Kyocera and LO3 Energy to Demonstrate Blockchain-Managed Virtual Power Plant

Kyocera Corporation and New York-based LO3 Energy Inc. have formed a joint project to test the feasibility of a blockchain-managed virtual power plant (VPP) utilizing a peer-to-peer distributed consensus network. Peer-to-peer systems connect computers equally through a network. On a peer-to-peer energy platform, prosumers generating energy through a renewable resource can transact energy autonomously with consumers on the platform. The test will begin February 28, 2019 at Kyocera’s Yokohama Nakayama Office in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, where a small VPP will be installed using the company’s PV modules and batteries. The energy will be controlled through LO3 Energy’s distributed ledger technology to log and manage energy flow. LO3’s blockchain technology is used for verifying and recording transactions, enabling consumer “sharing” of energy they produce with their own solar panels via a microgrid, which can reduce the burden on the larger energy grid.