The O-ring on my left-side-only power meter finally gave up the ghost and I’d purchased 2 maintenance kits to be covered in the future.
Long story short: the new cover has the O-ring already in place and ultimately snapped in as expected.
I want to add that my first few attempts at installation did not go well to the point where I just “knew“ that the cover itself must have been the incorrect model.
After multiple unsuccessful attempts, I almost feverishly compared the OEM cover (which clips into place EASILY) to the new one with a magnifying glass to be absolutely certain that the two were the same - they were- and finally found the sweet spot and once found, the new cover fits right into place.
All’s well that ends well and can advise that if the new cover doesn’t lock TIGHTLY into place, you’re doing it wrong and it won’t stay on during a ride