The Developing Role of Blockchain

Produced in collaboration with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), this White Paper looks at the potential of Blockchain Technology for the energy sector. Although blockchain is gaining wide-spread acknowledgement and use in the sector, there are still a number of uncertainties surrounding the technology and a combination of technological, regulatory and other practical challenges could stall its growth.

Key questions addressed in the paper include:

• What are blockchain’s opportunities and risks in the energy sector?
• What are the latest updates on pilots, use cases and scalability?
• What are the regulatory obstacles associated with the implementation of blockchain applications and what are the issues to be addressed?
• How will blockchain impact company and state value chain infrastructure related to the energy sector?

The paper draws from interviews with companies and organisations actively involved in blockchain projects in the energy industry from the US, Europe, China, Japan and New Zealand. It is designed to start a dialogue on potential obstacles to the uptake of blockchain and where the technology might be headed.

The World Energy Council and PwC plan to continue to keep tabs on blockchain developments and are systematically identifying the best innovators in the game and will work with them to understand their perspective on critical success factors. Progress will be updated regularly, with blockchain featuring in the programme at numerous World Energy Council events, including the 2019 World Energy Congress in Abu Dhabi.