Ann: USA Roadshow Presentation May 2014 , page-8

From a document I read today.

"SMART METER ISSUES AN UNQUANTIFIABLE OVERHANG



While SP AusNet has now essentially completed its roll-out of smart meters under the AMI program in Victoria, the company announced it was experiencing performance issues with more than 40% of the meters in early May. The company has struggled to ensure stable communications between the meters and central data management systems.

A review is now underway to determine a remediation strategy, including the timing and quantum of additional investment required. The company will seek to recover any additional costs via the regulatory framework. We see significant risks that additional costs are not allowed by the Australian Electricity Regulator, noting that the cause of the issue appears to be SP AusNet’s use of WiMAX technology in contrast with peers."

Looks like a fairly high proportion of the original metres using the Wimax technology will need to be replaced with the new 3G technology very soon. The 3G tech is what was used in final stages of the rollout and was supplied by NTC. It looks like this part of the rollout works a treat. NTC would be in the box seat to win this contract and would amount to $20M plus in revenue!

Looking good IMHO