Skagerak Nett selected Ericsson to deploy 180,000 smart meters in Norway, ahead of a larger modernisation program for the country’s power grid.
The company said customers will receive the first devices next year.
A wide use of smart grid technology will save transmission and distribution costs, reduce CO2 emissions and facilitate the transition to renewable energy.
Ericsson will operate, support and carry out maintenance works up to 2019, when the project is expected to be completed.
Geir Kulås, CEO of Skagerak Nett, said: "We are very pleased with the choice of Ericsson and look forward to a cooperation that will give our customers even better power grids. Taking on transformation approach will enable us to upgrade the grid to boost capacity and manage peak demands."
Charlotta Sund, President of Region Northern Europe and Central Asia at Ericsson said: "This is a breakthrough deal in the Norwegian utility sector and strengthens the ICT-profile of the energy industry in Norway. This also marks another step in the use of ICT for the evolution of the energy systems globally.
"The main drivers of the smart grid are sustainable energy supply, distributed generation and energy efficiency."
Ericsson added that currently it has 42 million smart meters worldwide enabled by platforms which are developed, operated or maintained by the company.
Content from our partners
CBR spoke to Ericsson at LiveWorx in Boston, and the company added that "currently the devices don’t communicate at a global scale, but it’s something we could look into".
Forecasters estimated that over 800 million smart meters will be installed worldwide by 2020.
