Japan Brings ‘Big players’ in a Blockhain – Electricity Research Partnership

Four major Japanese companies from different industries will team up to research the possible use of blockchain technology in the field of distributed energy supply.

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The leading electric company - Kansai Electric Power Co. (Kepco), alongside Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, Nihon Unisys – an IT management supplier, and the University of Tokyo will work together on the project. It aims to explore the idea of selling excess solar energy to consumers.

The project is powered by the notion that the use of sustainable energy sources is increasing and as a result, it creates the need of the current power supply system to transform from a conventional large-scale intensive type to a self-sustained distributed type. According to the team behind the project, in the future, with the digital transformations, electric power could be directly traded to consumers through a dedicated platform.

With this project, the team is also joining the latest movement for incorporating blockchain into the electricity supply. Earlier this year, in March, the Chubu Electric Power Company, software company Infoteria and IoT startup Nayuta explored the appliance of blockchain in tracking electric vehicle charging.

An example from another part of the world is Spain’s giant, multi-megawatt mining farm. It is powered by solar light and the owners’ hopes are for it to be able to sell energy to end-users without third-party involvement.

The release goes on to report that Kansai Electric will construct and preview the demonstration system, the University of Tokyo will summarize the research, and Nihon Unisys will take care of the development of the system. Mitsubishi UFJ Bank will take part in advising over transactions and settlements through blockchain technology.

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