FortisBC Inc. (FortisBC) Application for a Certificate of Public ...

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Response:
FortisBC Inc. (FortisBC or the Company)
Application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity
for the Advanced Metering Infrastructure Project
Response to British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC or the Commission)
Information Request (IR) No. 1
Submission Date:
October 5, 2012
Page 247
Please see the response to BCUC IR1 Q106.1. Hybrid technologies are specifically
contemplated in the main AMI contract.
Response:
“No PLC proposals were received from any vendors during the RFP process. However,
Itron was able to provide an estimate of PLC capital costs of approximately $66 million
for a system with nearly equivalent functionality to their RF technology.”
106.3 Please provide a breakdown of this estimate with line items comparing the AMI
quote provided with the PLC alternative.
Itron provided a written estimate for a 100% OpenWay PLC solution. The Itron OpenWay
system upon which the proposed AMI system is based is designed to consist primarily of RFequipped
meters. Alternative meter communications options include direct-cellular and PLCequipped
meters to address situations that cannot economically be accommodated by RF. PLCequipped
OpenWay meters are currently not commercially available from Itron, but are
expected to provide similar capabilities to the RF and cellular-equipped meters. These
enhanced capabilities require a more expensive PLC infrastructure than typical PLC-equipped
meters generally available on the market.
Line Item
Difference between PLC
and RF
(positive numbers indicate
higher PLC cost)
($000s)
Meters $4,861
Network Infrastructure and
Installation
$16,258
Head End System $216
Security Appliances $0
Professional Services $698
Total $22,032
106.4 How was the estimate of $66 million provided to FortisBC? Was this a verbal or
written estimate?