Chennai to soon have smart meters, slab system to bill water supply
Of the one lakh smart meters that the Metro Water would install, around 73,000 would be in multi-storey buildings and large individual homes
In the pipeline: Meters, slabs for water billing in Chennai
CHENNAI: After mulling for long but never really taking steps to implement it widely, the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) has finally initiated steps to install water meters in the city.
According to documents accessed by DT Next, the Metro Water board will install one lakh smart water meters, of which nearly three-fourths will be for domestic users in multi-storey buildings and large individual homes. This would help improve billing efficiency, reduce non-revenue water, and encourage the wise use of the costly and limited resource, officials said.
The meters will primarily cover domestic consumers residing in multi-storey buildings and individual houses measuring over 2,500 sq. ft. Out of the one lakh targeted service connections, domestic users account for nearly 73,000, including 25,677 connections in multi-storey buildings and 47,043 in large individual homes. The remaining will be installed for commercial, partly commercial, institutional, and industrial consumers.
Currently, the city has 7.7 lakh water connections, of which only 3.12 per cent are metered. As per official estimates, just 24,095 connections have functioning meters. Most domestic consumers remain unmetered, leading to challenges in monitoring consumption and recovering production costs, said Metro Water officials.
Currently, domestic consumers are billed a flat rate for water usage. As per the revised tariff effective from April 1, 2025, residential premises, including flats, are charged Rs 105 per month per dwelling unit, irrespective of actual consumption.
After the introduction of smart meters, consumers will transition to a volumetric tariff system. Under this, charges are fixed based on actual water consumption. The proposed volumetric tariff rates have different slabs comprising Rs 6 per kilo litre (KL) up to 10 KL, Rs 18 per KL for those consuming 11 KL to 15 KL, Rs 28 per KL from 16 KL to 25 KL, and Rs 45 per KL above 25 KL.
A minimum monthly charge of Rs 100 will be levied on all metered domestic connections. “This tiered pricing structure is designed to ensure that higher consumption leads to higher charges, thereby promoting responsible water usage,” said an official.
A senior official said the initiative is part of the broader World Bank funded Chennai City Partnership Programme. "The focus is to enable equitable and efficient service delivery. With smart meters, we will be able to reduce losses, detect leakages, and ensure that consumers are billed based on actual consumption," the official said.
The project covers all 15 administrative areas under the Board's jurisdiction, including the recently added localities. While core city areas account for 73,608 of the connections identified for metering, the added areas contribute 26,392.
The proposed Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) will feature electromagnetic or ultrasonic meters that comply with ISO standards. These meters will be integrated with a centralised billing and customer service system, enabling users to track consumption in real time via mobile and web platforms.
The selected concessionaire will be tasked with procurement, testing, installation, monthly meter reading, consumer grievance redressal, and periodic maintenance. Meter data will be synchronised with the board's billing software to enable seamless generation of bills.
Smart water meter: Residents fear confusion, additional burden
According to officials, the project is also expected to contribute to long-term goals such as 24x7 water supply and reduction in energy usage, among others. However, not all residents are convinced.
VS Jayaraman of T Nagar Residents Welfare Association pointed out that it could lead to confusion among flat owners, as individual households require and consume different volumes of water. “If the Metro Water bills everyone equally after installing smart meters, it would open Pandora’s box,” he cautioned.
"We have doubts about how the metering system would work and how Metro Water would ensure flawless supply with transparent billing. But right now we can only speculate. If the project saves money for the consumers, then we will welcome the project," Jayaraman added.
A Nagappan, a resident of Mathur, said the increase in property tax also resulted in hike in water tax and charges, though residents are not receiving water properly. “If this metering system is implemented, it will worsen our situation. We are afraid that this would be an additional burden on our monthly budget,” he said.
According to documents, the smart meters will be installed under a Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) model on a hybrid annuity basis. Under this model, the concessionaire will be responsible for implementing the project over a period of 12 years, which includes two years for installation and 10 years for operation and maintenance.
As of December 2023, the utility has 7,70,292 supply connections, out of which 7,46,194 connections are unmetered and only 24,095 (only 3.12%) are metered. Of the unmetered connections, 6,70,652 are domestic connections, 54,140 partly commercial, and 21,402 commercial and institutional connections.
