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General Electric secures smart meters contract from ComEdJul 17, 2013 (Datamonitor via COMTEX) -- General Electric Company, or GE, has secured a contract worth over $200 million from ComEd, a unit of Exelon Corporation, to deliver about four million smart meters from 2013 to 2021, to modernize grid in Chicago, US. GE's meters will help to enable effective two-way communication between ComEd and its customers. The smart meters will allow ComEd's customers to better manage their energy usage and help ComEd more quickly detect and restore power outages. "Deploying smart meters will not only strengthen economic growth, create jobs and modernize our electric grid, but empower our customers to take more control over their energy usage," said Anne Pramaggiore, president and CEO, ComEd. "Working side by side with GE, we are able to create a modernized grid that will improve reliability, provide new ways to save energy and money and benefit the Illinois economy." By deploying advanced meters across its service territory, along with other components of its grid modernization initiative, ComEd expects to transform the delivery of electricity to homes and businesses and give consumers greater control over their energy consumption and costs. Under Illinois' 2011 Smart Grid Law, ComEd committed to invest more than $2.6 billion over 10 years to modernize its electric grid in Northern Illinois-more than $1.3 billion of which is earmarked to build a smart grid network and install smart meters in 4 million homes and businesses. Mark Hura, general manager of sales in North America, GE's Digital Energy business, said: "The Illinois Smart Grid program will provide ComEd's customers with the benefits of a modern grid and help GE grow its local workforce in Chicago. "This program allows us to be local with our customer by adding positions focused on the assembly of smart meters, a technology that offers a range of benefits to consumers such as shortened restoration time in the event of an outage. ComEd is a valued customer to GE, as demonstrated by our long-standing relationship and our recent successful smart meter pilot program. We look forward to working with ComEd to make grid modernization a reality in Chicago and all of ComEd's service territory." http://www.datamonitor.com Republication or redistribution, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without prior written consent. Datamonitor shall not be liable for errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon |