drop in carbon footprint. 

The Ministry of Power set the budget for smart metering at ₹1.5 lakh crore, and EESL will use this towards bettering the electricity distribution network. In addition, another ₹3.03 lakh crores were allotted towards the reforms made by distribution companies in June 2021. 

Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking’s Announcement

BEST, or the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking, have announced that it will start installing new smart electric meters for 10.5 lakh consumers from February 2023 onwards. According to BEST, the meters will be equipped with 4G and 5G sims to relay information, and users will also get the option of prepaid variants. 

Do Smart Electricity Meters and Solar Panels work together?

Solar panels are a great way to reduce energy bills.

India is experiencing a surge in solar panel demand, and it helps reduce our carbon footprint by a lot. 

The newer smart electric meters can easily be paired with solar panels to measure usage efficiently. 

Users can now easily monitor how much electricity they use from the grid and how much they generate via solar panels. This can help consumers further improve their electrical usage and reduce their carbon footprints.

In the long run, this does help consumers make better decisions and also save tons of money.

What is a Smart Electric Meter App?

A Smart Electricity Meter Apps are used in conjunction with a smart electricity meter. 

The app allows users to track their energy usage, set usage alerts, and monitor their energy consumption patterns. 

These apps are available for both iOS and Android devices and are free to download. They offer a convenient way for users to keep track of their energy consumption and make informed decisions about their energy usage habits.

One such app is the Bihar Bijli Smart Meter, jointly developed by the North and South Bihar Power Distribution Companies in 2022.

Smart electricity meters are an excellent way to monitor and manage your energy usage, ultimately saving you money on your electricity bills. 

While purchasing a smart meter, make sure it's compatible with your electrical system, consider the cost of installation, and ensure it's in compliance with local regulations. 

Ensure that you hire a professional for the job and make sure to properly maintain the device. 

Use the Smart Electricity meter to monitor your energy consumption patterns and make an effort to reduce your usage where possible. 

Troubled by finding Electricians who can help you install a smart electric meter?

Use NoBroker Electrician Services to consult and arrange the best electricians who can help you make informed decisions on Smart Meter installation. 

Contact us now and resolve your electrical installation problems with ease.

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