Industry-Academia-Government Collaboration Agreement Signed for Energy Traceability

i-Grid Solutions, Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Tomokazu Akita; hereinafter 'i-Grid'), Keio University, and Sakai City have signed a collaboration agreement regarding energy traceability (Note 1).

Accordingly, they announced the start of a demonstration experiment on hourly matching (Note 2) of renewable energy (hereinafter 'renewable energy') from solar power generation, using Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture, which has been selected as a leading decarbonization area, as a model case, starting in June.

Regarding electricity generated from rooftop solar power plants at multiple facilities within a single region, the project will comply with the international standard specifications stipulated by EnergyTag (Note 3) and utilize cutting-edge methods combining blockchain technology to visualize the correspondence between power generation and consumption. Even when surplus electricity is used at other facilities, it will be possible to link the location, amount, and time of generation and consumption, achieving hourly matching that aligns power supply and demand in units of one hour or less.

■ Purpose and Background

Currently, to prove that electricity comes from renewable energy sources, it is common to trade electricity combined with non-fossil fuel certificates (FIT certificates/non-FIT certificates). On the other hand, an international initiative called the '24/7 CFE (Carbon Free Energy) Compact' has begun, aiming to directly cover consumed electricity with carbon-free electricity for every hour, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, rather than 'deeming' it carbon-free through non-fossil certificates. This has increased the need to prove the time, location, and amount of renewable energy supply and demand. The mechanisms for accurately tracking the location and power source type of power plants to meet this need are insufficient. Therefore, with the cooperation of Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture, this project will conduct a demonstration to match power supply and demand between generation and consumption locations in 30-minute units, verifying the visualization of electricity and environmental value.

■ Overview of the Demonstration Experiment

Demonstration Title: Hourly Matching and Visualization of Power Supply and Non-Fossil Certificates

Demonstration Overview: Link both electricity and environmental value from power plants with proximity to the supply point, and add 'distance' and 'time' value to non-fossil certificates to realize local production and consumption of electricity.

Roles:
・Sakai City: Field verification cooperation
・Keio University: Technical supervisory advisor
・i-Grid: Development of hourly matching system

Period: June 3, 2026 – March 31, 2027 (planned)

■ Aiming to Expand the Adoption of Local Renewable Energy

i-Grid has developed a total of 1,422 rooftop solar PPA model projects nationwide. It offers a solar PPA service that utilizes a surplus electricity circulation scheme, supplying surplus power (electricity that cannot be fully self-consumed from solar panels installed on facility rooftops) to other facilities for effective use. The company has developed its own proprietary platform to smoothly operate facilities nationwide under this scheme, aggregating and managing surplus power generated across the country. In November 2025, it joined the UN-led 24/7 CFE Compact, complies with the recommended traceability standard set by EnergyTag, and is building a PoC (Proof of Concept) system for blockchain-based power matching traceability to achieve secure (Note 4) local production and consumption.

Sakai City, which cooperated in the demonstration, is implementing the 'Sakai Energy Local Production and Consumption Project,' selected as a national leading decarbonization area, promoting the use of renewable energy within the region. As part of this project, i-Grid, acting as a renewable energy aggregator/retail electricity provider, has been aggregating surplus power from solar power generation facilities and supplying electricity within the region since February 2026.

For this demonstration, i-Grid's R.E.A.L. platform and Keio University's traceability technology will be utilized in actual operations. Through this demonstration experiment, the project aims to further expand the adoption of local renewable energy and promote the transition to a decarbonized society.

Note 1: Energy traceability is a mechanism for tracking and proving the origin and environmental value of electricity (https://igrid.co.jp/2025/04/30/release20250430/)
Note 2: Hourly matching is the concept of aligning power generation and consumption on an hourly basis.
Note 3: EnergyTag is a non-profit organization promoting the international standardization of electricity attribute certificates (https://energytag.org/)
Note 4: Secure refers to designs and mechanisms that safely protect information and transactions.

■ About i-Grid

i-Grid is a platformer that aggregates and circulates distributed renewable energy through the fusion of physical and digital technologies, promoting GX (Green Transformation) across Japan. It operates a GX Solutions business that maximizes the renewable energy self-sufficiency rate of companies and local governments, and an Energy Trading business that circulates and supplies surplus renewable energy. Through its PPA service, it has developed a total of 1,422 facilities with a generation capacity of approximately 360MW (as of the end of April 2026), striving to realize a decarbonized society. With the slogan 'Faster than change,' the company aims to create a sustainable world where green energy circulates through local communities.

[Overview of i-Grid Solutions, Inc.]
Company Name: i-Grid Solutions, Inc.
Headquarters: T-LITE 15F, 2-4-7 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-0001
Representative: President and CEO Tomokazu Akita
Capital: 4,996 million yen (as of the end of June 2025, including capital surplus)
Employees: 131 (as of the end of June 2025)
Established: February 2004
Corporate Website
Service Site 'iGRID GX Solution'
Owned Media 'Gurilabo'