ST Electronics secures US$21.5mln deal in smart meter market

Company's subsidiary to supply AMR radio transmitters to Arad for producing sophisticated meters monitoring utilities consumption.

ST Engineering's electronics arm, ST Electronics, on Monday announced that its subsidiary, Telematics Wireless Ltd (Telematics Wireless), has been awarded a contract worth US$21.5m (about S$29m) by Arad Technologies Ltd (Arad) to supply Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) radio transceivers for Arad's DIALOG 3G® AMR solutions. The supply cooperation agreement between Arad and Telematics Wireless takes effect immediately and extends to 2015. Telematics Wireless is a subsidiary of ST Electronics (Info-Comm Systems) Pte. Ltd, according to an ST Electronics report.

Radio transceivers are a key component in smart AMR meters which are used to monitor water, electricity or gas usage. With the growing trend towards the adoption of smart meters for efficient utility monitoring, it has been estimated that about 500m households globally will be converted to use smart AMR meters in the next ten years.

Arad is a world leader in the supply of smart water meters. The AMR radio transceivers supplied through this contract will be deployed with Arad's AMR solutions in various markets such as China, Europe, India and the US. Together with Arad's smart management software, the field-proven AMR radio transceivers will provide precise monitoring of all utility vital signs and will alert utility providers to faults, such as leakages.

“The use of smart meters is a growing trend in urbanisation. As a key player in this technology we are well positioned to participate in the development of the AMR/AMI applications and wireless telemetry markets. Utility providers will benefit from the use of these transceivers as they have been designed for extremely durable operations, " Lee Fook Sun, President, ST Electronics said.

Telematics Wireless AMR radio transceivers are unique as they safely incorporate all electronics, battery and antenna in the meter register without the need for external wires or connections. The AMR radio transceiver boasts a modular and open architecture design that integrates seamlessly with various deployments such as mobile/drive-by, future fixed based network and Advanced Meter Infrastructure (AMI).

By adopting cutting edge technologies, Telematics Wireless' AMR radio transceivers reduce installation and maintenance costs for utility providers. The miniaturised radio transceivers are able to operate for up to 10 years on an internal battery; providing reliable, accurate meter readings and automatically detect leaks, back-flow and any attempt at tampering. Today, more than 3 million AMR radio transceivers from Telematics Wireless have been installed worldwide.

This contract is not expected to have any material impact on the consolidated net tangible assets per share and earnings per share of ST Engineering for the current financial year.