Close to 250,000 energy-intensive households and commercial units in Sistan-Baluchestan Province will be equipped with smart electricity meters in the third phase of the National Smart Metering Program (known as Faham in Persian), deputy for customer services in the provincial electricity company said.
"The initiative is estimated to cost $10 million and will become operational by May 2022," Bahman Mahjoubi was quoted as saying by the Energy Ministry’s news portal.
He added that there is no problem in manufacturing smart meters domestically and called for removing financial barriers for the timely implementation of the project.
A smart meter is a modern electricity meter that digitally sends meter readings to energy suppliers. It ensures more accurate energy bills. Smart meters also come with monitors, so users can better understand their energy usage.
Smart metering systems put an end to the manual meter reading, which is prone to technical error and loss. Thanks to the new system, subscribers can be informed about their daily use in case of excessive consumption
"Smart metering systems put an end to the manual meter reading, which is prone to technical error and loss," he said.
Thanks to the new system, subscribers can be informed about their daily use in case of excessive consumption.
According to the official, utilities in many developing countries are promoting the use of advanced electricity meters for a variety of economic and environmental reasons, namely to cut costs and reduce consumption.
Mahjoubi said the meters help save at least 1,000 megawatts of electricity every year.
Power Outages
Power plants in Sistan-Baluchestan generate 1,100 MW while the province requires at least 1,500 MW to avoid frequent power outages that have harmed industries and taken a toll on electrical equipment and reduced their efficiency.
Electricity consumption in the southeastern province reached a peak of 1,500 MW in summer.
Sistan-Baluchestan is an underdeveloped region and needs investment for developing its energy infrastructure. It is hoped that improved energy infrastructure will underpin sustainable growth in the region.
According to Ahmad Ali Qorbanian, the deputy for operations in Tehran Province Water Company, government-affiliated Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company installed 310,000 smart electricity meters at farms in 2018 in the first phase of Faham.
With the rise in the price of steel and equipment used in manufacturing smart meters, the average price of each meter increased to 200 million rials ($1,000), which slowed down installations in 2020.
Qorbanian noted that the current price of a smart meter is now more than double the price in 2019 and this has discouraged farmers to equip their wells.
“The installation of 3,000 smart electricity meters on agricultural wells in Tehran Province has helped curb annual water consumption by 35 million cubic meters,” he said.
“There are about 13,500 legal wells in the province, which extraction rising to 2 billion cubic meters of water from depleting ground resources, which account for 80% of total withdrawal in the region.”
Qorbanian said the wells were equipped with smart meters between 2014 and 2019 and an additional 1,000 meters will be installed by March 2022.
“Equipping wells with the new system will help utility companies closely monitor water use online and prevent excessive withdrawal from authorized wells in the farming sector,” he said.
