College Station Automated Metering Infrastructure

1. Prepared by Schneider Engineering, Ltd. |
ADVANCED METERING INFRASTRUCTURE
PLANNING DISCUSSION

2. Presentation
Goal
Continue the conversation regarding advanced metering
for the City’s electric and water utilities.
Our presentation will address the following areas:
o Review of AMI implementation in Texas / ERCOT
o Discussions of the need / benefits of possible pilot
project(s)
o AMI features, benefits and costs – what
functionality will consumers and CS Utilities realize?
o Discussion and recommendations on how to
proceed
2

3. Quick Review of AMI
3

4. What is Advanced
Metering
Infrastructure?
Electronic meters with high-speed /
two-way communications
Various technologies / systems in the
“advanced metering” industry
Distinctions are related to the type of
communication network utilized
4

5. Review of AMI adoption and
implementation by utilities in Texas
5

6. Current AMI
Status - Texas
Investor-Owned
Utilities (IOU)
Drivers
•2005: HB-2129 – “…PUCT shall establish a
non-bypassable surcharge for IOUs to use
to recover reasonable and necessary costs
incurred in deploying advanced metering
and meter information networks…”
•2007: HB-3693 – “…it is the intent of the
legislature that …advanced meter
information networks be deployed as
rapidly as possible to allow IOU customers
to better manage energy use and control
costs and to facilitate demand response
initiatives.”
Legislation
• 2009: PUCT approves non-bypassable
surcharge fees to pay for IOU advanced
meter deployment.
• IOU customers will pay those monthly
fees from 2009 through 2020
Regulation
6

7. 7
1. IOUs have installed over 6 million AMI meters in Texas
2. CenterPoint Energy received a Smart Grid stimulus grant from DOE
which covered approximately 50% of their AMI project
implementation costs
3. SE is working to confirm end of surcharge timeframe
Current AMI
Status – Texas
Investor-Owned
Utilities (IOUs)
Numbers
Number of AMI
Meters1
Deployment
Complete
Residential
Surcharge
Surcharge
Timeframe
CenterPoint 2.3 M 2012 $3.05 2011 – 20142
Oncor 3.0 M 2012 $2.19 2011 – 2020
AEP TCC 809 K 2013 $2.26 2011 – TBD3
AEP TNC 193 K 2013 $2.35 2011 – TBD3
TNMP 200 K 2016 $3.40 2011 – TBD3

8. Current AMI
Status - Texas
Public Power
Situation
Municipal Owned Utilities (MOUs) and Electric
Cooperatives
Local Control (no mandates)
Cooperative segment were early adopters
AMR/PLC (due to rural profile and associated meter reading costs)
Drivers for AMI adoption / implementation
• Linked to attainment of strategic goals
• Failing 1st Generation AMR system
• Operational and Customer Service benefits
8

9. 9
City / Utility Total Meters Number of AMI
meters deployed
Deployment
Schedule
San Antonio
(CPS Energy) 740,000 electric
Pilot program
40,000 in 2011
Started mid-2014
Full deployment
by 2018 (RF Mesh)
Austin (Austin
Energy)
435,000 electric Full deployment 2004-2011
Bryan (BTU) 52,000 electric Full deployment 2012 (P2P)
Denton (DME) 48,500 electric 44,000 to date
Complete late-
2014
New Braunfels
(NBU)
31,000 electric
29,500 water 0 Initial study only
Georgetown
(GUS)
23,000 electric
23,000 water
Full deployment
Completed
recently (RF Mesh)
Current AMI in
Texas
Public Power
Deployment

10. Is there any need to pilot AMI?
10

11. To Pilot
or
Not to Pilot?
Leading AMI manufactures all
have operational systems that can
be observed (nearby)
The various types of AMI
(difference communication
technologies) are proven / mature
technologies
Pilots require significant
communication, software / IT costs
– whether it is 1,000 or 100,000
meters
At this point – AMI Pilot projects
are expensive and risky – and not
necessary
11

12. AMI in College Station
12

13. Key Business
Case Factors /
Considerations
13
•Electric Meters: 10-15 years life
•Meters have…more electronics…more
plastic
•Water Meters: Several variables /
assumptions
•Battery life impacted by number of reads
per day / per month
•Some manufacturers have 20 year
accuracy guarantee and 10 year battery
life guarantee—(prorated in years 10-20)
Expected life of
new “AMI
Electric and
Water Meter”
•Elimination of manual meter reading
•No more trips to connect /disconnect
accounts (electric only)
•Increased efficiency related to customer
service and operations
•Reduction in water losses (leak
detection)
Savings Drivers
•Need additional IT, communications and
meter /system techniciansOffsets to Savings

14. What will AMI
in CS likely
consist of?
What will it do?
Likely to select a Radio-
Frequency based AMI
system
•Point-to-Point or Mesh
•Backhaul with fiber, cellular or
microwave
Meter Data Management
System
•Manage all the interval data
•Robust interactive consumer portal
with graphs, charts, alerts
Eliminate manual meter
reading
•Current annual cost is $372K
•No need to go on consumer’s
premise
Remote connect / disconnect
feature on electric meters
•Current annual cost for manual
service $73K
Potential for utility to integrate AMI information and
functionality
•Reduce outage times / improve outage notifications
•Support demand response / conservation voltage reduction
•Improve system operations and planning
•Provide data for Load/System Studies and Transformer Loading Studies
•Enable new rate design(s)
14

15. Initial Project Costs - Estimate
15
AMI Component / Item Quantity Unit Cost Total Cost Comments
Communication System
(materials and installation)
(Shared)
1 system $350K - $750K
Depends on type of RF system
selected
Software / IT / MDM (Shared) Initial Setup $750K- $900K Upfront costs
Electric Meters 40,000 $100 - $140 $4M - $5.6M
Depends on type of RF system
selected
Electric Meter Installation 40,000 $15 $600K
Water Meters 8,250 $60 $495K
25% of system has AMI compatible
meters installed – just need a new
registers
24,750 $140 $3.465M
Water Meter Installation
8,250 $30 $247.5K
24,750 $60 $1.485M
Total $11,392,500 – $13,542,500

16. Project Costs -
Initial and
Ongoing
Initial Costs
• $11.4 M - $13.6 M
Ongoing Costs
• Additional FTEs
• $100K - $200K in annual licensing / maintenance fees
Does this estimate square with IOU monthly
charges ($2-3 per month on electric meters) ?
• Yes. Counting both electric and water accounts – a $2.50 per
meter per month charge equals $2.19M / year for CS
• Recovery at this rate over 6 years equals $13.14M
16

17. Will Expected
Savings Offset
Costs?
17
•Savings related to the elimination of manual
meter reading and trip costs for electric
connects / disconnects equals approximately
$.50/meter/month
•These savings partially offset by additional
O&M costs for AMI system (meter and
communications technicians)
•Hard to quantify / monetize:
•Customer service benefits
•Operational benefits (loss reduction,
conservation voltage reduction and demand
response)
•Reliability benefits (reduction in outage
times)
•Water leakage reduction benefits
•A detailed Business Case / Planning Study can
get at some of this granular savings detail
Hard to
see how.
Maybe
over the
life of the
system..?

18. Where to go from here?
18

19. Current
Situation
No current statutory or regulatory mandate for
College Station to have AMI metering system
Current process / manual meter reading system is
functional
Other significant capital projects in the queue
(ERP upgrade is scheduled thru 2015)
Currently have a placeholder for an AMI system in
the FY19 budget
19

20. Recommended
Actions
For a project of this size, complexity and magnitude
A formal study is needed
• Link to core strategies for reliability, affordability,
safety and customer service
• Determine (nail down) options, costs and benefits
• Specify system type and functionality
• Determine overall schedule
• Plan for RFPs / AMI system selection and MDM system
• Develop installation Plan (and RFP)
• Plan for integration with IT, OMS, SCADA (other “Smart
Utility” systems)
• Start Study in FY17
20

21. Summary
The City of College Station Utilities is in a good
position related to eventual implementation of AMI
for both the electric and water utilities
1. There is no mandate -- (it’s on your terms)
2. Time to evaluate, plan and “get it right”
3. Study, plan and engineer system in advance
4. Learn from the experience of other utilities
5. Monitor status of other CIP projects to ensure
resources and funds available to take on AMI when
time comes
21

22. Questions / Discussion
22