November 17 & 18, 2015 – Smart Meters Articles & Reports

[TOU – Japan] 7.5 million smart meters to be installed in Japan in 2015  – GSGF Global Smart Grid Federation – November 16, 2015:
– http://www.globalsmartgridfederation.org/2015/11/16/7-5-million-smart-meters-to-be-installed-in-japan-in-2015/
(According to Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, there will be 7.5 smart meters installed in Japan in 2015, including the replacement of conventional electric meters. Japan is set to liberalise its power market in April 2016 and allow users to choose their own power suppliers and differential rates.

Tokyo Electric Power is scheduled to complete the installation of smart meters for all of its users by 2020, at the earliest. The installation of smart meters across Japan for low-voltage power users (households, small stores, etc) is scheduled for completion in 2016, and installation for high-voltage users (factories etc) by 2024.)

[Bills – Pre-pay – Scotland] One million Scots frozen out by fuel poverty – Government ministers will fail to hit fuel poverty targets. A new strategy is required say experts. by Robert Armour – tfn Third Force News – November 17, 2015:
– http://thirdforcenews.org.uk/features/one-million-scots-frozen-out-by-fuel-poverty
(They’re all talking about super complaints, smart meters and something called the Energy Companies Obligation in a packed conference hall in Peebles Hydro. All this against a backdrop of Scotland’s worst weather of the year, Storm Abigail, which is increasingly testing the build quality of the 19th century spa….

it is a winter where thousands will die needlessly, one in which thousands will struggle to pay fuel bills because successive governments have failed to address the growing problem of fuel poverty….

A household is defined as being in fuel poverty if, in order to maintain satisfactory heating, it would be required to spend more than 10% of its income on all fuel use.

Going by this benchmark, Scottish Government figures show that there were 940,000 households were in fuel poverty in 2013 – an astonishing figure considering the average Scots wage is around £27,000.

In 2015 this figure is now estimated to be over one million, even more astonishing since it shows the problem isn’t getting better but worse despite it being considered a national funding priority….

How much extra prepayment customers pay depends on which expert you ask. Comparison site Confused.com puts the figure as high as £300 a year, Moneysupermarket just over £200 and uSwitch at about £163.

But it’s not just bigger bills prepayment customers face; there are plenty of other downsides….

In many cases if a new customer fails a provider’s credit check, like Karl, necessary to be accepted for monthly or quarterly billing, the supplier will insist on a prepayment meter….

And if someone has a poor credit history or is struggling financially, switching from prepay can be tricky. At the very least they need to pay any energy debts before a supplier will switch them over to a post-pay tariff.

This means many are trapped onto high cost energy plans and are at the mercy of the energy companies….

“Fuel poverty isn’t a lifestyle choice. Many families are suffering not just because they are on low income but because they live in homes that are not fit for purpose. That’s a scandal. And a scandal that needs to be addressed.”

Houses today use up to 30% less energy than those built in the 1980s and around 60% less than a home built at the turn of the century….

“We know that investing in energy efficient homes is one of the best ways to tackle fuel poverty, but if the government continues at its current rate, it will take decades for all vulnerable people and families in Scotland to have decent warm homes.”)

[Bills – Privacy – TOU – UK] The great smart meter rip-off: UK energy giants will use devices to DOUBLE the cost of power when you need it most by Victoria Bischoff – This is Money – November 17, 2015:
– http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-3322658/The-great-smart-meter-rip-UK-energy-giants-use-devices-DOUBLE-cost-power-need-most.html

[UK] What’s so smart about smart meters? by Matthew Wall – BBC News – November 17, 2015:
– http://www.bbc.com/news/business-34831046

[Microgrids – New York, USA] NNY communities make headway on studies to tap alternative energy by Ted Booker – Watertown Daily Times – November 18, 2015:
– http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/news03/nny-communities-make-headway-on-studies-to-tap-alternative-energy–20151118

[Benefits – Bills – Costs – USA] The Role of Consumer Watchdog Groups in Protecting Consumers from Abusive ‘Smart’ Meters by K.T. Weaver, SkyVision Solutions – Smart Grid Awareness – November 16, 2015:
– http://smartgridawareness.org/2015/11/16/role-of-consumer-watchdog-groups-in-protecting-consumers-from-smart-meters/

(Not Smart Meters)

[BC Hydro] Horgan promises sweeping energy retrofits to create B.C. jobs — but won’t rule out shutting down Site C dam by The Canadian Press – The Province – November 17, 2015:
– http://www.theprovince.com/business/leader+horgan+promises+sweeping+energy+retrofits+create+jobs/11524258/story.html

[SHF – Weapons] Lasers and Electronic Warfare To Be Used in New World of Drones and Anti-Drones by Nicholas West – Coalition to Govern America – September 26, 2015:
– http://governamerica.com/news/20935-lasers-and-electronic-warfare-to-be-used-in-new-world-of-drones-and-anti-drones
&
Russia to kill drones, missiles with 10km-range super-high frequency cannon – RT – June 15, 2015:
– https://www.rt.com/news/267187-shf-cannon-russia-drones/
(Russia’s Rostec Corporation is to unveil a super-high frequency weapon capable of taking down all kinds of drones, missiles and other high precision weapons. The presentation will be made at the Army-2015 military expo.
The Mosow Radio Engineering Institute has developed a super-high frequency (SHF) ‘cannon’. It’s designed to knock out aircraft, drones, guided missiles and any airborne high precision weapons using electronics.

The cannon creates an air-exclusion zone within a reported radius of over 10 kilometers around the defended object or installation, though the system’s exact characteristics are classified….)

(video 03:12) Grieving Goat Transforms After Sweet Reunion With His Best Friend by Alicia Graef – care2 – November 16, 2015:
– http://www.care2.com/causes/grieving-goat-transforms-after-sweet-reunion-with-his-best-friend.html

Smart Meters, Cell Towers, Smart Phones, 5G and all things that radiate RF Radiation