New Delhi, Jan 25 (ANI/Business Wire India): Itron Inc. announced today that it has been awarded a contract for the delivery of a complete remote meter reading system including 150,000 Automated Meter Reading (AMR) water meters to the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) in India. The deployment is expected to be completed within two years.

In an effort to secure its water distribution network and avoid water theft, illegal connections and leakages which results in a loss of 700 million litres of water per day in the city, MCGM is launching a significant water conservation initiative.

Early in 2009, after a rigorous selection process, MCGM awarded Itron a pilot phase for approximately 3,000 residential and C and I meters all of which were equipped with Radio Frequency (RF) modules. During six months, Itron successfully ran the AMR pilot in India in partnership with Pratibha, Axelia and Unity who were responsible for sourcing and maintaining the AMR water meters. Based on the success of the pilot, the Independent Technical Committee assigned by MCGM to evaluate the results accepted and approved Itron's solution.

Following this pilot, which highlighted the flexibility and reliability of the Itron system under harsh weather conditions in Mumbai, Itron was awarded half of the total contract.

Itron's share includes the supply of 150,000 water meters all equipped with EverBlu Cyble AMR modules and a complete meter reading system including handheld terminals and AnyQuest Mobile AMR software. This system allows the collection of historical daily consumption data, GPS functionalities, alerts for fraud attempts and leakage events as well as the possibility to migrate to the EverBlu fixed network solution in the future. The AMR system will enable MCGM to accurately bill customers for consumption as well as improve the management of the precious water resources in the Mumbai area.

In addition, Itron will perform implementation and maintenance services and will train the meter readers of contractors to ensure the success of the deployment of this ground-breaking AMR project in India.

Marcel Regnier, Senior VP and COO, Itron International, explained: "Mumbai will be able to optimize its operations and enhance customer service because of the dramatic improvement in quality and reliability of the data they can now collect. Itron is proud to take an active part in the modernization of the water distribution network in India and to contribute to the water conservation efforts of MCGM."