By: Rod Kuckro |
Dive Brief:
- Commonwealth Edison is among the latest electric utility to propose allowing customers who object to smart meters to opt out for a fee. It wants to Illinois Commerce Commission to approve a $25 per month charge for those wanting to the smart grid to bypass their homes.
- Fees charged to those refusing a smart meter vary. In British Columbia, BC Hydro charges $35/month. In Hawai, Kauai Island Utility Cooperative wants to charge $10.27/month to the roughly 10% of its 30,000 customers who have opted out. Memphis Light, Gas and Water does no charge anything for opting out.
Dive Insight:
The concession being made by utilities to opponents of smart maters may not be enough to satisfy groups like stopsmartmeters.org, which assigns all sort of ills to their use.
Recommended Reading:
Smart Grid News: Smart grid backlash: More utilites choose opt-out fees for smart meter protesters
