Itron (Liberty Lake, Washington, U.S., www.itron.com) has completed the fastest automated meter reading (AMR) deployment in North America for Progress Energy (Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.).

In just 18 months, more than 2.7 million electromechanical meters were replaced with Itron's highly accurate, AMR-equipped CENTRON solid-state meter.

Progress Energy serves customers in Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina. The AMR-equipped CENTRON meters were installed in all three states, with an aggressive schedule to finish the deployment in less than two years. On its peak day, Progress Energy — through its contract with Itron — completed more than 20,000 meter exchanges.

“In addition to a speedy installation, this project provides a less intrusive meter-reading process for our customers and accurate, real-time information on energy usage,” said Bill Johnson, president and COO of Progress Energy. “This initiative also is benefiting customers by reducing operating expenses in the long term.”

Johnson said his company expects to save US$21 million annually with AMR technology. He also said Progress Energy has experienced a 50% reduction of meter-related billing complaints from previously estimated meter reads, inaccurate utility bills and work order errors.