Deploying a meter-to-cash solution helped Dishergarh Power Supply Corporation Ltd improve its grid management, automate the billing process and monitor energy thefts. By KTP Radhika
Given the humongous scarcity of power that India faces today, electricity generating companies have to deal with issues like power theft and transmission losses. Today, a good chunk of generated power is lost due to non-technical reasons and energy theft. Consequently, these companies constantly seek out solutions to stem such scenarios. Dishergarh Power Supply Corporation Ltd (DPSC), established in 1919, is a power generation, transmission and distribution company based out of West Bengal that supplies power to major industries, coal mines and government institutions in the Asansol-Raniganj industrial belt of the state. With a total overhead circuit kilometer (the product of the number of lines and the length in kilometers) of about 800 km and underground cabling running to about 200 km, the company has a license area of about 618 sq. km. It supplies power in the voltage range of 11 KV to 29 KV. DPSC faced challenges in the real time monitoring and grid management of its energy feed along with overload and underload conditions in the network.
Challenges & solutions
The company was using state-of-the-art technologies for power generation, distribution and transmission. However, it wanted to reduce overload and underload conditions and needed to improve the reliability of its grid. Another area of concern was that of non-technical loss of power and energy theft. The company also faced challenges in operational service processes such as meter installation, proper meter reading, dunning, disconnection and reconnection.
Billing wasn’t error free either. Without an adequate solution, it was difficult to monitor security deposits, account receivables, pre-payments and load shaping. Sandip Saha, Project Manager, AMR and SAP ISU Implementation, DPSC, said, “As the company adds capacity for power generation, it is important for us to monitor the day-to-day activities in each area. In addition, customer loyalty and satisfaction are important for us. We wanted a solution that would help us improve grid reliability, automate the process of installing meters as well as meter reading and billing. We also wanted to avoid theft and related issues.” Apart from that, the company wanted a solution for facility management, application management, annual technical support and maintenance, help-desk and system support.
It was then that DPSC thought of deploying a Meter-To-Cash (M2C) solution from Atos India with SAP’s Industries Solutions for Utilities (ISU). Shah explained, “Atos was chosen since they have extensive industry experience along with a track record of successful billing implementations. It also had proven IT expertise in smart metering, implementation of project-specific requirements and integration strength in external systems and data conversion from legacy systems.”
Atos M2C solution provided DPSC with automation based on a comprehensive framework covering a fully integrated Automated Meter Reading (AMR) solution. The key components of the solution consist of meter data management, billing management, credit and collection management, customer management service, order management, meter asset management as well as integration between AMR and SAP ISU. Saify Burhani, Head SAP Systems Integration, Atos India, commented, “Atos’ M2C solution has a unique implementation approach encompassing smart meter installation projects and SAP ISU implementation.” The solution also has an interruption module with India-specific localization. The project included the integration of SAP Material Management and Financial & Controlling modules, which helped in achieving an end-to-end meter-to-cash system deployment with training, handholding and support. “For DPSC, the implementation has been planned phase-wise with defined checkpoints and a comprehensive risk management approach,” added Burhani.
Achievements
After implementing the M2C solution, DPSC’s management has been able to better its distribution process through improved forecasting and load management. The solution has also helped create accurate customer billing based on flexible tariffs and provided visibility and control over the customer’s energy consumption. One of the principal advantages of this implementation has been that the company is now able to detect outages and potential instances of fraud. Saha of DPSC explained, “The deployment of the M2C solution has helped reduce estimated bills and site visits to obtain meter readings. We were also able to gain real-time consumption information and this has helped monitor and optimize the power distribution process. It has also helped curb energy theft and manage revenues through the proper capture of interruptions.”
Another benefit of the system has been to have a high quality of data at the point of use, which has helped the company enable local energy management. By adopting this solution, DPSC now has the potential to influence demand by pricing signals or direct load management. “The solution has not only helped us earn substantial savings by automating customer processes and through faster problem resolution but it has also improved our reputation through innovation and boosted customer satisfaction,” DPSC’s Saha concluded.
