Business

Iberdrola uses blockchain technology to guarantee renewable energy supply

Spain-based utility Iberdrola has completed a project it says will contribute to accelerating the decarbonization process by using blockchain technology to guarantee that the energy supplied to the consumer is 100% renewable.
Tags
Iberdrola uses blockchain technology to guarantee renewable energy supply

Spain-based utility Iberdrola has completed a project it says will contribute to accelerating the decarbonization process by using blockchain technology to guarantee that the energy supplied to the consumer is 100% renewable.

This first experiment was done with financial entity Kutxabank, which was able to track, in real time, the origin of the energy supplied by Iberdrola from the generation asset to the point of consumption.

The renewable energy was generated by the Oiz (Biscay province) and Maranchon (Guadalajara province in the Castile-La Mancha region) wind farms and the 263-MW San Esteban (Orense province in the Galicia region) hydroelectric plant. The clean energy from these assets was then consumed at the headquarters of Kutxabank in the Basque Country and Cajasur in Cordoba.

Blockchain technology is an efficient way of allocating which assets will supply energy to a specific point of consumption, an Iberdrola press release says, and can even be used to establish a hierarchy of priorities when it comes to sources of origin. It also eliminates intermediaries as it uses smart contracts that automatically come into effect when both parties fulfill their side of the agreement, simplifying the process, eliminating costs and improving privacy.

With this initiative, renewable energy certification processes are accelerated and automated, certification is given a greater degree of traceability, and the transaction is made more transparent and secure, as it is permanently registered on the platform so that both parties can audit the results.

According to Iberdrola, “This innovation shows us that it is a crucial catalyst in the process of decarbonising the economy, allowing traceable, secure and rapid transactions. In this case, the supply of green energy is more efficient, flexible and transparent, which incentivises the production and consumption of 100% renewable energy.”

Iberdrola says that guaranteeing the renewable origin of energy is critical for long-term PPAs (power purchase agreements), associated with the growth of the corporate green energy market.

To carry out this initiative, Iberdrola was supported by Energy Web Foundation, a scaleable, open-source blockchain platform designed for the regulatory, operational and market needs of the energy sector.

An Energy Blockchain Symposium and Training is being held during the upcoming DistribuTECH conference and exhibition. This blockchain content will be available Feb. 4 and 5. Click here for more details.