Itron Ships its 35 Millionth Gas Communication Module

LIBERTY LAKE, Wash.— February 3, 2011— Itron Inc. (NASDAQ: ITRI) announced today that it has shipped its 35 millionth gas communication module for the North American utility market. The recipient of the milestone device is NiSource Inc., whose companies deliver natural gas and electricity to 3.8 million customers throughout the U.S., including customers in seven states.

Itron's facility in Waseca, Minn., is the birthplace of radio-frequency gas automated meter reading (AMR) technology. Itron shipped its first encoder receiver transmitter (ERT®) module from the facility in 1986. Utilities identified a need to obtain meter reads from indoor gas meters via automation and Itron answered the call with the industry's first-and since most trusted-gas solution. Itron has since evolved the technology to include advanced data logging capabilities and two-way communication, making advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) a reality for gas providers.

Itron's two-way 100G Datalogging ERT module includes storage for 40 days of time-synchronized hourly data. This feature has been proven valuable to the industry because it can act as a "black box," providing investigators with flow rates through the meter in times of catastrophic events. The solution allows both mobile and fixed network customers to cost-effectively obtain data. In the past, mobile customers could only benefit from advanced functionality by upgrading to a fixed network.

"Our gas distribution companies realized the customer and organizational benefits of AMR immediately following our initial deployments," said Shawn Patterson, senior vice president and senior operations officer at NiSource." The transition to the 100G allows us to expand the benefits across our customer base and will prepare us for future opportunities with AMI."

"Itron is proud to partner with companies like NiSource, who have been long-time customers and have trusted Itron to deliver on their current and future needs, and have helped us reach this important delivery milestone," said Carl Porter, vice president of gas product marketing for Itron. "We are listening to and anticipating customer needs, including solutions for a smart gas distribution network. We are busy integrating safety features, such as shut-off valves into the gas meter, and continuing to grow the value of AMR and AMI."