Smart Metering

TThe revamped distribution sector scheme was introduced by the government in July 2021 with the objectives of improving the financial and operational efficiency of the distribution companies, including reducing the aggregate technical and commercial losses to 12-15% by 2025.

A Key pillar of the scheme is the nationwide rollout of smart meters, with the adoption of a ‘design, build, finance, own, operate and transfer” DBFOPT model to enable the distribution companies to avoid the upfront investment cost of the meters and associated communication and IT infrastructure.

Further, the availability of a direct debit payment mechanism, wherein online payments received from customers are routed from the payment gateway to the AMI service providers is likely to mitigate the counterparty credit risk associated with the distribution companies to a large extent.