Experts Warn Of High Cost Of Smart Meter Rollout

The publication of the government’s consultation document on the plan to roll out smart meters to every home in the UK have been questioned by consumer groups concerned about who will end up paying for the costs of the project.

The smart meter prospectus, published earlier this week, provides details on the government’s plans for the next generation electricity and gas meters, including an accelerated timetable.

The original date for the completion of the project was expected to be in line with a timetable outlined by European authorities of 80 percent completed by 2020. But, according to the prospectus and comments made by ministers in the run up to its publication, the UK is aiming for 2016 or potentially even earlier to complete the rollout. The prospectus names 2013 as the deadline for the infrastructure required to connect the meters to be in place.

Smart Meters To Cost £10bn?

In an article published this week, consumer rights organisation Which? warned that the cost of the smart meter project – which could reportedly hit £10 billion – should not be passed onto the consumer.

“Smart meters could be great news for consumers, with the potential for accurate bills along with real-time information people need to cut their energy use and costs,” said Which? chief executive, Peter Vicary-Smith. “However, consumers don’t want the projected £10 billion cost for the roll-out to be added onto their energy bills, especially given that the only people guaranteed to save money from smart meters are suppliers themselves.”

The organisation points out that utilities could save £300 million a year by no longer having to employ meter readers and maintenance staff, as this will all be done remotely using the new technology. However in its prospectus document, the government estimates that the smart meters could result in over £17 billion of savings – of which £7 billion will be net savings.

Which? has pulled together a list of conditions it wants to see imposed to prevent consumers receiving a raw deal under the government’s smart meter plans. For example, as well as cost issues, the organisation is keen to prevent privacy and consumer data rights being violated by the smart meter programme. “Smart meters could provide energy suppliers with much more detailed information about people’s energy consumption but just 42 percent of the 2,000 people Which? surveyed trust their energy company to look after this information and 86 percent want full control over how it is used,” the group stated.

There should also be minimum standards for the Home Display Devices, which will connect to the smart meters to allow consumers to easily monitor their power usage, the groups states.  “The government has said that smart meters will come with handheld energy display units, which will allow people to monitor their energy use and save money by reducing their consumption. There must be minimum standards for these energy monitors to ensure all consumers benefit.”

Smart Home Area Networks

But while the government’s smart meter prospectus may have highlighted concerns about consumer rights in some circles, the industry reacted positively to its publication. Three leading energy technology and smart meter specialists, Elster, Landis+Gyr and Secure, published a statement this week announcing their cooperation in developing open standards for the roll out.

“The UK’s model for smart energy is amongst the most advanced in the world.  UK consumers will benefit significantly from accelerated adoption of open standards and a collaborative approach to mass roll-out,” said John Stretch of Landis+Gyr.

Specifically the vendors said they would be cooperating on the development of so-called Smart Home Area Networks (HANs) – wireless networks that connect smart meters to electrical devices to measure their energy consumption. The companies said they would make use of Zigbee’s Smart Energy Profile (SEP) and Wide Area Networks (WANs) based on DLMS (Device Language Message Specification) protocols.