Will IESCO’s AMI meters put an end to over-billing, electricity theft?

ISLAMABAD: On the instructions of the Ministry of Energy, the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO) has formally started the installation of advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) meters in the Rawalpindi region. In the first phase, 40,000 AMI meters have been installed in different areas of Rawalpindi.

According to ISCO, under the advanced metering project, 1.2 million meters will be initially installed in two operation circles of ISCO, namely Rawalpindi City and Cantonment, while all industrial connections of ISCO will also be transferred to AMI meters.

They said that AMI meters will eliminate power theft, provide accurate readings, and reduce line losses. AMI meters also have a net metering facility, which will be provided upon customer’s request, they said.

Energy experts are calling the use of AMI meters a solution to electricity theft and over-billing. They have also emphasized the need to spread the scope of advanced metering across the country.

What is AMI meter?

In this regard, ISCO spokesperson Raja Asim Nazir, while talking to Urdu News, said that IESCO is trying to implement modern technology in the electricity sector. This includes the implementation of state-of-the-art AMI technology in the ISCO region.

Also read: IESCO intensifies action against defaulters

He said that AMI meters have been developed using modern technology, and their various features will improve the provision of facilities to customers and the services of the electricity company.

According to IESCO chief Mohammad Amjad Khan, more than 40,000 meters have been replaced with AMI meters in different areas of Rawalpindi so far.

In the initial phase, the meters of more than 1.2 million consumers in Rawalpindi City, Cantonment circles and Taxila Division are being replaced, he said.

AMI meters being installed free of cost

IESCO Spokesperson Raja Asim, while talking about the issue of charging fees from users for installing AMI meters, said that no fee is being charged from users in the initial stage.

He said that AMI meters are being installed free of cost in place of old meters. However, electricity consumers have already paid the fee for manual meter installation.

$109 million spent on the roject

About the expenses of the project, ISCO chief Muhammad Amjad Khan said that $109 million have been spent on the installation of AMI meters. He said that this initiative will benefit both the company and the consumers.

Talking about AMI meters, ISCO officials mentioned that there is an element of error and human intervention in normal manual meters, often leading to consumer complaints against electricity distribution companies. However, the installation of AMI meters will eliminate the issue of human intervention.

They said that the meters will provide transparent readings recorded by both the electricity consumer and the company.

Informing about the safety features of the advanced meters, Dr Amjad Khan said that no tampering can be done with these meters, and in such cases, the advanced meter will shut down automatically. This will be helpful in stopping all kinds of electricity theft, he said.

Discussing more features of advanced meters, ISCO officials said that these meters will make people aware of their electricity consumption. If there is any fault in the meter, the ISCO office will be notified without the need for a complaint.

According to ISCO officials, currently, electricity bills are received by consumers seven days after the reading. However, with the advanced meters, consumers will receive the bill on the day of the reading, which will increase the transparency of the bills.

They further said that ISCO will be able to see the entire record if any customer complains of an extra bill through the AMI meter. The company will have hourly electricity sales data, making future planning easier due to the availability of data.

On the other hand, energy experts have praised the government’s initiative of advanced metering.

Ali Khizr, an expert on energy issues, said that the use of modern technology in the electricity sector is the need of the hour.

He said that with this initiative, it will be possible to solve problems like electricity theft and over-billing of consumers. Looking at the problems in the power sector, he described AMI meters as “a drop in the ocean.”

IESCO officials said that along with consumers, electricity distribution companies will also benefit from AMI metering. The use of advanced meters will address issues such as interference by the employees of electricity companies and theft of electricity by consumers, directly benefiting the distribution companies, they said.

Ali Khizr emphasised the need to spread advanced metering infrastructure across the country. He said that electricity distribution companies across Pakistan should use such modern devices to help solve their problems as well as those of electricity consumers.

Arshad H Abbasi, an expert on energy affairs, said that there is a need to bring innovation to electricity distribution companies and appoint competent and honest officers.

He said that if AMI meters really have so many benefits, they will benefit both the consumer and the company. However, he raised the question of why the Ministry of Energy and electricity distribution companies did not implement this earlier.

According to Arshad Abbasi, over-billing of billions of rupees has been done to consumers.

“Who will be responsible for it? As long as corrupt officers work in this sector, even installing AMI meters will not bring improvement,” he said.