Dive Summary:
- Brazilian regulators have ruled that previous smart meter installation plans would be too costly and are instead supporting a plan wherein customers who opt in would pay for their own installations.
- Bloomberg New Energy Finance assessed that this move may reduce a $10 billion metering tech market that Elster Group and Echelon Corp. warmed up to by about half.
- An expanding Brazilian population of more than 200 million people has made the country an attractive target for utilities technology companies.
From the article:
"... Brazil’s primary electricity regulator, the Agência Nacional de Energia Elétrica, recently ruled that Brazil’s plan to install the advanced meters nationwide would be too costly. The regulator instead favors a policy of installing meters only for customers who request a change and cover the costs. Many customers are expected to do so, since the meters help reduce monthly electricity bills, but data compiled by Bloomberg New Energy Finance suggests that the ANEEL’s decision will limit the market in that country to about $5 billion through 2020, compared to a previous estimate of $10 billion. ..."
