Active citizens: key to ensuring the digital management of energy data

Last Thursday, 13 June, Sabadell City Council and Ecoserveis organised the event Energy and Digital Systems: the New Role of Citizens at the auditorium of the Vapor Badia Library in Sabadell.

The energy transition and self-consumption involve the management of a significant amount of data generated by us as users of the energy system. The event provided an opportunity to discuss current weaknesses and the need to regulate, protect and manage all this data transparently and securely, while ensuring our right to access and consult it.

However, to make this a reality in a country where a climate emergency has already been declared, it is essential to empower energy users and strengthen their involvement in creating a new, decentralised energy model. This also means moving from a passive role (simply receiving energy from the grid) to an active one, in which people can generate their own energy from renewable sources.

Sabrina Lavado spoke about the Clean Energy Package, which encompasses the three “Ds” (Decarbonisation, Digitalisation and Decentralisation) and the need to create energy communities capable of managing their own energy, now that recent regulatory developments have opened up this possibility.

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Xavier Massa presented theKm0 Energy project, which develops solar photovoltaic parks across Catalonia. The team behind the initiative supports companies and industries in their energy transition and collaborates on other

energy innovation projects. As he explained, the energy transition cannot be limited to replacing polluting technologies with green alternatives. It also requires putting consumers at the centre and enabling them to participate directly in energy markets.

Gerard Hernández, from the Consumers in Action association, FACUA, provided a critical perspective from the point of view of consumers. In particular, he explained how new smart meters have been introduced without users fully understanding how they work or the

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opportunities they offer. He also highlighted the need to regulate how distribution companies present data, so that digital systems do not become a barrier but rather a tool that benefits users. He pointed out that the fact that half of the amount on energy bills is not directly linked to energy consumption is a factor that hinders the growth of renewable energy installations.

Virginia Mijes discussed how Blockchain technology can provide solutions for this new decentralised and distributed energy model, ensuring that energy consumption data is managed efficiently and securely through encryption, and

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consequently enabling energy to be shared between different people using tokens, for example.

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Jaume Saura explained the role and functions of the Síndic de Greuges (Catalan Ombudsman) in relation to energy consumers, self-consumption and advice to companies.

Following the presentations, a series of short workshops were held on the information that can be obtained from smart meters, access to load curves for energy consumption, and energy aggregators.