metercost

Metercost is a term used in utility engineering and energy economics to denote the total cost associated with metering infrastructure and processes required to measure, transmit, and manage consumption data. It captures all expenses involved in obtaining and operating meters that track usage for billing and monitoring purposes.

It encompasses capital expenditures for meters and hardware, installation and commissioning, communication networks (such as cellular, radio, or power-line communication), software licenses and data management systems, systems integration with billing, cybersecurity, metrology compliance, and ongoing maintenance. The concept is used to evaluate the financial footprint of metering programs over their useful life.

In project planning, metercost is used in cost-benefit analyses and feasibility studies for new billing regimes, smart-grid deployments, and demand-management programs. It can be expressed as a per-meter or per-customer metric and projected over the asset life.

Factors influencing the metercost include meter type and features (classic electromechanical versus advanced smart meters), communication technology, data transmission frequency, regulatory requirements, geographic conditions, and the scope of associated services such as installation, testing, and customer support.

Economic considerations: As smart-meter programs expand, metercost analysis often weighs upfront capital expenditure against potential operating expense savings from automated reads, theft reduction, improved billing accuracy, and enhanced demand-response capabilities.

See also: Metering, Utility costs, Smart grid.