MEPs learn from California rollout mistakes

27.04.11

MEPs from the European Commission’s industry, energy and research committee have been meeting senior energy executives in California. They aim to learn lessons about the roll-out of smart meters, as California already uses them widely.

A delegation spokesman said:

“With smart meters came a whole new method of charging for electricity, with variable tariffs allowing for more customer choice. But the Californians have realised that they didn't adequately explain the new system to customers, with the result that in cases where household bills increased, this was often blamed on the smart meters themselves. In the EU we have time to investigate this further before smart meters are rolled out and thereby hopefully avoid making the same mistakes."

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