(Reject) Tokyo Electric Power Company to Use Blockchain for Trading Electricity Surplus

As the emancipation for both local and global adoption and integration of blockchain technology advances, there has been a surge in institutional integration of blockchain technology. Blockchain.news reported the use of blockchain verification in meat delivery and supply chain management by HerdX and UPS. This reaffirms that the use cases of blockchain technology by service providers are on the increase. Recent in this surge of blockchain adoption is the partnership between Japanese Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc and Itochu Corporation (a major trading company) to build a blockchain-based system to trade surplus electricity. 

What the partnership entails

The electricity surplus trading which will come into effect in 2023 will begin preliminary verification tests by the end of the year. With the partnership, a storage battery equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) that controls the amount of power generation and a solar panel will be installed in the home.

While the household system will be in use within 3 years, it will help to gather data to track households whose maturity is due to a fixed price purchase system contract as system customers.

The two firms will collaborate with local government authorities to develop and start a Proof-of-Concept (PoC) by March 2021. The subsequent trading of surplus energy between households is predicated upon the successful implementation of the PoC.

Blockchain powering energy efficiency and sustainability

TEPCO generates 241,500 GWh (as of FY2016) and distributes these to a customer base of 29.45 million people. Household demands differ, which creates an imbalance in the electricity usage between households. TEPCO’s blockchain-backed alliance will help convert the excess energy usage to a profitable venture by households.

This will not only bring energy efficiency by curbing wastage, it will engender trust that can bring about more diversified research into the use cases of blockchain in the power sector.