Ethereum Energy Project Now Powers 700 Households in 10 Cities

Launched earlier this year, Lition is already a licensed energy supplier in Germany with clients in 12 major cities (including Berlin, Hamburg and Munich) who are now using its decentralized energy market. Built on top of the ethereum blockchain, the Lition market connects consumers directly with energy producers big and small.

In total, more than 700 households across Germany are now using the decentralized platform to buy their energy, according to the company.

In short, Lition is trying to change how global energy works with a concept very familiar to blockchain enthusiasts: "bypassing unnecessary middlemen," saving its users money on energy.

In the case of the households, an energy supplier sells the solar or electric energy (or whatever type they've produced) to an intermediary, often a giant, multinational company. Customers then buy energy from that intermediary.

The problem is, in the eyes of Lition CEO Richard Lohwasser, these multinational intermediaries have too much influence and don't give users enough choice in what type of energy they can buy.

So, Lition's solution is to cut them out completely.

"Our energy exchange connects customers and producers directly. Producers put their energy on the exchange and then customers can buy it," he told CoinDesk, adding:

Slicing out the middlemen also cuts costs – and not by a minuscule amount either. According to Lition, this saves customers an average of 20 percent on their utility bills, and increases power plant revenue by up to 30 percent.

That's even though Lition has a strong emphasis on "green energy," which while better for the environment, is often more expensive. As the app demo shows, Lition users can choose from the categories of wind, solar or biomass, then choose which provider they like the best (which, Lohwasser said is usually just the cheapest option).

Once a user finds the energy they want to buy, they make a payment in euros to Lition. Behind the scenes, an ethereum smart contract detects this payment and automatically sends the customer their energy.

"Lition's …. blockchain technology simplifies the process of buying energy directly from green producers of any scale by employing transparent smart contracts that allow consumers to circumvent all of the complexity of energy distribution brokers," the Lition website explains.

For now, users need to be from Germany, where Lition is licensed to operate.