The government believes that "smart" active energy meters would help housing and communal services not rising in price

The reason for the concern of citizens was the recent order of Deputy Prime Minister Chernyshenko to the Ministry of Construction on the need to include in the bills for housing and communal services payment for the installation, replacement and verification of "smart" meters in residential buildings.

The need to replace conventional meters with "smart" ones in the government was explained by the need to upgrade the infrastructure and reduce the risk of utility accidents.

“As for the increase in tariffs, this is out of the question. Moreover, it is assumed that the methodology for calculating the cost of services in the housing and communal services sector will be adjusted, which will lead to a decrease in the cost of services using smart meters”, - TASS officials quoted the text as saying.

According to Kommersant , discussions on the installation of "smart" metering devices in the government began this summer. The Ministry of Construction proposed to include the installation and maintenance of "smart" meters in the tariffs for heat and water.

In July, it was discussed about the obligation of debtors for electricity to install smart meters with the ability to remotely turn off the power supply. Moreover, the debtors will pay for the meters and their installation out of their own pocket. Smart electricity meters are required to be installed by guaranteeing electricity suppliers and grid companies. The costs of their purchase and installation are included in the sales surcharge and in the tariff for energy transmission services. Debtors who received notification before the end of 2023 will be supplied with meters within six months, after January 1, 2024 - in three months.

However, this was opposed by the Federal Antimonopoly Service, which expressed concerns that such an adjustment could lead to an increase in the total payment for housing and communal services above inflation.

At the same time, the government has the opportunity to introduce an obligation for developers to equip all new apartment buildings being built in the country with new types of metering devices.

Earlier it was reported that in a number of regions - for example, in Kostroma - the state of communal infrastructure has reached a critical level. With the onset of cold weather, the number of accidents at heating networks turned out to be so significant that emergency services do not have time to eliminate them for months. As a result, giant non-freezing "geyser lakes" appear in the courtyards of apartment buildings.

Residents complain that boiling water from under the ground washes away foundations, roads, playgrounds, creating serious risks for people's life and health. However, city services were unable to cope with the problem, calling what was happening a “catastrophe”.