Kaluza, a company within the UK’s seventh largest energy supplier OVO, has invested in Electron – a UK platform developed by a group of blockchain and energy experts aimed at empowering and streamlining innovation in the energy markets.

In an official media release on OVO’s website (Mar 12), OVO said Kaluza has taken a minority stake in Electron’s business to “accelerate Electron’s deployment of distributed energy trading platforms that will enable the transition to intelligent grid infrastructure” – namely its distributed flexibility marketplace.

This is Kaluza’s first strategic investment. OVO did not disclose the percentage stake Kaluza has taken in Electron. Previously a technology division within OVO, Electron now develops and manages software and hardware to support the integration of electric vehicles, electric heating, and battery storage onto the grid.

OVO believes that technologies such as blockchain and IoT (Internet of Things) are essential in supporting the move towards a highly distributed, complex energy system in that links multiple agents and connected devices to an intelligent zero-carbon grid.

Blockchain applications in the energy sector are growing. The Crypto Sight reported earlier this month that Thai petroleum refiner Bangchak Corporation is testing a commercial microgrid and blockchain energy trading platform.

Last month, energy-specialized blockchain solutions company LO3 Energy announced two separate projects with major Japanese companies Marubeni Corporation and Kyocera to look at improving energy distribution and the energy marketplace in Japan.