Smart meter technology advances in India
Image: Wirepas
A series of new technology developments are emerging from partnerships to bring advances for the smart meter rollout in India.
To start with the first that is already available is a Wirepas certified in-meter gateway embedded in Indian manufacturer HPL Electric & Power’s smart meters.
Along with the Wirepas mesh sub-GHz connectivity and network management system with an RF adapter connecting to the HPL head-end system, the integrated end-to-end solution is aimed to ensure reliable, scalable and cost-effective connectivity with a 99.9% service level agreement.
The solution, which has been designed for India’s smart meter rollout, integrates dual 865-868MHz and LTE radio capability directly into the smart meters, eliminating the need for dedicated gateway devices or concentrator units and thereby also reducing rollout complexities and costs.
The solution also follows the announcement of the deployment of an RF mesh cloud-based prepayment solution by Wirepas and Anvil Cables, so far implemented in over 500,000 smart meters in the Assam and Kashmir regions.
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NIC with Bluetooth
In a broadly similar initiative Tata Power Delhi Distribution has partnered with Indian electronics company Probus Smart Things to adopt a universal NIC with Bluetooth-enabled communication for its smart metering.
The collaboration is reported as aiming to create innovative use cases and file joint patents, with the advanced NIC intended initially to serve Tata Power-DDL’s operations before extending its benefits to other utilities and regions.
This news comes as Tata Power-DDL’s parent company Tata Power has announced embarking on a data-driven transformation with Amazon Web Services.
Data lakes integrating real time smart meter and other data are expected to unlock the power of AI-based analytics for areas including predictive maintenance, grid optimisation and demand forecasting.
AMI service provider jv
The third of the initiatives is a joint venture partnership between EDF India and infrastructure investor Actis to operate a dedicated platform company for AMI service provider concessions.
While few details are available so far, the initiative seeks to bring together the global expertise of the two companies in energy solutions and infrastructure investments.
By leveraging cutting-edge technology, data analytics and global best practices, it aims to drive a transformative impact on the country’s power sector, benefiting both utilities and consumers alike, according to a statement.
India’s smart meter rollout was intended to deliver 250 million smart meters by March 2026 but the target is likely to be significantly missed, with only 21.8 million meters installed so far, according to the latest National Smart Grid Mission data.
The dashboard records that 222.3 million smart meters have been sanctioned, of which 138 million have been awarded.
The data also indicates significant disparities between states, ranging from over 6 million smart meters in Bihar to none in Karnataka.
