Qatar’s drive for sustainability can be supported through blockchain technology by creating an efficient energy marketplace, a Qatar Foundation (QF) scientist noted.

“Blockchain technology is a decentralised digital ledger that uploads and presents data in a transparent and secure manner, using a network of computers to approve transactions without the need for a central authority,” said Dr Amani Boumaiza, a scientist at Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (Qeeri), part of Hamad Bin Khalifa University.

“However, it is now being used across a variety of fields – such as healthcare and real estate – and Qeeri is coupling it with Artificial Intelligence to create an efficient energy marketplace. It is aiming to achieve this by encouraging people to shift to renewable resources and reduce reliance on non-renewable energy through energy trading,” explained, Dr Boumaiza.

According to the scientist, as a secure, transparent, and efficient way to share data, blockchain has the potential to transform everyday transactions across a variety of fields.

She continued: “Blockchain is important as it is helping to drive sustainability. The technology will offer new, innovative ways to reduce carbon footprint – which is also one of the main goals of Qatar National Vision 2030,”

Dr Boumaiza uses the community housing at Education City as an example, as this is the project’s test bed. There are 623 houses and most of these have Solar Photovoltaic installations, allowing sunlight to be converted into electricity.

She highlighted: “In this situation, for example, I produce energy from my roof. Whenever I produce an excess of energy, I can share this energy or sell it to my neighbours, for which I would get tokens as a reward. I could use those tokens, for example, to reduce my energy consumption invoices.

“Trading energy among peers means that if I have an excess of energy, I can sell it to my neighbours at a competitive price, compared to the price on the market. We are trying to not go through the main utility grid, and so we are creating a decentralised paradigm. This helps consumers to have greater control over their energy choices and they do not have to rely solely on large companies for energy supply.”

Dr Boumaiza noted that the idea of the blockchain is to automate the trade and exchange of energy through AI, as it can gather and analyse data from sensors, identify patterns, make predictions, and optimise energy consumption.

“So, as a household, I will not care about what’s going on within the system – everything will be automated. And this automation uses ‘smart contracts’, which is an AI technology, where everything is coded in a separate file. And this smart contract is automated; it will orchestrate the trade, determine the price of the energy, and match the best buyers with the best sellers,” pointed out the scientist.

Dr Boumaiza added that the Qeeri team is currently trying to encourage people to increase their use of green energy. “One method we are implementing is a system where individuals can trade in their revenue or tokens for incentives, benefiting both themselves and the environment. These incentives may range from reduced utility bills to vouchers for environmentally friendly products, resulting in a mutually beneficial outcome.”