Blockchain-Enabled Decentralised Energy Markets

Abstract

This chapter examines the transformative role of blockchain as a foundational digital infrastructure for decentralised energy markets, assessing its capacity to enhance transparency, verifiability, and automated compliance in peer-to-peer electricity trading. It explores how distributed ledgers, smart contracts, and tokenised energy attributes may restructure established market arrangements by enabling immutable data governance and algorithmic execution of regulatory obligations. The analysis places particular emphasis on legal and institutional challenges, including data-protection requirements, cybersecurity vulnerabilities, allocation of liability, and the need for coherent regulatory alignment across jurisdictions. Drawing upon comparative international experiences, the chapter identifies governance approaches that support responsible experimentation while safeguarding consumer rights and system integrity. It ultimately argues that blockchain can foster resilient and equitable energy transitions when embedded within adaptive and normatively robust legal frameworks.