FortisBC is starting community engagement on a proposal to upgrade its gas meters in Burnaby to new advanced meters.
The Advanced Gas Meters project would upgrade the meters of more than one million natural gas customers between 2022 and 2026.
A public information meeting is set for Nov. 13 from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Executive Suites hotel at 4201 Lougheed Hwy. in Burnaby.
The NOW asked FortisBC who will pay for the new meters if they are approved.
"At this early stage of the project, we are still determining the costs,” said FortisBC communications staff Alex Munro. “These costs and any necessary rate changes will be included as part of our application to our regulator, the British Columbia Utilities Commission, expected to be submitted in 2020.”
FortisBC says the change in meters is needed to stay up to date.
“This project would help us build a stronger, more reliable system to deliver natural gas to homes and businesses across British Columbia,” said Douglas Stout, FortisBC vice-president of market development and external relations, in a news release. “Upgrading to advanced meters would modernize our gas infrastructure. The new meters would allow us to better monitor and manage our system – for example FortisBC could remotely detect and respond to gas leaks.”
The project is one of a number of upgrades FortisBC is exploring to improve the resiliency of the system that supplies B.C. homes and businesses with natural gas.
The gas meter technology currently used in B.C. has not fundamentally changed in more than 100 years. The new meters are smaller, have no moving parts and are expected to last longer than existing meters. They use sound waves to measure gas use and send the information to FortisBC through a wireless network, meaning FortisBC would no longer need to read individual meters manually.
FortisBC will file an application for British Columbia Utilities Commission approval in 2020. If approved, installation of new meters is expected to start in 2022.
