Editor: Smart meters are a safe and cost effective way to modernize the electricity system for the benefit of all British Columbians.
Upgrading our electrical metering system and grid will deliver $1.6 billion in savings to our customers over the next 20 years and help keep our rates among the lowest in North America. This will also help get the lights back on faster and more safely and provide customers with new tools to manage their own energy use and save money.
Customers with a smart meter will be able to track their energy use which will help them understand how energy use affects their costs and enable them to take actions to save energy and money.
The new meters will help manage the flow of electricity and enable BC Hydro to track it, much like a store's inventory system. The program will pay for itself and help us manage the grid more efficiently while reducing waste.
Like many utilities around the world, BC Hydro is addressing the challenge of aging infrastructure and meeting increased demand 鈥� and the investment in new meters is a key step in modernizing the electricity system. This is just as important as investing in other parts of the electrical infrastructure system like transmission lines, transformers and utility poles.
Regarding privacy, smart meters provide BC Hydro with the same information about customer electricity use they always have 鈥� except more frequently and accurately. The BC Privacy Commissioner recently confirmed that BC Hydro has an effective privacy management program in place and can properly manage privacy and security for future phases of the smart meter program.
BC Hydro will not be implementing time-of-use rates. Time-of-use rates are used in other jurisdictions with peak demand that exceeds the utility's ability to supply electricity to its customers. Here in B.C. we鈥檙e fortunate to have a flexible electricity system that is 94 per cent hydro generation, where water flow can be adjusted to match supply and demand as needed.
Readers can learn more about the Smart Metering Program and its benefits at and about smart meter safety from the Office of the Provincial Health Officer.
Rich Coleman,
Minister of Energy and Mines,
Fort 91原创-Aldergrove MLA
