City will introduce smart gas meters

The city is introducing a smart gas meter that sends monthly readings to gas companies automatically and also addresses safety issues.

More than 300,000 households and company users now use the smart meter, said gas authorities, adding that the plan is to install them citywide within five years.

However, some residents don't want the meter as they are not convinced about its accuracy.

Liu Huiping, a professor with the Shanghai Energy and Transportation Research Institute, said yesterday that the meter is a part of the green energy program "which promotes the use of natural gas around the city."

Liu said the meters can alert the gas company if there is a gas leak. Once the leaking gas exceeds a predetermined limit, the meter can turn off the gas.

The meters reduce labor costs as employees will no longer be required to go door-to-door to record the amount of gas each household has used.

But some residents said they are worried about the accuracy as they can not see the readings themselves.

"I am worried about the device's accuracy after a newspaper reported earlier that one household was charged tens of thousands of yuan for their water bill," said a resident, who declined to be named.