CHENNAI: THE Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (TNPDCL) secured the top prize among discoms for innovation at the national conference on use of AI and machine learning in power distribution sector organised in New Delhi on Saturday by the Ministry of Power, Power Finance Corporation and REC Limited.
The award was in recognition of its data drive innovations like advanced smart meter analytics for revenue protection by TNPDCL, a release said.
Speaking to TNIE, Byron Stephen, Executive Engineer (Smart Metering) of TNPDCL, said the recognition reflected the corporation’s continuous push towards digital transformation. “Our use of advanced data analytics for accurate billing and improved revenue collection played a key role in winning this award,” he said.
A total of 195 nominations were received in response to the call for innovation at the conference of which 51 were shortlisted for detailed evaluation, the release said. In the discoms category, TNPDCL secured the top award, followed by Madhya Pradesh’s MP East.
“We have installed 1.3 lakh smart meters in T Nagar, Chennai. While many states use smart meters mainly for billing, TNPDCL is the only utility using data analytics to expand their use further,” he claimed.
Highlighting the role of AI in day-to-day operations, Stephen said, “With this, automatic disconnection and reconnection of smart meters has become possible, ensuring quicker revenue collection and better consumer satisfaction.”