*The TPWODL gives the cellular IoT solution mandate to Airtel IoT. The latter is already working with other states for such utilities.
*70k smart meters are to be delivered in the first phase.
Smart metering has high use cases for cellular IoT in India with several power distribution companies looking forward to investing in this space to prevent revenue leakage. It is also one of the fastest-growing service lines within the IoT business portfolio for Airtel. Bharti Airtel (Airtel); a global communication solutions provider won the cellular IoT solution mandate with TP Western Odisha Distribution Limited, (TPWODL) on the 29th of November 2022. The TPWODL is a joint venture between the Government of Odisha and Tata Power. This mandate requires Airtel to power 200,000 Smart Meters with its IoT solution, from which 70,000 is to be delivered in the first phase.
Airtel is already working with Punjab, Meghalaya, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Bihar for multiple utilities. Airtel IoT aims to play a pivotal role in enabling the Government of India’s ambition to replace 300 million conventional meters with Smart Meters in the next 5 years. “Airtel IoT Hub”, helps keep track of utilities and monitors the smart meters with advanced analytics while maintaining extremely high reliability augmented with telco-grade security.
Mr Gajanan Kale, Chief Executive Officer, of TP Western Odisha Distribution Limited said, “We want to create a customer focussed, technology savvy and future-ready distribution company that’s sustainable. We believe that technology can provide us with a lot of answers as we step out to create such a company. We are looking forward to deploying smart meters for billing in partnership with Airtel and making the best use of their IoT technology to deliver reliable and customer-friendly services.”
Mr Siddharth Talawadekar, Business Head – IoT at Airtel said, “Airtel is delighted to partner with TP Western Odisha Distribution Limited in their attempt to bring best-in-class technology to consumers across the state. As India’s electricity sector embraces changes ushered in by new reforms, we look forward to setting an example demonstrating how technology can enable efficient service delivery solutions for companies that are customer friendly. With capabilities of remote network feasibility, advanced diagnostics and a future-ready IoT platform with readily available APIs for seamless integration, we are confident to serve our customers well in this space.”
Airtel IoT counts several leading Indian companies across domains such as electric vehicles, automotive, utilities, logistics and fin-tech as its clients, and is one of the fastest growing sectors for Airtel Business.
