Over the past few decades, power outages across the US have significantly increased. According to a Wall Street Journal report, in the year 2000, the number of major outages was less than 24. By 2020, that number spiked a whopping 650% to 180. The same report also analyzed the number of hours of outages to utility customers and saw an increase of 100% from 2013 to 2020.
Customers have experienced over eight hours of disruptions in power in 2020, compared to less than half of that in 2013. As more and more of the population continues to work from home, the timing couldn’t be worse for the millions of utilities customers across the US.
Alongside the stark increase in outages, the electricity market is experiencing the most significant revolution the country has ever witnessed. The emergence of wind and solar to generate electricity have been on the rise; utilities are not what they used to be.
In order to keep up with the growing market and its impact on climate change, regulations in the sector are also on the rise. Many states are introducing mandates which will work to reduce carbon emissions in the future, a goal the Biden administration has bid to solve by 2035.
The rapidly evolving sector, combined with the emergence of new technology and shifting regulations is making authorities doubt the sustainability of the country’s power grid. The strain that the system will experience if plants shut down, combined with the fact that replacements will not likely be developed in time, is adding uncertainty to an already shaky infrastructure.
Another contributing factor to the volatility of the power grid is how outdated some of the transmission systems are. Many of the outages experienced have been attributed to the abundance of high-voltage electrical distribution systems that were built in the 1930s, some even decades beforehand.
Energy Solutions Powered By Crypto?
As these numerous factors converge, the country’s power grid is continuing to become more and more unreliable and the rapidly evolving sector is in dire need of a solution. One project that is harnessing the power of blockchain technology to disrupt the outdated and underfunctioning power grid is emerging provider of energy services, Avatu.
Using the power of a token economy, Avatu plans to use its democratized energy system to mitigate the issue of a fragile electricity infrastructure, the inflexibility of renewable power, and high-power consumption costs to consumers. It plans to do this through its blockchain-connected device called the Magic Box, a smart battery that connects to a traditional power outlet and allows the Box to interact with other Magic Boxes in the network via wifi and its AvatuChain. The internet-connected (IoT) 1kWh lithium-ion batteries have a discharge rate of 250Wh over a four-hour period and users can also monitor their usage via an app on their mobile device or from a dashboard on their desktop in real time.
“The current system is failing. We want to decentralize, democratize, and decarbonize the current electrical power system and create what we call The People’s Utility,” says Avatu’s founder and CEO Paul Angerame.
To do this, Avatu has devised a plan which aims to disrupt the archaic industry and correct the outdated technology, combatting many of the industry’s current pain points.
“The current power grid is built on 19th century technology that is inconsistent, expensive and outdated,” explains Angerame. “Our distributed network of Magic Boxes will empower users to participate in storing, deploying and distributing power and will ease strains on the existing system and support local grid resiliency, all while rewarding the user for contributing to the network.”
The innovative energy project seeks to democratize the distribution of energy-related services through a decentralized network using its native token, AvatuToken ($AVATU), and the AvatuChain. Ultimately, Avatu seeks to empower individual consumers by creating a rewarding way to interact with and deploy locally stored power.
Many contributing factors have coincided to create an unfortunate situation for America’s escalating power outage problem, but through the adoption of projects like Avatu, the emergence of blockchain technology promises to deliver new ways to tackle the overwhelming crisis that the country faces.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
