Elster Electricity, LLC (www.elsterelectricity.com) announces that the Salt River Project Agricultural and Improvement Power District in Phoenix, Arizona, U.S., is continuing to install approximately 10,000 REX meters per month as part of its EnergyAxis System expansion project. SRP expects to install all of the 100,000 meters purchased in June 2006 by May 2007, totaling 175,000 REX meters installed since the system was deployed. The ongoing expansion includes an additional 20,000 REX meters with internal service control switches, bringing the total number of REX meters with remote connect/disconnect capability to 45,000.

With the EnergyAxis System, SRP is able to read all the REX meters in the system daily. Since deploying the EnergyAxis System, SRP has seen a savings of 85,000 miles (136,794 km) in vehicle expenses and has remotely completed over 85,000 field orders. In the past 12 months alone, SRP has completed more than 9000 remote connects and disconnects. Every REX meter in the SRP system is programmed to collect time-of-use (TOU) data. This allows SRP to offer TOU rates to customers who normally would not have this option available because of access restrictions (such as locked gates or dogs). For customers electing TOU rates, the switch to TOU billing can be made almost immediately and without the normal field visit.

The EnergyAxis System allows SRP to access meters remotely on a daily basis for meter reading and field service activities. The REX meters that have an internal service control switch allow SRP to connect and disconnect service on those meters from a remote location — often in the same day and with very little effort. This feature benefits both SRP and its customers because SRP eliminates a trip to the field and customers do not have to wait hours to have their service reconnected. The same scenario exists for service turn-ons for new customers or when a home changes hands from the contractor to the new homeowner.