Completion of Mount Isa's smart water meter rollout has been slated for June 2023, the Mount Isa City Council has confirmed.
The rollout has faced twelve months of COVID-related delays which pushed back the delivery of almost 2,000 water meters to December 2022.
The smart meters are computerised and record water usage more accurately than traditional analogue meters.
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According to the Council, the 500 smart meters which were installed in the initial phase of the rollout in November 2021, have already helped identify a number of internal leaks in the city's water system.
It is expected the new influx of meters will uncover more leaks and help drive down water costs for Council.
Mount Isa Mayor Danielle Slade said the rollout will help identify the 37 per cent of water which was unaccounted for on the Council's water bill.
"That is the difference between what the Water Board bills Council, and what Council in turn are able to bill customers," she said.
"The smart meters are an important first step in reconciling that difference.
"With falling water levels in Lake Moondarra, this is very timely."
The meters, which were manufactured in Slovakia and Germany, have faced a series of COVID-related delays after the Council agreed to award the $2.93 million contract to global water solutions group Suez Water in mid-2021.
"We tend to forget that the whole world is struggling to return to some normality in terms of supply of manufactured goods," Cr Slade said.
Contractors have already carried out preparatory work and fitted transmitters to some of the city's larger commercial meters throughout 2022.
Installation of the new meters began on December 12 and will continue through to December 23. Installation will resume after the Christmas break in late January.
The Council expects more batches will be delivered throughout the first four months of 2023, with the rollout set to be completed by June 30.
