Privacy by Design for Local Energy Communities

Abstract

Electricity generation is becoming more and more decentralized. This trend requires management of the electricity grid at a more granular level by Distribution System Operators than before. To this end, local energy communities (LECs) are being piloted throughout the world. However, this granular control requires the use of more privacy-sensitive information than we are used to. In particular, this entails more frequent meter readings, over short intervals of 15 minutes or less. Therefore, privacy should be taken into account in the design of these LECs. In addition, they should comply with data protection laws. This paper reports on our experience with applying the Privacy by Design approach in GridFlex, an LEC pilot project. We describe and reflect on the process followed and summarize the results. We hope that this proves useful for other projects facing these issues.