Black Hills Power Implements Advanced Metering Infrastructure
in Western South Dakota and Eastern Wyoming
What is AMI? Advanced Metering Infrastructure is defined as systems that measure, collect and analyze energy usage through various communication media on request or on a pre-defined schedule.
Black Hills Power, which serves 69,000 customers in 25 communities in western South Dakota, northeastern Wyoming and southeastern Montana, began its installation of AMI smart meters in June 2010 with a plan to install 69,000 smart meters, along with communications infrastructure, IT software and equipment necessary to initiate an advanced metering system, in its western South Dakota and eastern Wyoming utility service areas.
Black Hills Power will receive approximately $9.6 million in matching funds as part of the Department of Energy’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for the installation of these AMI smart meters and communications infrastructure.
Black Hills Power began installations in June 2010 and anticipates these installations will occur throughout the remainder of the year. These meters will be installed throughout the Black Hills service territory.
If you have not received a smart meter yet, you can expect:
- A postcard from Black Hills Power explaining the pilot program and the process that will be followed to install the new meters at your home or business.
- That the average installation process will normally be completed within 10 minutes, and after the work is finished, our contractors will place a notice on your door informing you that your meter has been upgraded.
Project Benefits:
Black Hills Power’s AMI initiative also provides the infrastructure to integrate with the organizations outage management system by using the smart meters to obtain outage and restoration information immediately.
Black Hills’ smart grid projects contribute to the national goal of an intelligent grid and serve the public interest of customers in Colorado, Wyoming and South Dakota.
For more information, please view our AMI Fact Sheet or contact Black Hills Power at 800-742-8948.
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