Public Service Electric & Gas (PSE&G) received approval this week from the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to invest approximately $700 million during the next four years to provide its 2.3 million electric customers with smart meters. The decision clears the way for the largest installation of smart meter technology in New Jersey history.
Smart meters are the foundation of PSE&G’s Energy Cloud, which is an advanced metering infrastructure effort that will create an integrated, two-way communications network between electric customers and the utility. This network will enable automatic, near real-time meter reading. According to PSE&G, this will virtually eliminate estimated utility bills, provide more efficient response to outages, and allow customers to make more informed decisions about their energy usage.
The implementation of a smart meter network is another step toward achieving Gov. Phil Murphy’s clean energy vision for New Jersey. The improved communications will lead to fewer truck dispatches and other efficiencies that are expected to reduce PSE&G’s carbon dioxide emissions by about 2,800 metric tons per year.
PSE&G says the transition to smart meters will occur over several years.