Marylands Turning Point on Smart Meters

Maryland’s Turning Point on Smart Meters

Ratepayers Won’t be Patsies

by Ken Silverstein  www.energybiz.com

Maryland’s utility commission is bucking utilities and asking for proof that smart meters will pay off. Power companies in the state may have to absorb those costs unless they can engage customers and produce results.

Technology enthusiasts say that the decision is short-sighted and that government’s role is to partner with industry to encourage promising new trends. But some consumer advocacy organizations say that the commission got it right – that the ratepayers are not patsies for utilities that don’t want to bear any risks.

Smart meters allow for two-way communication between power companies and customers. That, then, provides a chance to save energy or to curb peak power usage.

The Electric Power Research Institute is saying that deployment of a highly automated system could severely cut carbon dioxide releases while at the same time limit electricity consumption by reducing sales by 1.2 to 4.3 percent by 2030.

The Galvin Institute adds that the technologies are already working and if regulators would ease the path, more providers would participate and those tools would get even better. It also says that for every $1 invested in smart meters, $4 to $5 is returned in the form of energy savings, greater productivity and more jobs.

But the wave of praise has not impressed the Maryland Utility Commission. It has said that it understands the potential benefits. But it will not treat the deployment of smart meters in its jurisdiction any different from other big-ticket items. In essence, Baltimore Gas & Electric had wanted to be able to pass through the entire cost without first having to file a rate case.

The commission said to the company that it could not bypass the established regulatory procedures and that it must be able to demonstrate why the benefits outweigh the costs. It must also show that its costs are reasonable and prudent.

“We disagreed that Baltimore Gas & Electric’s customers should bear all of the risks inherent in the underlying technology.,” writes the utility commission in its order issued over the summer. The decision to require the company to prove its case will “allocate the risk more fairly between the Company and its customers.”

Looks like Baltimore Gas & Electric is going to have to do it’s homework before they can force a smart meter on the public. I believe evidence will show that the smart meter is in the best interest of the consumer if the consumer will turn around and use the technology to save energy. The smart meter maybe one of the best tools a homeowner has to initiate power conservation. comment by Don Ames

Thanks for stopping by and thanks to Ken, stop back by soon, but I won’t leave the light on for you…Don Ames