Smart Grid and Blockchain Technology for Community-Based P2P Renewable Energy Trading

Abstract

Current electric grids were designed a century ago for simple and limited needs. An electric grid helps the power generation company (PGC) supply electricity to homes and industrial consumers. Traditional electric grids have one-way interactions that make it difficult to cater to ever-changing and increased demand. The Smart Grids (SGs) introduced the bidirectional flow of electricity and the exchange of information between consumers and PGCs. SG is a combination of networks of communication, controls, computers, and automations that allow its integration with emerging technologies. Blockchain (BC) is a digital distributed ledger (DDL) that ensures the security, reliability and immutability of data. The integration of BC and SGs is an emerging idea that could also provide a platform for community-based electricity trading. This study aims to review community-based energy trading with BC-based SGs and discusses the first ever community-based peer-to-peer (P2P) solar energy trading project, Quartierstrom, by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE), Switzerland. The findings of this study contribute a valuable reference to the knowledge body and enhance the comprehension of P2P energy trading for both new and experienced researchers, enabling them to identify new opportunities and challenges.