SP AusNet leases Austar 'WiMAX' spectrum for smart metering

Stuart Corner
Thursday, 12 November 2009 09:14

Business IT - Networking

Austar (ASX: AUN) is to lease a portion of its 2.3GHz spectrum licences in regional Victoria to SP AusNet (ASX: SPN), which will build a mobile WiMAX network to provide communications with smart electricity meters it plans to rollout to 680,000 consumers in the next three years.

Unwired has previously announced an agreement with SP Ausnet for the use of its 2.3GHz spectrum in Melbourne. SP AusNet will use the Austar spectrum for customers in regional Victoria, extending from areas north and east of Melbourne. SP AusNet's managing director, Nino Ficca said: "In a distinctly different approach to other Victorian electricity distribution companies, we've chosen to utilise WiMAX technology to communicate electricity consumption from the smart meters back to our systems.

Austar said it was in discussions with a number of organisations around the country "to facilitate similar solutions and projects across regional Australia."

SP Ausnet announced its annual results today, 12 November, putting the estimated capital cost of the smart metering project at $400 million and giving a rollout schedule that should see five percent of the 680,000 meters operational by July 2010, 10 percent by January 2011, 25 percent by July 2011, 60 percent by July 2012 and 100 percent by December 2013.

Motorola Home & Networks Mobility business was named last month as SP AusNet's chosen supplier of a full measurement and collection system that includes customer meters, communication networks and data management systems.

Under the Victorian Government's Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) scheme the five Victorian distributors which will install and own the meters - CitiPower, Jemena, Powercor, SP AusNet and United Energy Distribution - are required by the to rollout smart meters by 31 December 2013 to all residential and small business customers.

Earlier this month the Australian Energy Regulator issued its final determination on prices the companies can charge for these services, up until 2011. SP AusNet's residential customers on a single phase supply will pay an additional $86.10 per year.