LAHORE: The Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco) is all set to start installing three-phase advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) for the consumers seeking new connections, Dawn has learnt.

“From now onwards, any applicant seeking new connection (three-phase) under domestic, commercial or industrial categories would have an AMI meter. However, those seeking new connections (single-phase) would also have AMI meters at a later stage,” Lesco Chief Executive Officer Shahid Haidar said while talking to Dawn on Saturday.

The AMI meters, also known as smart meters, automatically transfer the reading data to the control room (main server) on the exact meter reading date and time, enabling the officials to quickly process and send bills to the consumers. Since the system also allows power distribution companies to receive and check reading on a daily basis, it minimises the chances of corruption (overbilling, tampering etc) by ending the obsolete manual reading system.

“We will soon start receiving AMI meters from the manufacturers. As soon as we receive these meters, we will start installing them,” the Lesco CEO said.

Smart meters are aimed at minimising chances of corruption

According to him, Lesco has already replaced 56,000 meters with the smart ones at small industries and tube wells. Similarly, about 56,000 more connections would be replaced with smart meters by the end of this year.

It may be mentioned that Lesco, in 2018, had decided to expand the scope of the smart metering project after completion of the pilot project by replacing the meters of 18,000 consumers in various sub-divisions/areas, including Faizpur, Rachna Town, Bilal Ganj, Sharaqpur, Angoori Bagh and Taj Bagh.

The first-of-its-kind project aims at facilitating the consumers in knowing about meter reading anytime of the day, even on an hourly or a half-hourly basis, instead of a month, besides enabling the DISCOs to automatically receive the monthly reading.

Responding to questions, Mr Haidar termed Lesco’s Kasur circle as the worst in terms of power theft, saying that in fact it was owing to a number of areas situated along the India border, weak surveillance, corruption of the field staff and other issues.

“We have already removed many officials/officers from service on account of corruption. More or less, the same situation also persists in Lahore’s areas (Wagah circle). To end power theft and take forceful action against the thieves, we have requested the federal government to provide us Rangers,” he explained.

Besides, the company has also requested the Punjab Police to appoint five police officials in each division of Lesco.

“This request has been accepted by police and it will help us curb power theft and control line losses.”

The Lesco CEO claimed that overbilling in Lesco had been controlled to the maximum level as the complaints in this regard were decreasing day by day. He said Lesco would soon start installing meters at each transformer that would help the company know about the theft. In rural areas, he said, the company had decided to lay special insulated cable that could not be used for theft through hooking (Kunda) by anyone.

Meanwhile, a team of the Lesco detected massive power theft by one Liaqat who had tampered with his meter.

According to a spokesman, a team during a visit in a locality near Mehmood Booti checked a meter and found it tampered with. The officials found that Liaqat had stolen electricity worth Rs170m so far. The team disconnected the supply, removed the meter and submitted application to police for registration of a case.

Published in Dawn, September 15th, 2024