Vodafone partners with Energy Web to integrate smart grid with an IoT blockchain

Vodafone and Energy Web want to bring billions of assets in the energy sector onto the blockchain

Vodafone is partnering with Energy Web (EW) on a project that will see the technology communications firm link billions of renewable and distributed energy assets to grids via the Internet of Things (IoT) and blockchain technology.

To achieve this, Vodafone Business is seeking to use its SIM-centric (SCB) technology in combination with IoT connectivity “to create secure IDs for energy assets,” Energy Web announced in a Medium post published on May 26.

According to EW, the project would make it possible for renewable and distributed assets, including solar panels, wind turbines, batteries and heat pumps to safely and efficiently integrate into energy grids.

Vodafone and Energy Web want to make it easier and more secure for energy grid providers to identify DLT energy assets that are at any one time connected to a provider’s grid. The companies say this will be achievable using the same technology that telecom operators use SIM cards to recognise mobile phones.

The project is set to roll out a smart grid system built on Vodafone’s Internet of Things (IoT) platform and be integrated into EW’s Decentralized Operating System (EW-DOS).

Vodafone Business IoT Division Director, Erik Brennei , noted that “the number of decentralized, new-generation, low-carbon devices” has increased tremendously. 

Underpinning the importance of IoT and blockchain to the project, and to the sector, Brennei added that these assets need to benefit from secure connectivity, “regardless of their location.”

Secure and simple connections, he added, will ensure energy and communication networks find it easy to connect and manage assets on the grid.

Energy Web CEO, Walter Kok, has said that “EW’s expertise in energy and decentralization” combined with Vodafone’s trailblazing IoT infrastructure provides an opportunity for the energy sector to experience fast growth.

The partnership continues Vodafone’s recent efforts that have seen the UK telecom giant look to use DLT to improve its services. 

The company revealed in 2019 that there were 20 potential uses cases where blockchain technology could help revolutionise operations. It includes a blockchain-based initiative announced in March that targets the company’s supply chain processes.

The firm also plans to use the emerging technology in projects aimed at identity and security.

The partnership between Vodafone and EW has seen the latter’s crypto token surge in the market. The EWT token, currently ranked 2127 on CoinMarketCap, has soared over 11% in the past 24 hours against the US dollar to hit an all-time high. The token is exchanging hands at $3.12.