According to a press release published on Rueters this morning, Elektrilevi, the major Estonian electricity distribution network operator, has signed an eight-year contract with Ericsson to supply, install and run a smart-metering network.
The press release stated that Estoniais installing smart meters to be inline with other EU countries and contribute to the EU target of improving energy efficiency by 20 percent by 2020. Elektrilevi provides electricity to just about every household and company in Estoniaand boasts almost a half-million subscribers on its network; they maintain and repair approximately 61,000 kilometres of power lines and 22,000 substations.
Installing smart meters will create greater control for consumers by enabling them to manage their energy consumption and reduce costs by supporting new tariff systems from their utility company and by providing more accurate billing. Utilities will also benefit from increased operational knowledge, the elimination of manual meter reading and savings through more accurate fraud detection.
Ericsson will supply and install services on the 2G/3G mobile internet and power-line communication technologies which will include operation of 630,000 smart meters. Ericsson will also perform systems integration of the meter and data management operation support systems and will operate the smart metering network during the installation and initial set up period.
Following a pilot project involving 5,700 smart meters this year, the rollout of the rest of the 630,000 smart meters will take place from 2013 to 2016. Ericsson will then provide maintenance for three years after which Elektrilevi will have the choice of possibly extending the maintenance contract until 2025.
