LESCO to install 1.7 million modern meters.

LAHORE -- The Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO), in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), will install 1.7 million meters based on the advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) to address billing complaints and power theft.

The installation of the modern meters will cost $300 million. The move will help eliminate traditional meter reading and its cost, as well as line losses.

Incidents of meters and transformers catching fire are also likely to be reduced as the devices will keep relaying information to a central control room.

LESCO's contract with a foreign company has been finalised for the technical and commercial evaluation of the AMI project. The consultancy contract has been signed for the installation of new AMI meters in place of old devices in the LESCO region. The consultancy firm will complete commercial and technical evaluation in three months, after which work on the project will start. The project will be completed in four years.

Of the project cost, 78.5 percent will be met by the ADB, while LESCO will provide 21.5 percent of the funding through its sources. Under the project, 1.7 million AMI meters will be installed in LESCO's south and central circles.

The plan envisages the installation of 1,474,532 single-phase and 213,120 three-phase meters. In the two circles, 28,753 commercial and industrial users' meters will be replaced by the latest AMI devices.

The project will help in improving the monitoring of the demand and supply of electricity. Traditional meter reading, its cost and line losses will be reduced. Better planning would be possible through the availability of timely and accurate information in the central control room. If any meter is out of order, the control room will immediately detect it. The cost of disconnection and re-installation of a meter will also decrease.

After the installation of an AMI meter, the user can check his electric load, voltage and...