Smart water meters to detect tampering attempts

AMMAN — By winter next year, Amman households will be equipped with new smart water meters which provide accurate readings and detect tampering attempts, according to the Jordan Water Company (Miyahuna).

The company started replacing regular water meters with the smart gauges this week in a bid to preserve the costly and limited resource.

Mohammad Malkawi, director of Miyahuna’s customer service directorate, said a contractor started the partial installation of the smart meters in areas where gauges are not being read at the moment, such as Dabouq, Jabal Al Kursi and Abdoun.

The readings take place in rotation according to a set schedule.

“The new smart water meters provide very accurate readings. It is difficult to hack them as they are fitted with a recorder that detects any tampering attempts, thus limiting violations and water loss,” Malkawi told The Jordan Times.

The company imported the “expensive” smart meters from Europe, according to Miyahuna, which said the government exempted them from taxes.

“We started replacing old water meters with the new ones for subscribers categorised as large water consumers who use 50 cubic metres of water and more per cycle [three months],” Malkawi underscored.

The Miyahuna official said the new meters will be installed free of charge.

“People won’t have to pay anything for getting their water meters replaced. All we ask of them is to cooperate with our teams, to preserve the new meters and to avoid tampering with them as the devices will detect any attempt.”

Noting that all houses and institutions in the capital will be equipped with smart meters by winter next year, Malkawi said it is possible that the Zarqa and Madaba governorates will also receive smart meters in later phases.

“It all depends on areas with higher priority.”

Miyahuna supplies 630,000 subscribers in Amman with water and wastewater services, The company’s figures indicate that current water loss in Amman stands at around 37 per cent.