New electricity meters will be mandatory in a few years. How much will you have to pay for them?
The Modernization Fund has already allocated over PLN 600 million for the purchase of modern electricity meters. In a few years, such devices are to be found in every home. What are the costs associated with this for households?
On Wednesday, the Vice-President of the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management (NFOŚiGW) Józef Matysiak and representatives of Energa Operator signed another agreement to co-finance the purchase of almost 436,000 remote reading meters and over 23,000 substitute communication modems.
Smart meters with subsidy
This is the second such agreement with the company. The previous one, from 2023, amounted to almost PLN 65 million. The beneficiaries include Energa Operator, Enea Operator, Tauron Dystrybucja and PGE Dystrybucja. The program’s budget is PLN 1 billion.
The obligation to replace meters results from the amendment to the Energy Law. According to the regulations, by July 4, 2031, all end users throughout Poland should use remote reading meters. In turn, EU regulations impose on distribution companies the obligation to equip 80 percent of their individual customers with such devices. They have until 2028 to do so.
What are smart meters?
Smart meters measure in real time, eliminating the risk of reading errors. Data obtained remotely makes it easier to locate network faults, identify customers affected by a failure and provide the ability to better manage energy consumption.
Households that have a remote meter installed can benefit from so-called dynamic electricity tariffs. This assumes that energy rates change throughout the day depending on various factors, such as energy demand, weather conditions or the situation on the energy market.
How much does it cost to replace a meter?
Meter replacement is usually free of charge, however, in the case of earlier installation at the customer’s request, the cost is approximately PLN 300. For example, at PGE, the cost of installing and starting remote data transmission is PLN 322 net (PLN 396.06 gross) for a 1-phase meter and PLN 342 net (PLN 420.66 gross) for a 3-phase meter.
The Ministry of Climate estimates that the cost of purchasing and installing new meters will be around PLN 9 billion, which will be covered by energy companies. The entire process has been spread over several years so that companies are able to finance it. However, it is estimated that over 15 years this investment is to generate savings of PLN 11.3 billion, which will result, among other things, from the lack of the need to employ people to read meters in the field.
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