A quarter of all electricity meters in the Asia-Pacific region will be 'smart meters' by 2015, according to a new research report from analyst firm Berg Insight.
Smart meters report more information than a conventional meter and generally also pass certain details back to the utility company – often via a mobile phone connection – to assist monitoring and billing.
Berg Insight says the number of smart electricity meters in Asia-Pacific will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 91% between 2009 and 2015 to reach 116.5 million at the end of the period. In fact, Berg Insight expects some countries to have approaching 100% penetration by 2020. The Australian state of Victoria has already committed to 100% smart metering by 2013.
Tobias Ryberg, Senior Analyst at Berg Insight, said "Asia-Pacific is the fastest growing market for smart metering solutions in the world. South Korea has begun the construction of a nationwide smart grid where intelligent energy meters constitute the basic building-block. Japan’s two largest power utilities have announced plans for full-scale smart meter deployments in this decade and China is preparing a nationwide rollout within three to five years."