Smart Contracts and Transactive Energy in Microgrid Energy Management – A Review

Abstract:
The proliferation of distributed generation has posed issues to power system reliability and operation. Microgrids (MG) facilitate uninterrupted energy supply and help mitigate the uncertainties of intermittent generation. Effective energy management (EM) within MGs minimizes curtailment and enables energy transactions through smart contracts, fostering sustainable energy practices and market decentralization. This paper explores MGs as a solution to enhance power system quality and flexibility, analyzing EM system along with transactive energy as an emerging business model. Although this model presents certain challenges, the smart contracts and blockchain technologies facilitate the energy transactions, increasing security and reliability for all parties involved.