Italgas rollouts first 20,000 Nimbus H-ready smart meters

Italgas has reported completion of the rollout of the first 20,000 units of its new next generation hydrogen ready gas smart meter.

The company has not stated where the meters have been deployed but the aim is to test the technology in the field during 2024, prior to a widescale rollout across Italy starting in 2025.

“With the installation of the first 20,000 Nimbus units, the energy transition towards green gas is further accelerated,” Italgas stated in a Linkedin announcement.

“The widespread diffusion of these devices throughout the Italgas network of users will give a strong boost to the use of renewable gases, opening a new frontier in Italy and around the world.”

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The Nimbus smart meter, which was conceived and developed within Italgas RETI, was launched in November 2023 in Paris at Enlit Europe 2023.

The meter utilises thermo-mass-based technology for measurement of natural gas and methane or hydrogen blends up to 23%.

Features include NB-Iot and LoRaWAN for primary communication and mesh for back up, a battery lifetime up to 15 years, and a large display with information in three languages available – Italian, English and a third of user choice.

In addition, a range of advanced safety features with automatic switch off are included, among them pressure and temperature detection, seismic sensing for earthquake detection and anti-tampering sensors.

“Nimbus is the most advanced smart gas meter in the world,” asserted Italgas Reti CEO Pier Lorenzo Dell’Orco at its launch, pointing to its emergence from Italgas’s digital transformation plan.

Another notable feature is the use of recycled materials in the meter, up to 85%, which is being produced by the two Italian companies Bitron and MeteRSit.

Italgas plans to supply Nimbus meters to its over 7 million customers in Italy by 2029, focussing in the first phase on the replacement of over 5 million older GPRS meters as well as the start of installations for its 580,000 customers in Greece.

In addition, and alongside a new end-to-end meter-to-cash offering for gas and water smart metering, Nimbus should be made available to the international market by Italgas’s digital unit Bludigit.