Conservation group says smart meters alone not enough to save money, cut use

Study: Smart meters alone not enough to save

WASHINGTON — Smart meters alone are not enough to save energy and money, a new study finds.

Significant savings are possible, however, and consumers save more when given information tailored to their use. Programs that focus on energy efficiency and conservation also produced more savings than those that sought to move energy use to off-peak hours.

Those are some of the findings of a review of 57 studies conducted over three decades for the Washington-based American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy.

The study comes as Maryland regulators and Baltimore Gas & Electric struggle over BGE’s smart meter proposal, which the utility said would allowed savings through better information on power prices. Regulators said consumers bore too much of the program’s cost.