Power meter replacement frequently asked questions
Power and Water has identified a manufacturing fault in a power meter from a batch manufactured between March 2023 and June 2024.
As a precaution, all meters in that batch are being replaced to ensure customers maintain a stable power connection.
How will I know if the meter at my property is affected?
We are contacting all customers who have a meter installed from this batch. You will receive an SMS or letter from Power and Water advising when our contractors will be in your area to replace these meters.
What does the fault mean?
In the affected meter, the faulty weld meant the power connection was unstable and the customer experienced flickering lights as a result.
What is the fault?
We identified a broken weld on an internal component of one meter.
How did you become aware of the fault?
A customer contacted us advising their power was fluctuating and their lights were flickering.
What are you doing to identify meters with this issue?
For this batch of meters, we are recording voltage data at one-minute intervals. To date we have not identified any other meters with this fault, however as a precaution we will be replacing all meters from that batch.
How many meters in the batch are faulty?
We have identified one meter from our batch of 18,000.
How many meters will be replaced?
As a precaution, we will replace all 5,100 meters already installed from this batch and return them to the manufacturer for replacement. The remaining 12,900 unused meters have already been returned to the manufacturer for replacement.
The batch includes meters manufactured between March 2023 and June 2024. You can see the date on the meter next to the Power and Water logo.
If only one meter has been found faulty and my lights aren’t flickering, why does the meter at my property need replacing?
We are committed to keeping our customers connected with a stable power connection. We are replacing all meters in the batch as a precaution and to ensure you stay connected.
Is this a common fault in this sort of meter?
This type of meter is widely used across Australia. We have been using this type of meter since 2008 and have installed more than 40,000 of them across the Territory with no issues.
How do you know it is only this batch of meters affected?
The manufacturer has confirmed only this one batch might be affected. They have since changed their processes to avoid this happening again.
Where have these meters been installed?
Most are installed in Darwin, with a few hundred in Alice Springs and a handful in Katherine, Tennant Creek, and some remote regions.
How long will it take to replace the meters?
We plan to have all meters in this batch replaced by 30 June 2025.
Last updated: 10 February 2025