Springfield utility outlines plan to install advanced meters, pauses IRP work pending state bill

CWLP staff told the Committee of the Whole on March 25 that the utility plans to install advanced metering infrastructure, or AMI, across the city and is pausing most Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) work until pending state legislation is resolved.

The presentation came during the Committee of the Whole meeting where CWLP staff updated alderpersons on several items, including a timeline for AMI, a carbon-capture pilot labeled "catch and release," and a forthcoming 25-megawatt solar ordinance. Scott Rogers, electric division manager, described AMI as the system that will allow two-way, near‑real‑time meter communications and remote meter management.

Rogers said the new system will eliminate most manual meter reads, improve outage mapping and restoration, and enable customer-facing portals and time‑of‑use pricing. "We will be able to collect real time data on all of our meters. This will ensure billing accuracy, share revenue accuracy on our side, improve customer engagement and efficiency," Rogers said. He added the AMI project would reduce truck rolls for disconnects and reconnects and improve theft and tamper detection.

Why it matters: the utility said AMI will let staff see which meters are on or off almost…