Utility Week

14 | 3RD - 9TH MAY 2019 | UTILITY WEEK Policy & Regulation Analysis I nteroperability, missed deadlines and a fall in the rate of installations – the omens for the smart meter rollout have not been good. In a country dominated by the political fallout from Brexit, it is sometimes di cult to remember the introduction of the devices has been ongoing for almost a decade. And it's safe to say the smart meter roll- out has received some monumentally nega- tive press from national media. So taking into account all these factors, should the 2020 deadline be scrapped? Or should suppliers and the government persevere? Initially, the government said every home should have a smart meter installed by 2020 – an ambition subsequently revised to that of suppliers taking all reasonable steps to o- er the meters to homes by this time. Yet numerous issues have plagued the rollout, with even the government's o cial smart meter campaign predicting the 2020 target will not be met. Robert Cheesewright, director of corpo- rate a- airs at Smart Energy GB, says: "It is very unlikely that the rollout of smart meters will be complete by 2020, but energy suppli- ers are working tirelessly to enable consum- ers to bene‰ t from smart meters as quickly as possible." Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, has also previously expressed con- cerns about the rollout timetable and has called for a deadline extension. "Smart meters will provide bene‰ ts for customers, but with the rollout beset by technical problems, the current timetable is unrealistic. "There's little chance that the 2020 dead- line will be met; it should be extended to 2023." Furthermore a recent report released by the National Audit O ce (NAO) warned that the government's ambition of o- ering a smart meter to every home by 2020 will not be met, while the cost of the rollout will likely "escalate beyond initial expectations". The government also "underestimated" how long it would take to implement the infrastructure of SMETS2 smart meter devices, according to the spending watchdog. But did these issues really come as a shock to the industry? Ian Barker, managing partner at Bfy Consulting, does not seem to think so: "The delays to the smart metering programme don't come as a surprise to anyone involved in the energy industry. "There have been notable challenges and delays with systems (Data Communica- tions Company, DCC), supply chain (access to SMETS2 meters), and customer engage- ment – getting customers to switch to smart meters which have a risk of going 'dumb' when switching supplier. "With hindsight it's very easy to say a street-by-street approach led by the distri- bution network operators would be a better approach to achieving a compliant position. "There are still opportunities for sup- pliers to improve appointment booking through targeted and tailored journeys – but this must be done with the customer expe- rience considered paramount during the interaction." Smart meters going "dumb" has been another bugbear for industry and consum- ers, with some ‰ gures suggesting more than 50 per cent of SMETS1 devices became inter- operable when a customer switched supplier – something the DCC will rectify in the coming months. Meter rollout has not been so smart With the scheme posing myriad challenges and latest fi gures showing installation activity by large suppliers down 16 per cent, it looks unlikely the 2020 smart meter deadline will be met, says Adam John. It is very unlikely that the rollout of smart meters will be complete by 2020, but energy suppliers are working tirelessly to enable consumers to benefi t from smart meters as quickly aspossible. Robert Cheesewright, director of corporate a airs, Smart Energy GB The delivery was always going to take longer… based on the delayed rollout commencement for SMETS2 meters and the complexity in reaching all properties. Mark Coyle, chief strategy o cer, Utiligroup

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