Yazoo Valley Electric Power Association (Yazoo Valley Electric), an electric cooperative utility located in central Mississippi, has begun deploying the TS2 advanced metering solution from Cellnet+Hunt.

Yazoo Valley Electric will fully deploy the TS2 system to over 10,000 meters. The utility cited Cellnet+Hunt's strong customer service track record and proven technology as key reasons for their selection of TS2.

Ronald White, Yazoo Valley Electric's Manager of System Services, said, "The cost savings from manual meter reading was key to our business case, but we're also looking forward to using the system's two-way capabilities to provide enhanced services to our customers."

Yazoo Valley Electric provides reliable power for over 9,300 residential and over 900 commercial customers from its headquarters in Yazoo City, Mississippi. With a distribution system comprised of over 2700 miles of line that cover portions of six counties, Yazoo Valley Electric's 3.2 customers per mile of line make it one of the most geographically dispersed electric cooperatives in the Southeast United States.

"We're rolling out to the first substation now, and the recent project kick off workshop was a good opportunity for our team to learn about the customer service possibilities available with the new system," said Rebecca Yeates, Yazoo Valley Electric Member Services/Communications Coordinator.

A power line carrier (PLC)-based communication technology, TS2 is a full two-way advanced metering system that offers demand response capabilities, such as load control and time-based pricing, as well as distribution system monitoring and load profile capabilities.