Smart Grid Studies

“We didn’t want to learn about AMI by reading about what other utilities were doing with the technology, so we began working with the Elster EnergyAxis® solution in 2004. We saw such significant benefits to cost-savings and operations, we doubled our EnergyAxis deployment in 2010,” said Scott Trout, Manager of SRP’s Federal Stimulus Program.

The Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) covers the largest geographical area of any electric cooperative in the world. In the summer of 2005, AVEC began deploying Elster’s EnergyAxis System to enhance their business operations and provide better customer service. Almost all of the deployed meters have the optional service control switch to enable AVEC to remotely disconnect power for delinquent accounts, since some of the areas are not accessible for many months of the year. The fact that all meters (disconnect or non-disconnect) look exactly the same protects the privacy of utility customers - which is very important in the culture of these small villages.

“The Phoenix area has a large transitory population, so the connect/disconnect capabilities of EnergyAxis met a strong need. In fact, Elster offered SRP its first EnergyAxis disconnect meter in 2005. Today, we have one of the largest single deployments of disconnect meters in the world.” Scott Trout, Manager of SRP’s Federal Stimulus Program
 

The objective of the City of Ocala was to implement measures to reduce operational expenditures, and enhance billable revenues, while improving customer service within both the electric and water utilities.

Midstate Electric now offers its members an option that enables them to continue to receive electric service, yet also protects the cooperative from financial risk.