Transactive Energy on Hyperledger Fabric

Abstract

As home solar power generation continues to gain popularity, trading excess power within the community is the next logical step. Locally generated power can enrich communities, cut down on transmission losses and provide some measure of energy security. In order to facilitate intra-neighborhood energy transactions, we propose a model that leverages the capabilities of blockchain to provide a transparent, secure and decentralized platform. As the consensus mechanism used must be energy efficient and because the users of the network must be identified and authenticated, in order to build trust and satisfy the Know Your Customer regulations implemented in many countries, a permissioned blockchain is used. Hyperledger Fabric which is a Linux foundation project maintained by almost 200 developers from over 35 organizations is chosen. Hyperledger Fabric has modular architecture allowing the operator to switch out components for others. We propose two architectures for Hyperledger applications and discuss how smart grids in conjunction with Hyperledger Fabric can be used to provide value to prosumers, prosumer communities, Distribution System operators (DSO) and Electric Vehicles (EVs).