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Manager Message
Don L. Marker
Customer Privacy-Smart Meters
You have probably heard the term smart meter before, and in fact, Sioux Valley Energy has actually dubbed the new AMI or Advanced Metering Infrastructure that we are currently installing throughout our service territory as smart meters.
One reason they are referred to as smart is because they offer a two way communication link between the member and the cooperative. That will result in a significant amount of information which will be available to help you monitor and manage your energy use. We have had some members wonder if that information will be kept private and secure. The answer is-absolutely.
Sioux Valley Energy already has stringent policies in place to keep members information confidential. We take our responsibility to protect customer information very seriously. In fact, we were one of the first companies to comply with a federal mandate which requires us to take action to identify, detect, mitigate, and prevent the theft of cooperative members personal information.
Many industries such as banking, medical services, insurance and even retail have moved to electronic transactions and information gathering. Those industries, along with many others, are able to do this safely and securely. As you may know, the cooperative received a federal stimulus grant which will help fund half of the meter replacement. In conjunction with that grant, we developed a cyber-security plan which includes much more than just firewalls and virus protection.
The plan was developed with the intention of creating a reliable, safe and secure smart grid system. The board of directors will have ultimate oversight of the plan that will be managed by the cooperative's staff. The goal of the plan is to put systems in place to ensure confidentiality for customers and to prevent any potential "hacking" by someone who has negative intentions. Customers and authorized cooperative personnel will be the only individuals who will be able to access and view usage information about a specific electric service. To obtain individual usage information, customers will have to 'sign in' with a secure user name and password. That information will not be sold to a third-party...it truly is information that will help consumers more effectively understand how and when they use electricity.
Beginning early next year, members who have the meters installed, (it will take 2 to 3 years to install all 23,000) will be able to look at their electric usage online. You will have the opportunity to view electric usage by the month, day or hour. In addition, the temperature for your zip code may also be displayed along with the electric usage.
Consumers can also pinpoint and record when they have made changes in their home or business which would impact electric use. For example, if a you put in new windows, you can mark that on the timeline and monitor how it impacts your bill. This is just a small example of what members will be able to do once the 壮mart meters are installed throughout the Sioux Valley Energy service territory.
Once the meters are installed, Sioux Valley Energy will know within moments if there is an outage at your location, and eventually we will be able to notify you via text messaging, email or a phone call about that outage. In the future, there will be no need to call outages--we will already know about them. We are excited about all the opportunities smart metering can offer you...the member, as well as the improved functionality on the utility side. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact us. We will continue to provide periodic information about Sioux Valley Energy's smart meter replacement project.
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