Ericsson is supporting Salzburg Netz GmbH, a 100 percent-owned subsidiary of Salzburg AG, which is a power, water and infrastructure utility company serving the city and federal state of Salzburg, Austria, in the introduction of smart meters.
Ericsson will provide a comprehensive IT back end solution for operating a planned 470,000 smart meters, along with systems integration and support services. By the year 2019, Salzburg Netz GmbH aims to provide 95 percent of their customers with smart meters.
The smart meter deployment is a key component in the transformation of Salzburg's power supply to include a significantly higher share of renewable energy usage, production and distribution while reducing CO2 emissions. By partnering with Ericsson, one of the leading global providers of smart meter solutions, Salzburg Netz GmbH is taking a pioneering role in this transformation in the Austrian market.
The deployment and integration of Ericsson's IT back end systems into the utility company's IT environment has already begun. Ericsson's end-to-end solution includes meter data management, alarm handling, workforce management, a user-friendly consumer portal interface and comprehensive end-to-end testing.
Valter D'Avino, Head of Region Western & Central Europe, Ericsson, says: "We are delighted that Salzburg Netz GmbH and its customers will benefit from the early migration to smart meters, which will accelerate the implementation of effective climate protection in Austria. In the Networked Society, ICT has the potential to enable more economically and ecologically sustainable energy solutions. Ericsson is therefore committed to investing in smart meters and related technology that can create lasting benefits for people, business and society."