Smart meters are becoming a more common sight throughout New Brunswick.
Officials at NB Power began rolling out the meters to their customers last November.
Christina Schneider, manager of customer care, is leading the deployment.
Schneider said the process is expected to continue until the fall of 2025.
“We touch every customer in the province, which is over 365,000,” said Schneider.
Work began in western regions of the province, known by the utility as Area 1. That includes the Grand Falls, Woodstock, Fredericton and St. Stephen areas.
Schneider said they are about 80 per cent complete in that area with work expected to wrap up this summer.
Deployment in Area 2, which includes the Rothesay, Sussex, Moncton, Shediac, Sackville and Bouctouche regions, began in late July and is scheduled to continue through next summer.
Smart meters will be installed in Area 3 starting next spring. That includes the Miramichi, Bathurst, Tracadie and Eel River regions.
Schneider said smart meters will benefit not only the utility but its customers as well.
“Once you get your smart meter, you’re going to be able to view an online portal that’s going to share your kilowatt hour usage in 15-minute intervals for the day prior,” she said.
That information, according to Schneider, will give customers more power to manage their electricity usage.
The online portal will also allow you to set up custom alerts for when your usage reaches a threshold of your choice.
In addition, the smart meters can also notify NB Power when customers lose electricity, which could help improve restoration times.
Schneider said the full deployment is expected to be completed in the fall of 2025.
