Smart Water Meter Rollouts Gain Momentum in Texas

13 Sep 2016
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In July 2016, Austin Water in Texas was awarded a US $80.2 million loan to replace customers’ water meters with smart meters — as well as another US $87 million for the improvement of the city’s reclaimed water system.

Several municipalities across Texas have already rolled out advanced water metering infrastructure. The planned rollout in Austin, of 250,000 meters, follows hundreds of complaints about unusually high water bills stemming from undetected leaks.  The project will take five to seven years to be completed.

Bluefield Takeaways

  • Austin Water reported more than 10,000 customer complaints between August and October 2015, sparking a review of the network and water flows
  • Bluefield Research’s August 2016 Water Rate Index shows Austin Water household customer bills to be 1.96/m3 based on US average water monthly consumption (45m3/month) per household.
  • Several municipalities across the State of Texas have already rolled out advanced water metering infrastructure, such as Round Rock, Arlington, Bryan, and Southlake.

Companies Mentioned

Austin Water