BTC To Provide Prepaid Electricity

Empowered To Manage Power Usage

Metered and prepaid electricity will soon become a reality as the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) has started testing the service in Spanish Wells, Eleuthera. Prepaid metering allows customers to better manage their electricity use and bills via BTC’s 4G LTE data network.

BTC CEO Leon Williams said, “With this accomplishment, BTC will become the first Telecommunications Provider in the Caribbean region to leverage its network to provide smart-grid services to the utility industry. BTC's prepaid service eliminates monthly bills, disconnections, and visits to the utility office, while providing the tools necessary to save money on utilities.  It's also a step ahead for utility companies who can reduce accounts receivable and transition the management of accounts to the customer."

CEO at St. George’s Cay Power Limited, Morris Pinder said, “We have been using the BTC prepaid metering solution for about a month now, and thus far everything is going well. In Spanish Wells we have several business owners that operate rental units and prepaid metering will be beneficial as renters will be responsible for their power usage. I’m certain that it will also be beneficial for persons that may have problems paying for electricity.”

Prepaid metering provides an added layer of flexibility for customers. This tech-savvy solution will use BTC’s 4G LTE data network, and will allow customers to top up their accounts using their existing mobile wallet, wherever BTC top-up is available, online and via the BTC Call Center. Consumers will have the ability of monitoring their usage using their smart devices.                               

The prepaid metering system provides notifications, letting customers know when their balances are low and prompting them to top up again. The system can also be customized to allow customers to also pay down on their existing bills.

Over the next several months, BTC expects to complete its POC and extend the opportunity to local utility providers. Later this year, BTC will also work with a provider to spearhead a prepaid metering concept for water usage.