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INEC adopts smart metering system in 6 pilot areas

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SMART GRID. Officials of the Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative, National Electrification Administration Administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda and Department of Energy Assistant Secretary Mario Marasigan lead the ceremonial switching of the advanced metering infrastructure project at the INEC main branch in Dingras, Ilocos Norte on Jan. 15, 2025. The smart metering system will be deployed in the towns of  Nueva Era, Dingras, Pagudpud, Bacarra, Badoc and the city of Laoag for pilot testing in the first quarter of this year. (Photo grab from NEA’s FB page)

By Leilanie Adriano

Dingras, Ilocos Norte—Government and commercial buildings in five municipalities and a city in Ilocos Norte will be tapped to pilot smart meters in the first quarter of 2025.

The smart metering system will be pilot-tested in the towns of Nueva Era, Dingras, Pagudpud, Bacarra, Badoc and the city of Laoag, Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative (INEC) acting general manager Cipriano Martinez said.

National Electrification Administration administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda and Dept. of Energy Assistant Secretary Mario Marasigan led the ceremonial switching of the advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 15, 2025, at INEC’s main office in Brgy.  Suyo in this town.

“This is a bold step in realizing NEA’s modernization initiatives for the rural electrification sector,” Almeda told reporters after the ceremony.

Ilocos Norte, the home of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and the birthplace of the father of the rural electrification program, former president Ferdinand E. Marcos, is among the pilot areas for the AMI.

The smart meters will measure consumption at short intervals and transmit the data automatically, securely, and without errors to the energy distributor, without the need for the power distributor’s employees to physically read the meters.

The supplier will bill actual energy consumption, not estimated consumption, and will be able to identify accidents more quickly and reduce intervention times.

With smart grids, member-consumer-owners of INEC will also benefit from the project as they can monitor their energy consumption easily and with greater flexibility.

“Right now, our transmission loss is about 10-20 percent out of the around PHP200 million that we pay monthly to power generators. With AMI, we hope to save more from transmission loss as we are consuming an average of 34 million kilowatts a month,” Martinez said.

Asked about the investment cost, Martinez said the INEC management would find a way to shoulder the rollout of the pilot project and expand the installation once proven effective.

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