Yorkshire Water picks Netmore for LoRaWAN AMI

  • September 25, 2024
  • William Payne

Yorkshire Water, one of the largest water and treatment utilities in the UK, has selected LoRaWAN network operator Netmore to exchange 1.3 million water meters across the Yorkshire region, subject to UK water regulator Ofwat’s final decision, due in December 2024. The utility is exchanging existing meters that are reaching the end of their operational life with an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) designed to provide service improvements, enhanced customer support, and usage efficiencies. The contract will be for an initial term of 5 years, plus data services for the meters installed up to 2045.

Under the terms of the award, Netmore will lead a group of suppliers to deliver the end-to-end service, including the delivery, installation, commissioning, and maintenance of connected smart meters. Meters will be connected to Netmore’s LoRaWAN network for the delivery of Data-as-a-Service to Yorkshire Water. Netmore will also deploy and densify network coverage in the region directly and with partners to satisfy service levels required for Yorkshire Water to achieve targeted service improvements.

The programme will run concurrently with smart meter deployments that began in 2022 when Netmore was awarded AMI frameworks by Yorkshire Water for the delivery of LoRaWAN network services and provisioning of meters for up to 360k households, including new developments and Domestic Metered Optants.

“The initial smart metering programme with Netmore launched in 2022 has helped Yorkshire Water deliver the first 500,000 litres of leakage reduction, by identifying water leakage on customers pipes. It has also helped us to better understand water demand patterns in our initial 25,000 Netmore smart meters and target water efficiency activity, all while delivering both operational value and the long-term perspective needed for the expansion of our AMI initiatives. Following a rigorous evaluation process and procurement analysis, we are confident in the choice of Netmore and its partners for our meter exchange programme, as they collectively have the ability to help us deliver our ambitious goals and success criteria related to leakage, water efficiency, customer experience, and operational carbon emissions,” said Adam Smith, Manager of Smart Networks and Metering Transformation, YWS.

“This deal is an exciting new milestone for Netmore as we continue to expand our water utility initiatives across Europe and at a time when utilities and municipalities around the world are migrating to sensor-based solutions capable of providing new and valuable datasets for measuring and conserving water for their customers and to address environmental concerns. We are once again very proud that Yorkshire Water, one of UK’s leading water utilities, has trusted Netmore to lead their AMI initiatives,” said Ove Anebygd, CEO, Netmore Group.