A groundbreaking consumer energy display currently being deployed in Australia will be demonstrated by Cellnet+Hunt at the DistribuTech Expo in Tampa Bay, FL, Jan. 22-24.

The ecoMeter™ ? a consumer monitor that installs easily anywhere in the home and displays electric, water and gas usage, along with dynamic pricing alerts ? is being commercialized for sale in North America. The product has been in use at utilities in Australia for two years. Developed by Ampy Metering, it is being readied for deployment at a number of utilities in the United States. Ampy Metering and Cellnet+Hunt are sister companies owned by the Bayard Group.

"The ecoMeter presents an opportunity for North American utilities to engage their customers and give them an active role in energy management and demand response," said Corey McGuire, Cellnet+Hunt General Manager of personal energy management solutions. "Because it offers a number of communication options, ecoMeter can be deployed anywhere, regardless of existing communication infrastructure."

The display engages consumers by showing real-time and historical electricity consumption, greenhouse gas emission information, and tariff lights for "off peak," "shoulder," and "dynamic peak" pricing periods. Real-time pricing information allows consumers to adjust their usage to save costs during peak demand periods. The ecoMeter can receive usage information from any electric meter and pricing information from the utility. It is also configured to interface with pulse and flow meters to display consumption of gas and water. A soon to be released ZigBee® interface will allow communication directly with advanced metering systems.

Surveys have indicated a willingness by upwards of 90 percent of consumers to adopt dynamic rates for energy in exchange for pricing incentives. In one ecoMeter pilot study involving 50 households, a critical peak pricing event signaled by the ecoMeter demonstrated the ability to shed 50 kW of load ? a 30 percent reduction ? during peak demand periods.

Pilot ecoMeter deployments will begin at U.S. utilities in early 2008, with commercial availability projected for the fourth quarter of 2008. More information on the ecoMeter is available at www.ecometer.com.au.

Fri Jan 18 09:50:00 CST 2008