Empowering Smarter Energy Choices
Understanding the Legacy Meter Replacement Program (LMRP) for Strata Committees and Managers
Our Mission and Vision
Thank you for taking the time to review this information. Our goal is to educate strata committees, tenants and strata managers about what is happening, how it will impact your building, and what your options are regarding the Legacy Meter Replacement Program (LMRP) currently being rolled out across Australia. We are a team of highly competent Level 2 ASP electricians who have worked on the meter replacement program since its inception in 2016. We specialize in multi-occupancy meter installations and replacements in both new and existing developments. With our experience and refined processes, we can complete these jobs safely and efficiently, having worked alongside electricity retailers and metering coordinators for nearly a decade.
Participation is mandatory for customers; opting out is not permitted. The rollout is required by changes to the National Electricity Rules, with the aim of achieving full smart meter coverage by the end of 2030. The main reasons for this initiative include:
- Enabling a more efficient, flexible, and renewable-energy-ready electricity system.
- Providing better real-time data for usage monitoring, faster fault detection, and improved network management.
- Supporting consumer benefits such as time-of-use tariffs, easier retailer switching, and integration of solar and batteries.
- Reducing long-term costs by improving grid operations and eliminating manual meter readings.
Understanding the LMRP
The Legacy Meter Replacement Program (LMRP) is part of Australia’s national accelerated rollout to replace all older “legacy” electricity meters, including annual or basic non-smart Type 5/6 meters, with modern smart meters (Type 4) across the National Electricity Market. This market covers New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania, and the Australian Capital Territory.
The LMRP is driven by rules set by the Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) under the Accelerating Smart Meter Deployment reforms. Electricity distributors develop Legacy Meter Replacement Plans, which must be approved by the Australian Energy Regulator (AER). These plans schedule the replacements, typically in phases from late 2025 through to November 30, 2030. Your electricity retailer is responsible for arranging the actual installations through metering coordinators and their contractors.
Program Cost Overview
When researching the program, you will often encounter statements such as “No Upfront Costs for the meter replacements” from regulatory bodies and electricity retailers. This can cause some confusion. While this is true in most cases for sites that are compliant with current standards, the reality is that the costs associated with the electricity network, including metering, are built into our electricity bills through tariffs and connection fees. For sites that are compliant with current standards, there will be no upfront charges for meter replacement. However, if additional work is needed—particularly on sites with shared fusing—a new individual Meter Protection Device (MPD) must be installed for each unit. These costs can vary and are recoverable by the electricity retailer.
Protections are in place to prohibit retailers from profiting from meter replacements, but they are allowed to recover the total costs incurred by them, which include network isolations, meter hardware, and installation costs incurred by Metering Providers.
Current Program Challenges
Since 2018, a major barrier to replacing meters has been the large number of sites with shared fusing, especially in New South Wales. Strict legislative rules prohibit power from being interrupted for any unit other than the one with a work order.
To address this, stakeholders developed the “One In All In” process over 18 months, and even if your meter has already been replaced you will still experience a power outage while the rest are replaced. However, based on our extensive experience, we believe this solution is likely to fail for several reasons:
- It is overly complicated due to the number of parties involved. – You can change this!
- No single party is incentivised to take control and coordinate the site. – Tekwave can fix this.
- It requires multiple technicians from competing companies to collaborate. – You can change this.
- Communication is fragmented across multiple retailers and goes directly to tenants, with no requirement to inform strata managers or committees of outage dates and times. – Tekwave can fix this.
- Different metering providers use different systems, causing confusion during joint efforts. – Tekwave can fix this.
- The financial impact on technicians was not considered; some technicians will have more jobs than others but need to be onsite for the same duration. – You can Change this.
- Meter technicians are paid per meter replaced, not per hour. If a technician does not have enough jobs to make the day financially viable, they may not show up, resulting in additional outages at a later date. – Tekwave can fix this
- Having more people onsite slows the process, leading to longer power outages. Limited workspace means technicians spend more time waiting than working. Power outages of up to 8 hours per 10 meters on a panel are allowed, but the duration varies by site configuration and may require multiple outage days. – Tekwave can fix this.
Legislative Shifts
Potential Impact of Recent Legislation Changes
Recent changes to the Strata Act suggest that if the current process fails, new solutions are possible as foundations have been laid in updated strata laws to keep the 2030 target on track. Specifically under section 79 of Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 No 50, amendments have recently granted additional powers to Fair Trading, strengthening enforcement of defect rectification and requiring sites to be brought up to current standards, even if they were compliant at the time of construction.
Common Defects to Watch Out For
Sites with shared fusing are now identified and labelled as defects when preventing meter replacements. Currently, retailers and their nominated metering coordinators are assuming responsibility for installing MPDs during replacements as part of the LMRP, with the cost recovered later from their customer base. However, there is no rule in the National Electricity Rules (NER) or National Electricity Retailer Rules (NERR) requiring them to do so. If the “One in All In” process is deemed unworkable, responsibility for MPD installations could be passed on to Owners Corporations, requiring them to arrange installations before meters can be replaced. Guidance on potential costs can be found on many strata websites, and these costs can be significant, especially for larger sites, possibly requiring a special levy if not budgeted for.
Transformative Solutions Powered by Customer Connection
Our Solution to the Current Challenges...
What We Offer...
This is where our team comes in. We offer alternative pathways to achieve the same goal—replacing all legacy meters—more efficiently, saving money, and minimizing power outages from potential days to just a few hours. All it requires from you is to get in touch with us, and we can distribute our eform to you remotely via your property manager or comittee. Its a basic form, all thats needed is name, address, retailer and NMI which is all located on your electricity bill. Its that simple we do the rest.
How Do We Accomplish This?
By engaging us as the sole contractor for meter replacements and any required rectification work, we can achieve significant efficiencies by reducing unnecessary coordination under the current plan. These efficiency gains allow us to properly scope and plan the replacement schedule to fit a more realistic timeline, reducing disruption to tenants affected by outages. Additionally, the increase in efficiency currently enables us to provide and install the MPD free of charge as part of our process.
*If we do not charge retailers for MPD installations, they cannot recover the costs from you.
Maximizing Benefits for All Stakeholders
What Benefits Us?
As outlined, our compensation comes from retailers via their metering coordinators who we are partnered with for each meter replacement. Even when replacements occur through the “One in All In” process, it is likely that we will be present for those replacements. We are keen to offer our process because it is significantly more efficient, enabling us to pass savings onto you while we benefit from enhanced efficiency as well. In our view, this approach is safer, quicker, and yields better outcomes for everyone, all while substantially lowering overall program costs. Like you, we are consumers of electricity and understand the challenges posed by rising costs.
What Benefits Can You Expect
Even if your building doesnt have and shared fusing issues or defects, you can still take advantage of our improved process, Its actually even more straight forward!
Reduce Recovered Costs
By removing costs for additional works we reduce the overall cost that can be recovered by retailers
No Need For Budgeting
By installing the MPD free of charge we remove the need for Strata Committee to budget for maintenance or rectification work to meet current standards.
Reduced Disruption
By choosing to use us as the sole contractor you reduce the number of people who need to be on site working, taking up space in your narrow corridors and keep noise to a minimum.
Your Path to Seamless Metering
Step 1: Initial Consultation
Contact us to schedule an initial consultation where we assess your current metering setup to see if it is eligible and discuss your specific needs and goals.
Step 2: Customized Proposal
Receive a tailored proposal outlining our recommended solutions, timelines, and cost estimates, ensuring transparency and clarity.
Step 3: Implementation and Support
Once the proposal is approved, our team will swiftly implement the solution, providing ongoing support and maintenance to ensure optimal performance.