RALEIGH, NC - May 22, 2008
Sensus Metering Systems today announced that Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE), a subsidiary of Constellation Energy (NYSE: CEG), selected its Sensus FlexNet AMI solution for both gas and electricity to support the utility’s pilot of an advanced metering initiative to enhance customer service and encourage energy efficiency.
Focusing on the Baltimore City and Westminster areas, BGE will install 1,767 residential gas FlexNet SmartPoint transceivers and 1,767 Sensus iCon electricity smart meters with FlexNet SmartPoint transceivers. BGE’s Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) pilot will run from May through October 2008. Upon approval by the Maryland Public Service Commission, BGE plans to implement its AMI program to its 1.2 million gas and electric customers beginning in 2009.
“The Sensus FlexNet AMI solution is included in this test because we are interested in the reliability afforded by their dedicated licensed radio frequency,” said Michael Butts, director – business transformation for BGE. “We are also paying attention to cost in our business case and are investigating if the FlexNet solution can lower capital investment and ongoing operation and maintenance costs due to its relatively low infrastructure requirements.”
“BGE has done an exceptional amount of due diligence to this point, and we believe this pilot will further that research by allowing us to showcase the competitive advantages of our Primary Use licensed fixed network system,” said Tim Harriger, Director of Sales – Eastern Region for Sensus. “Today’s announcement comes on the heels of a successful year in 2007 for FlexNet and we are looking forward to working with BGE in this pilot program.”
BGE’s AMI pilot is part of the utility’s overall effort to transform and expand customer options for managing energy usage. Announced in January 2007, BGE’s Smart Energy Savers ProgramSM initiatives include: PeakRewardsSM , a demand response program which uses next generation “smart” thermostats and load control switches to cycle customers’ A/C units during high-demand, high-price periods; the Advanced Metering Infrastructure pilot (AMI) which will enable dynamic pricing and peak demand reductions; a Smart Energy Pricing (SEP) pilot to encourage customers to shift or reduce usage during peak usage times; and energy efficiency/conservation programs.
About FlexNet
FlexNet provides the utility industry’s most reliable and flexible two-way AMI fixed network. Utility customers benefit from the dependable, mission-critical performance of a dedicated, primary-use, FCC licensed and protected communications network combined with ANSI compliant metering, IP-based wide area communications, open standards home area networking, advanced smart grid products, and IP-based information systems. Sensus delivers timely and accurate AMI communications through crystal-clear and massively redundant RF data paths with double the RF power of competing systems. This empowers utilities to communicate with a complete range of endpoint devices including smart water, gas and electric meters, intelligent home devices, and distribution automation equipment in any mix of rural and urban terrain. Forward-thinking utilities confidently choose FlexNet to provide a single-technology solution that reduces cost, mitigates technology risk, enables pricing flexibility and demand response, and improves operational efficiency through reliable performance, industry standards, cross-vendor compatibility, system scalability and future-proof operation.
FlexNet offers the gas utility hourly or daily reporting options, eliminates bad reads, estimated reads and curbside reads. FlexNet provides move-in/move-out reads, is applicable for commercial and industrial meters as well as residential and provides a 20 year battery life. Other benefits of the FlexNet system include: automated reporting of indoor meters, support for gas demand-side rationing programs and delivery of information that can reduce gas theft.
About Sensus Metering Systems
The Sensus Metering Systems companies are leading world-class providers of water, gas, heat and electric meters including comprehensive metering communications system solutions that comprise both automatic meter reading (“AMR”) and advanced metering infrastructure (“AMI”) systems. Additional linked businesses include Smith-Blair, Inc. a leading provider of pipe clamp & coupling products for the water, gas, and industrial markets; and Sensus Precision Die Casting a producer of complex, high quality die castings.
About Baltimore Gas & Electric Company
BGE, www.bge.com, headquartered in Baltimore, is Maryland’s largest gas and electric utility, delivering power to more than 1.2 million electric customers and more than 640,000 natural gas customers in Central Maryland. The company’s approximately 3,000 employees are committed to the safe and reliable delivery of gas and electricity, as well as enhanced energy management, conservation, environmental stewardship and community assistance. BGE is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Constellation Energy, www.constellation.com, a FORTUNE 125 company also headquartered in Baltimore with subsidiaries that generate, sell and deliver energy and provide other energy-related services to customers throughout North America.
Issued 5/22/2008
All statements in this release, other than historical facts, are made in reliance on the safe-harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at any time. These statements reflect the Company’s current expectations regarding its financial position, revenues, cash flow and other operating results, business strategy, financing plans, forecasted trends related to the markets in which the Company operates, legal proceedings and similar matters. The Company’s expectations expressed or implied in these forward-looking statements may turn out to be incorrect. The Company’s actual results could be materially different from its expectations because of various risks. These risks, some of which are discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K (SEC File No. 333-113658) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2007 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 16, 2007, include its dependence on new product development and intellectual property, and its dependence on independent distributors and third-party contract manufacturers, automotive vehicle production levels and schedules, its substantial financial leverage, debt service and other cash requirements, liquidity constraints and risks related to future growth and expansion. Other important risks that could cause actual events or results to differ from those contained or implied in the forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the Company’s ability to integrate acquired companies, general economic and business conditions, competition, adverse changes in the regulatory or legislative environment in which the Company operates, and other factors beyond the Company’s control.
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