SmartSynch News
Texas Utility Calls on SmartSynch, AT&Tby Sari Krieger, Dow Jones Clean Technology Insight Texas New Mexico Power Co. became the first utility to sign a deal with SmartSynch Inc. under the smart meter company's new pricing relationship with AT&T Inc. The Lewisville, Texas-based utility inked a deal for 10,000 meters with Jackson, Miss.-based SmartSynch. Last month, AT&T and SmartSynch rolled out new service plans to make it less expensive for utilities to use AT&T's wireless network for smart-grid communications instead of having to build a new utility-based network. The two companies had been using this AT&T-network based smart-meter system at large commercial and industrial buildings and about 35,000 homes across the country in pilot projects. But this new pricing structure makes it more affordable for utilities to roll out the technology for many more residential and small commercial users. "When you deploy our technology you just drop it in, and it works at that location. You don't have to wait to get the network synchronized," SmartSynch Chief Executive Stephen Johnston said in an interview with Clean Technology Insight Johnston said that the significance of this deal for his company is that it's the first to be signed under the new pricing agreement. SmartSynch wouldn't disclose the terms of the deal. Utilities across the country have been testing and rolling out smart meters, which allow users to monitor how much power they are using in real time. The technology also allows utilities to more easily monitor power outages. Smart meters also have the potential to work with smart appliances being developed by companies like General Electric Co. and Whirlpool Corp. that can be automatically powered down during peak pricing times. Experts say that customers are more likely to cut down on energy use if they can see how much they're using in real time. Utilities want customers to cut down on peak-power usage because peak power is expensive for the utility, which often has to bring dirtier backup plants online during this time. The Texas utility had been testing these meters on a small scale for the past 14 months and has now decided to move forward. If the utility finds this next phase successful it may roll out these meters to its entire customer base. Texas New Mexico Power, a subsidiary of PNM Resources Inc., has about 230,000 customers in Texas. The utility will install these meters by the end of this year and it currently has no end date for the trial, Neil Walker, vice president of operations for the utility, said in an interview. TMNP will use the meters to monitor outages and remotely connect and disconnect service. Walker said the local retail utilities may work with customers to offer other services that smart meters can perform. Walker said that the utility chose to work with SmartSynch because it saw good results in the trial and it saves money in being able to use the existing AT&T network for smart meter communications. "The way our service territory is built it out, we don't want to have to go and build a network of our own," Walker said. Walker said that although sometimes voice calls can be dropped on cellphone networks, smart meters transmit data in a more compact and reliable way over such a network.
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