Opportunity through blockchain
Companies like Google and Amazon are becoming active at the interface to the end customer. The vast majority of utilities see progress in digitization as an opportunity to score points against the new competition.
A good four out of ten companies expect blockchain technology to change the market environment. These are the findings of the study "Strategy Development of Energy Suppliers" by management consultants Horváth & Partners.
More than half of the energy companies surveyed consider the entry of competitors from outside the sector to be one of the greatest challenges facing the German energy market. Blockchain also has great potential for the energy industry.
Because in the decentralized energy world in particular, there is great demand for what this technology can do: guarantee the smooth exchange of information between generation plants, grids and storage facilities at all times.
43 percent of the companies surveyed attribute to blockchain the potential to change the energy market by 2025. The industry sees a wide range of application fields, especially in the areas of energy trading and marketing.
20 percent of the companies surveyed have already launched their own projects. Just under a third of the companies are gaining experience with cooperations or participations in corresponding projects.
"Utilities are first movers when it comes to blockchain. Pilot projects can already be found in all stages of the energy industry's value chain."
says Horváth expert Matthias Deeg.
Examples include the development of a smart charging infrastructure for electromobility, the certification of green and regional electricity, and neighborhood and tenant electricity concepts.