It's Not the Technology, It's How You Use It!
Starting in the fall of 2010, NHEC will begin swapping out its existing electric meters with advanced, digital electric meters. At first, it will be business as usual - you'll continue to receive the same electric service with the same rate structure. Over time, however, the new meters will allow you to take advantage of new tools to better manage your electricity use. How will a simple meter do that? Let's look at the facts...

AMI meters feature two-way communications
All 80,000 meters in NHEC's service territory are being replaced over the next three years. Instead of a meter reader visiting your property once a month to record your usage, AMI meters will report their own readings via a wireless communications network. NHEC will receive the same information from these meters as it currently does, however, the information will be more timely and provide you with more information on your energy usage so you can make decisions on how you use energy. These meters will also provide more real-time information on power outages. This will enable more efficient operations and communications.

An example of an in-home display that receives data from a 'smart meter' and displays electric usage information to the homeowner.

'Smart meters' look similar to existing electric meters, but instead of spinning dials, they measure electric usage on digital displays.

AMI can help you control your energy costs - but only if you want it to
The two-way flow of information that is possible with AMI opens the door to a number of potential cost saving applications, but only if you want to take advantage of them. By installing switches on the biggest energy users in your home - air conditioners, clothes dryers, water heaters, etc. - a signal can be sent through your meter that lowers or shuts down these appliances when energy prices or regional demand exceed a pre-set limit. However, simply installing an AMI meter at your home or business does not give NHEC the ability to remotely adjust your energy usage. This feature can only work with the installation of load control devices that will not be installed unless you want them and expressly allow NHEC to install them.

If you choose to participate in the voluntary programs available, this two-way flow of information between your meter and NHEC will provide you with an opportunity to use a variety of in-home energy management systems and intelligent controls in appliances. In fact, members selected from a group of approximately 8,000 will be able to start using some of these enhanced capabilities right away as part of NHEC's Smart Grid Demonstration Project. One thousand demand-response switches will be installed at members' homes in the Demonstration project area who volunteer to be part of the program. These switches will remotely control devices, with the members' consent, such as water heaters or thermal storage devices, helping NHEC reduce its members' peak load. In addition, 500 in-home displays will be provided to selected members' homes, allowing them to understand their energy use patterns, view real-time usage data, historical data and actual costs. Using data collected from the Demonstration group, NHEC will then decide whether or not to expand the program to all members.

Updates When Available
Bookmark this page for updates on the progress of NHEC's AMI installation.