Texas Gas Service Installing Additional Automated Meter-Reading Devices in Galveston
GALVESTON, Texas – July 28, 2011 – Work is under way to install automated meter-reading (AMR) devices on natural gas meters in the Galveston area. Texas Gas Service, a division of ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE; OKE), plans to install more than 5,000 of the devices before the end of this year.Automated meter- reading devices reduce the need for meter readers to enter customers’ yards and also reduce the number of estimated readings of hard-to-access natural gas meters.
“This technology will improve the service we provide to our customers and provide more accurate readings for customers’ bills,” said Paul Wilson, Texas Gas Service east region vice president. “These devices will also enhance the safety of our employees by reducing the need for meter readers to enter customers’ yards.”
The automated technology uses a small radio transmitter attached to the natural gas meter that, when activated, sends the current reading to a nearby technician who is equipped with a receiver that records the data and ultimately transfers it to the company’s accounting system. The technician may obtain the reading from a company vehicle or from the street.
Utility Partners of American (UPA) is the subcontractor working to install the AMR devices on existing meters and, where necessary, replace older meters with new AMR-equipped meters.
Customers who live in the areas where this work is taking place will be notified by letter. Customers whose meters will need to be replaced will receive additional information on that process from Texas Gas Service. The contractors performing the work will be wearing uniforms, driving UPA-marked vehicles and displaying photo identification badges that clearly identify them.
When the project is finished, more than 100,000 of Texas Gas Service’s 600,000 customers will have meters capable of being read remotely.
For more information, visit the website at www.texasgasservice.com.
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Texas Gas Service provides natural gas service to more than 600,000 customers in the state of Texas. It is a division of ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE: OKE), a diversified energy company. ONEOK is the general partner and owns 42.8 percent of ONEOK Partners, L.P. (NYSE: OKS), one of the largest publicly traded limited partnerships, which is a leader in the gathering, processing, storage and transportation of natural gas in the U.S. and owns one of the nation’s premier natural gas liquids (NGL) systems, connecting NGL supply in the Mid-Continent and Rocky Mountain regions with key market centers. ONEOK is among the largest natural gas distributors in the United States, serving more than 2 million customers in Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas. Its energy services operation focuses primarily on marketing natural gas and related services throughout the U.S. ONEOK is a Fortune 500 company and is included in the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 Stock Index.
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Lori Moreno
Texas Gas Service
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