by Shane Henson — June 20, 2011—So far, more than five million smart meters have been installed nationwide as part of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act-funded efforts to accelerate modernization of the U.S. electric grid, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has reported. Nearly 90 percent of the meters installed to date are in Arizona, California, Florida, Idaho, Michigan, Nevada, Oklahoma and Texas.
Smart meters provide utility companies with greater information about how much electricity is being used throughout their service areas. The meters also give consumers access to real-time information about their energy consumption, allowing them to make informed decisions about how they use their electricity.
Transforming the current electric grid into a more intelligent system involves a wide range of advanced technologies, including smart meters, which will improve the reliability and security of the grid. Such meters will allow for the integration of renewable energy sources and help prevent blackouts and restore power more quickly when outages occur. In one project being implemented to help consumers manage their electricity, Florida Power & Light Company is deploying an advanced metering infrastructure; thus far, the company has installed 1.8 million smart meters. A project of CenterPoint Energy Houston Electric involves deploying a fully integrated advanced metering system and Web portal access to over 2.2 million customers; the company has installed 1.3 million smart meters.
DOE also announced a plan to create a data map that will allow consumers to contribute data and information about the electricity provided by their utility companies. The map will show where quality information is available nationwide based on voluntary consumer input. DOE will work with stakeholders during the summer to design the Web site that will launch in the fall.
