The Indian state of Uttar Pradesh is testing blockchain-enabled peer-to-peer (P2P) trading of rooftop solar power.

Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation (UPPCL), its subsidiary Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam (MVVNL) and Uttar Pradesh New & Renewable Energy Development Agency are hosting the pilot project involving energy generated from solar rooftop systems installed on buildings in Lucknow.

The project is being implemented by India Smart Grid Forum (ISGF) along with blockchain technology partner Power Ledger in Australia and Abajyon Consulting, which supported the integration of the blockchain platform with UPPCL’s billing system.

The P2P trading platform was launched with its first 12 participants comprising nine customers with rooftop solar (prosumers) and three without rooftop solar (net buyers), identified in consultation with MVVNL. The customers were trained through online sessions by ISGF on various functionalities of the blockchain platform and the procedure that needed to be followed to participate in the trading activities.

This being a pilot project, the participants will engage in the mock trading – no money transactions – for three months. During this period, ISGF will try different trading logics and test scenarios. The results and recommendations of the pilot project will be submitted to UPPCL and UPERC (Uttar Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission) for consideration for framing regulations to promote P2P trading of rooftop solar power among prosumers and consumers in the state.

“This pilot project will demonstrate the feasibility of rooftop solar energy trading through smart contracts on the blockchain platform between prosumers with their neighbouring households,” said ISGF president Reji Kumar Pillai. “Power Ledger’s platform integrates the transaction data from the smart meters to enable households to set prices, track energy trading in real time and enable the settlement of surplus solar energy transactions.”

Power Ledger has more than twenty projects in ten countries, including several in the Asean region where it recently announced a project to create a renewable energy certificate marketplace in Thailand and the broader south-east Asian region.

“India has aggressive renewable energy targets, including 100GW of solar energy targets, of which 40GW is to come from rooftop solar, so we’re excited to be an enabler of technology that can fast-track the country’s energy plans,” said Power Ledger executive chair Jemma Green.

UPERC chairman Raj Pratap Singh said: “This is the first-of-its-kind project of blockchain for energy trading in India and Uttar Pradesh state has been the first in introducing new technologies in the power sector in the country in the past also. This blockchain project will help us in being the pioneers to provide leadership and opportunities for P2P trading on blockchain in the country.”

Arvind Kumar, UPPCL chairman, added: “Blockchain is the technology that facilitates peer-to-peer trading of power. I am hopeful that results of this pilot phase will be very positive and will help us develop a good model from the results of this pilot for a larger rollout. We are happy to support the entire project till its execution.”

ISGF is a public-private partnership initiative of the Indian government with the mandate of accelerating smart grid deployments across the country. With more than 170 members comprising ministries, utilities, technology providers, academia and research, ISGF has evolved as a think-tank for smart energy and smart city projects. The forum’s mandate is to accelerate energy transition through clean energy, electric grid modernisation and electric mobility; work with national and international agencies in standards development; and help utilities, regulators and the industry in technology selection, training and capacity building.