The Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a joint venture of the public-sector units of the Ministry of Power and the Government of India, has signed memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Haryana state distribution companies (DISCOMs) to install 1 million smart meters across the state.

EESL inked two MoUs, one each with Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) and Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN).

The smart meters will be installed across the state within three years in a phased manner, news agency PTI reported.

According to the MoUs, the implementation will increase the billing efficiencies for the DISCOMs. EESL will fund, build, operate, and manage the smart metering implementation in the project area for a defined project period.

The smart meters will be installed in Gurugram, Faridabad, Hisar, Karnal, Panipat, and Panchkula in the next three years.

EESL will initially install meters for 1 million customers in select cities which fall under the two DISCOMs in the state, and the project would later be expanded to cover more towns in the coming years. EESL will engage a system integrator (SI) to implement the scheme.

Haryana chief minister, Manohar Lal Khattar accorded the approval for installation of 1,000,000 smart meters in the five districts of the state.

These smart meters would be GPRS (General Packet Radio Services) equipped. Installation of these smart meters along with its associated GPRS system would enable electricity distribution companies to collect real time data on usage.

“Smart meters will enable consumers to monitor their consumption pattern and the corresponding cost, leading them to adapt their energy use and reduce power wastage, providing long-term carbon and financial savings. With better complaint management, the state’s grid will also achieve faster restoration from outages, while delivering improvements in system stability, reliability and transparency,” Saurabh Kumar, the MD of EESL was quoted by PTI as saying.

In March 2018, EESL had issued a tender to procure 5 million smart electricity meters.

Before that, in December 2017, EESL had issued a tender to procure 10 million pre-paid electricity meters for Uttar Pradesh.

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