Homeowners in Kildare will be the first in the country to have water meters installed on their properties when the process gets underway next week.
Information packs will be sent to thousands of homes in the next few weeks containing information on the installation process and what customers can expect.
Installing a meter should take about two hours, with 27,000 to be installed every month.
The programme is to be completed by December 2016, with 1.1 million meters to be installed.
The first water charges will arrive in January 2015 with the average bill expected to be between €300 and €350.
Meanwhile, The Irish Examiner revealed today that the estimated €500 cost of installing a water meter in each household is expected to be passed on to consumers in the form of a standing charge on their water bills.
