Vodafone Qatar P.Q.S.C. announces it has signed agreement  

Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation (KAHRAMAA) and Vodafone Qatar announced a partnership that will see the digitalisation of Qatar’s utilities industry, with smart meters powered by the Internet of Things (IoT) rolled out nationwide. 

Following a successful pilot project, the agreement was signed today by KAHRAMAA’s President, HE Eng. Essa Bin Hilal Al-Kuwari, and Vodafone Qatar’s CEO, HE Sheikh Hamad bin Abdulla Al-Thani, at KAHRAMAA’s headquarters. 

Under the agreement, 600 thousand smart meters located in homes and companies across the country will be equipped with Vodafone IoT SIMs that remotely transmit real-time metering data to KAHRAMAA’s systems. At the heart of the bespoke service is the Vodafone Managed IoT Connectivity Platform; a secure self-service platform that simplifies IoT management, giving KAHRAMAA full visibility and control of their IoT-connected smart meters.

The first immediate benefit of smart metering will be the elimination of manual readings performed by technicians. By automating the process, residential and business customers are provided with more timely electricity and water consumption readings and bills. KAHRAMAA can also remotely connect or disconnect services in response to an incident or an account activation/deactivation request from a customer.  

A smart meter gives people a better understanding of their usage patterns, and this can help them make changes to reduce their energy usage, contributing to more prudent and responsible consumer behaviour. For KAHRAMAA, the data collected from the smart meters will drive operational efficiencies, enhance the customer experience, help in overall network planning and infrastructure, and help meet the Corporation’s environmental and sustainability targets.  

Notably, Vodafone Qatar was the first in the country to launch a Global Machine-to-Machine (M2M) Platform that enables a wider adoption of IoT. Since the launch, a host of Vodafone IoT solutions are benefitting entities in Qatar in a variety of applications and use-cases. 

Commenting on the agreement, HE Eng. Essa Bin Hilal Al-Kuwari said, “Digital transformation is a key focus area of KAHRAMAA’s long-term strategy, with our e-services already recognised as amongst the best in the region. The implementation of an advanced metering infrastructure in the country is a major milestone in KAHRAMAA’s efforts to introduce the latest smart services in alignment with the Qatar National Vision 2030. We are delighted to have Vodafone Qatar as our strategic partner providing IoT connectivity and expert knowledge to deliver the requirements for smart metering which will benefit the entire population.” 

From his end, HE Sheikh Hamad bin Abdulla Al-Thani said, “We are pleased to be KAHRAMAA’s digital partner of choice in one of the most important utilities projects in the country that further strengthens this sector. IoT is at the core of digital transformation and is key to improving business performance, with organisations increasingly turning to IoT to help them grow stronger. Vodafone Qatar is committed to helping every industry in the private and public sector reap the benefits of IoT using our leading IoT capabilities combined with our robust nationwide network infrastructure.”  

Within the Fourth Industrial Revolution, advanced technologies are increasingly being adopted by all major industry sectors worldwide to reinvent the way they do business, engage their customers and interact with them. The energy and utilities sector is at the forefront of embracing innova