The City of Shasta Lake is steaming ahead with full Advanced Meter Infrastructure (AMI) deployment...and setting the stage for compliance with California's ambitious plans for the Smart Grid.

Despite being a landlocked city, a sea change is underway at Shasta Lake.

Then again, water has always figured prominently in this northern Californian municipality. Indeed, the town owes its existence to the Shasta Dam, constructed in the late 1930s to protect the region from drought and flood, and to provide power to nearby cities in northern California.

With the dam came workers who established the city and several outlying communities. It also created Lake Shasta, the state’s largest reservoir, which has since become a playground for houseboaters, wakeboarders, and fishermen while offering plenty of seclusion for campers along its 365 miles of evergreen rimmed shoreline.

Today, though, the City of Shasta Lake is at the headwater of California's effort to modernize the electric system and get customers engaged in conservation.

While a number of high-profile AMI projects are underway in the state, Shasta Lake is steaming ahead with a full-scale smart metering system for water and electricity. Size isn’t holding it back from becoming a leading light in California’s Smart Grid evolution. Although it serves just over 4400 customers, it faces the same business challenges and regulatory mandates that drive large utilities to invest in AMI.

Like its neighbors, Shasta Lake is caught up in a brisk pace of change that requires California utilities to prepare for Time of Use (TOU) pricing, adapt to supply constraints, and investigate technology that supports the kinds of interactive consumer applications proposed in the energy management legislation currently being considered in the state capital.

Rather than sit and wait, the utility determined that the time was right to press forward with its AMI program — which began in January 2008 with the implementation of TUNet® — and is on track for full deployment.

MINIMAL INFRASTRUCTURE / MAXIMUM RESULTS
Shasta Lake staff was particularly impressed with TUNet’s support for multiple commodities, field-proven reliability, and ability to interface with backend applications such as CIS and SCADA, along with planning and engineering tools for system design & analysis. Furthermore, they liked the fact that their entire service area can be covered with minimal infrastructure.

The wireless network requires a single tower and incurs much lower maintenance costs than technologies that use a public backhaul network. Additionally, Shasta Lake preferred a solution that did not require extensive pole-mounted equipment.

The range and robustness of the TUNet 220 MHz WAN gives territory wide coverage in this hilly, thickly forested environment. It creates a two-way data communications network that enables Shasta Lake to collect interval meter readings (hourly electric / daily water) or query any electric meter on the system instantly, which is useful when investigating power quality issues or performing off-cycle reads.

For example, operations staff are notified immediately by a text message in the event of an outage or a power quality problem. Rapid dissemination of information helps Shasta Lake quickly assess the extent of the problem — whether an isolated event or unfolding situation — and determine the best course of response.

Automating routine processes such as meter reading and bill preparation, combined with the ability to remotely investigate field issues is a boon to a utility that numbers just nine full-time staff.

FAST TRACK DEPLOYMENT
It’s not uncommon for AMI deployment costs to top 40% of the total budget, an often overlooked fact according to many industry experts.

The Tantalus Utility Network is designed so that no special tools, equipment or training is needed for installation. There is no need to negotiate a lease with public network providers. The wireless communications network can typically be established in a day, giving the utility the freedom to install smart meters anywhere within radio range and a headstart on achieving results. Furthermore, all meter change-outs were done by Shasta Lake staff, which helped save the utility money.

SHASTA LAKE CONNECTS WITH BADGER
Shasta Lake also took advantage of TUNet’s ability to capture meter data transmitted from Badger ORION water meters.

It has used Badger meters for 30 years and was attracted to the fact that TUNet interoperates with Badger ORION® meters so data can be ported through the Tantalus system to the billing system via CONNECT.

Traditionally, water reads were collected manually. Two full-time and two part-time staff members spent most of their day walking and driving meter routes. They had to carry a set of keys in order to access meters located inside locked buildings and in cabinets. Now, reads can be collected automatically and the signal between TUNet and Badger is strong enough to transmit through hard-to-reach pit lids.

CONSERVATION AT THE CORE OF AUTOMATION
By automating metering, Shasta Lake can better utilize resources. Although it’s only a five-minute drive from the town center to the third largest lake in California, water is a precious commodity here. In fact, state-wide drought conditions recently resulted in the city's water allotment being reduced by 25%.

The leak detection capability available through the joint Tantalus/Badger solution allows Shasta Lake to closely monitor usage and quickly detect potential water waste.

If, for instance, utility staff notice that water is being used continuously over a 24-hour period, they could alert the customer and advise them that there may be a bad irrigation valve or a leak, or that a tap or hose may have been inadvertently left on.

Customers generally appreciate the heads up. Problems are quickly resolved…and that saves money and resources as well as leads to higher customer satisfaction.

AVOIDING BROWN FIELDS & BROWNOUTS
Big, small, or somewhere in between, all California electric utilities are closely watching the progress of legislation which aims to improve the way energy is distributed, managed and consumed.

Shasta Lake chose TUNet because it closes the loop between the utility and its customers, a primary goal of the California mandate. Hourly data collected via TUNet can be incorporated into either online or hard copy statements to give customers a better understanding of their usage patterns, and help them make informed decisions on when and how they use energy.

TUNet also establishes the communications foundation for the interactive consumer energy management applications that may soon be required in California.

The Tantalus network has built-in support for a variety of energy efficiency programs such as load control, which Shasta Lake is considering for future implementation.

This technology would enable the utility to selectively shed loads on customer appliances — such as HVAC devices — for short periods of time if faced with system shortages, dramatic peak price increases or equipment failure.

Utility staff could control on, off, and cycling events via an easy-to-use web application. Two-way communication would allow Shasta Lake to reduce the peak whenever necessary, validate that the command has been received, and capture & time stamp over-rides if customers opt out of a shed event to help ensure accurate billing.

STABILIZING CONSUMPTION & COSTS
Less than a year after the first smart meter was deployed, Shasta Lake is on its way to becoming a leading light in California’s effort to stabilize consumption and costs.

Shasta Lake is making a big impact on a small budget. The utility has deployed an advanced network without adding staff and has earned positive support from the community through its ability to rapidly pinpoint electricity outages and water leaks, to remotely read in or out new accounts, and to provide customers with monthly statements that chart consumption levels. This helps close the loop between the utility and its customers.

TUNet gives Shasta Lake the ability to shore up operational efficiencies today, easily scale the system to accommodate a growing population and possess the advanced functionality to meet the ambitious energy management goals of California’s proposed legislation.

Newsletter@Tantalus.com
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