What Can Energy on Blockchain do for Our Future
The proper use of energy has never been more important to the future of the planet. This is why it beggars belief that many companies continue to produce smart devices with dumb discharge processes. For example, some internet-connected TVs draw 30 watts of power when used and 25 watts in standby. This may not mean too much for the individual consumer, but expand this to all devices and the energy waste is huge.
Put simply: people need to get smarter about the way they track and use energy–and fast. This is where blockchain, like in many other industries, is coming to disrupt the status quo with much-needed efficiencies. Blockchain in the energy sector proposes a host of possibilities with many experts noting “peer-to-peer energy trading” and “electric vehicle charging and sharing” to be the ones to watch in the next five years.
Blockchain promises to create systems whereby energy prosumers from the commercial sector or private homes can trade electricity without the interference of a central authority. With the continuous growth of electric vehicles, blockchain promises to provide an adequate, publicly available charging infrastructure that tackles the “lack of range” challenge, by enabling individuals to make their private vehicle charging stations available for public use for a fee.
Meanwhile, the majority of big sector players are already exploring the potential for peer-to-peer energy trading. This means that instead of purchasing from one central supplier, households will buy their energy from local sources such as neighbors or local businesses that generate their own electricity via solar panels or wind turbines. Similar to finance or data, this literally accesses other peers to receive power depending on need.
This is already being trialed in certain housing estates in the UK as well as other projects in Europe. For example, French startups partnered with the Departmental Council of Pyrénées-Orientales to launch the first energy sharing project in the country in 2017. The DIGISOL project explored the use of blockchain technology to share solar energy between individuals within the same building.
These projects ensure that individual users monitor consumption closely while only accessing the required amount of power. A survey of the German Energy Agency on the views of energy decision-makers shows that near 20% believe that blockchain technology is a game changer for energy suppliers. More than half of the survey participants, which featured the views of 70 executives working in the energy sector, reported that they plan or have already undertaken initiatives for blockchain innovation.
Further, several energy utility companies have taken an interest in exploring the potential benefits of distributed ledger technologies as an enabling technology for low-carbon transition and sustainability. This means blockchain energy processes simultaneously encourage sustainability and efficiency–two things the world desperately needs today in the current climate. Energy needs to finally get smart and blockchain looks to be the catalyst.
