The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada OK'd a smart meter opt-out plan for customers who don't want to participate in NV Energy's Energize smart meter initiative, and the plan includes a compromise for customers who want to keep their old analog meters: "drive by" digital meters that don't provide daily or hourly power use information directly to the utility.

But smart meter opponents apparently don't want anything to do with the compromise – or the fees that would be charged for opting out.

In any event, customers can't use the opt-out option until NV Energy submits a fee proposal to the commission – and the utility was given 60 days to provide it. From experiences in other jurisdictions, NV says it expects about 7,500 customers will choose to leave the Energize program. Based on that figure, an earlier filing said the utility may ask for a one-time fee of $110 and monthly charges of $15.

Opponents said they shouldn't need to pay anything because NV's expenses would be covered by the $36 million a year that smart meters will save in operating costs. The utility argued that it needs the savings to help pay for the $163 million it is spending on the conversion. A federal stimulus grant will provide an additional $138 million for project costs. A utility official said that while the  company will reap benefits over time, program costs now exceed benefits.

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