Smart Meters in New York

Following the lead of other utilities in New York that have already invested in and deployed advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), Orange & Rockland Utilities, Inc. (O&R) proposed, and the commission approved, a plan to roll out AMI in that utility’s service area.

Under the AMI program presented by O&R, it will partner with Consolidated Edison Company of New York (ConEd) for the installation of a system of smart meters using a technology similar to the state-of-the-art AMI that ConEd has deployed in its own service territory. Although the utility acknowledged that the rollout will cost almost $100 million, O&R asserted that it expects to attain at least $15.6 million in net affirmative benefits as a result of the program. The commission agreed that benefits were likely, as smart meters can be instrumental in helping customers lower their energy consumption. That in itself makes AMI a key component of the “nonwire alternatives” feature of New York’s recently promulgated Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) policy, the commission said.

At the same time, though, the PSC deemed updated metering equipment to be critical to utilities in improving reliability, in part through better communication and coordination efforts when restoring service in the wake of outages. The commission added that the information and data flows that occur between smart meters and utilities can yield improved system management, making the utility network more resilient and efficient. The commission related that beginning next year, O&R expects to replace a total of around 229,500 electric meters and 134,500 gas meters in all or parts of Rockland, Orange, and Sullivan counties.

To assure that the initiative remains cost-effective, the commission capped the utility’s AMI expenditures at $98.5 million. It also directed the utility to undertake a customer awareness and education campaign, so as to facilitate consumer acceptance of the new meters. Re Orange & Rockland Utilities, Inc., Case 17-M-0178, Nov. 16, 2017 (N.Y.P.S.C.).