Blockchain Energy for Future Smart Grid in Indonesia: A Brief Review

Blockchain is a disruptive technology in this upcoming disruption era. There are ideas to apply this technology in the electricity industry and transform it in form of peer-to-peer energy transactions in the future power grid. Research and pilot projects from companies around the world are starting to implement it to analyze the effect on the electricity supply chain and its feasibility. This paper will briefly discuss the concept of blockchain in a peer-to-peer transaction and also its effect on the electricity industry as a smart grid. Next, by considering the electric grid and its supply chain in Indonesia that is operated by PLN, the paper will discuss the possibility of how blockchain will affect the electricity industry in Indonesia by using an approach from the existing research in another country. The discussion shows that in Indonesia, blockchain will impact the most on distribution sector and the electricity retail market. And by considering blockchain technology, private and consortium blockchains with BFT consensus are preferred in Indonesia. PLN must be prepared to face these changes by conducting more research, especially using the regulator sandbox approach. The government of Indonesia also needs to update its regulations to anticipate blockchain integration into the grid by participating in collaborative research with PLN.