Approval has been granted by the Power Department to the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) for the installation of smart meters for domestic consumers, in addition to government offices.

Under the project, smart meters will be installed for 3.5 million electricity consumers at an estimated cost of Rs 3,258 crore. If the number of consumers rises to five million, the projected cost will increase to Rs 5,000 crore.

In the first phase, smart meters will be installed in 1.88 lakh state government offices. Of the Board’s total 1.40 crore consumers, 1.88 lakh are government institutions. All these offices will be fitted with prepaid smart meters.

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KSEB is also installing smart meters in distribution transformers. The contract for three lakh smart meters, including those for transformers, has been awarded to Kolkata-based Iskraemeco India Private Limited.

Available on Play Store by Februray?

KSEB’s ‘Smart Plus’ application, developed for smart meter users, will be available on the Google Play Store by the end of February. Through the app, consumers will be able to monitor their electricity consumption, check their prepaid balance, and recharge their accounts. Power supply will be automatically disconnected once the prepaid balance is exhausted.

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The borrowing limit for states was increased by 0.5 per cent in the 2025–26 Union Budget. Subsequently, the Centre made the installation of prepaid smart meters a condition for availing additional borrowing. Although the Centre proposed the Totex model, under which the company undertaking the installation bears the full cost and recovers it through meter rental charges, the Board opposed the move. The state has therefore opted for the Capex model, under which the entire cost will be borne by the Board.