In their order, commissioners wrote that customers would begin paying a surcharge to cover the costs of the project long before they would reap any benefits from the new meters, which would have been installed through 2014. They also objected to approving a proposal that included mandatory "time-of-use" rates that charge residential customers higher electricity prices at peak times.
Any future proposals should include an option for ratepayers to opt in or out of time-of-use metering, the commissioners wrote.
The majority of the estimated $2 billion in savings stems from consumers reducing their energy use during peak hours, according to the commission. But in their order, commissioners noted that BGE's proposal would not provide its customers with the in-home displays and devices so they would know how much they were using. A BGE website would show data, but only from the previous day.
