The Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) Electricity Ministry expects to award a contract worth about $1.5bn in June for the installation of a smart metering system across the northern Iraqi region.

“This project has taken two years of preparation and bids were submitted by ten companies in November 2012,” says Hamah-Ameen Hawramany, adviser, Electricity Ministry, speaking at MEED’s Kurdistan Projects 2013 in Erbil on 12 June.

Bidding firms have been narrowed down to six companies after and technical evaluation, and the Electricity Ministry is now evaluating their commercial proposals.

Hawramany would not reveal the bidders or potential value of the project, however. The project, which is expected to take 24 months to complete includes the connection of more than 1 million consumers, across the KRG’s three governorates, to a central monitoring station, to enable accurate billing and consumption measurement.