BATH — Despite a renewed municipal ordinance restricting the process, Central Maine Power will likely begin installing socalled “ Smart Meters” in Bath next week, a company spokesman said Wednesday.

As of last week, only 67 of the city’s 4,800 customers had elected to “ opt out” of the Smart Meter program, spokesman John Carroll said. However, nearly 2,000 customers have yet to respond to letters from CMP informing them of their right to elect a standard meter, at an additional cost.

In December, the Bath City Council renewed an ordinance that restricts CMP’s ability to install the meters in the city for another six months.

Opponents of the wireless meters — among them, dozens of parties to legal challenges filed with the Maine Public Utilities Commission — allege that the meters interfere with wireless Internet and medical devices, and that the radio signals can cause health problems.

But CMP officials and their supporters assert that the meters are efficient and accurate, and no more dangerous than many other day-to-day items not similarly limited in Bath, such as baby monitors.

Carroll said Thursday that despite confusion among Bath residents, “We’ve always had the right to install (smart meters). We just had to go through the communication.”

On Dec. 16, CMP sent letters to its Bath customers informing them that, within 30 days, the company would begin installing the meters in the city, and if they elect to “opt-out” — as is their right — customers will be charged. An enclosed card requested a response by Dec. 27.

Since then, Carroll said Thursday, company representatives have twice attempted to call customers who have not responded. On Wednesday, CMP sent another letter asking that customers respond by this Thursday, “because we’re likely to start ( installing) as early as the week of Jan. 23.”

Installation of the meters takes about 10 minutes, and customers don’t have to be home when installation takes place. CMP representatives will knock first as a courtesy — and to alert residents to shut down their computers — because Carroll said installation does interrupt the power source.

“If they’re not at home, we’ll change the meter and just leave a tag saying we’ve changed the meter to a Smart Meter,” he said.

Carroll said company officials are “troubled” at some of the responses from customers, who seem to be under the impression that CMP cannot install the meters under the current ordinance.

Carroll said the company will continue to try to contact customers it has yet to hear from, but that installation will go forward, as soon as next week.

Of nearly 3,000 responses so far, he said, about 67 customers have opted out of the smart meters, which he described as “typical of every other community” percentage wise.

The statewide project is nearing completion, he said, adding that an appeal filed in October to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court by Bowdoinham resident Ed Friedman in which the plaintiffs appealed a Public Utilities Commission decision about Smart Meters would not delay installation.

bbrogan@timesrecord.com