Researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California have combined statistical mechanics and information theory to design a type of stablecoin dubbed the Electricity Stablecoin that would transmit energy as a form of information.
The researchers claim that their innovation would make it possible to transmit electricity without physical wires or a grid and create a fully collateralized stablecoin pegged to a physical asset, electricity that is dependent on its utility for is value.
According to the scientists, the E-Stablecoin would be minted through the input of one kilowatt-hour of electricity, plus a fee. The stablecoin could then be used for transactions the same way as any stablecoin, or the energy could be extracted by burning it. The entire process would be controlled by smart contracts with a decentralized data storage cloud. A centralized authority would be needed to maintain or disburse the asset.
This would be a first for a hard pegged stablecoin, being directly exchangeable for a specified quantity of a physical asset, the scientists said. They suggested that electricity has a highly stable price and demand, and the electricity used in minting E-Stablecoins would be easily sustainable.
Investors would be able to mint E-Stablecoins in regions where electricity prices are low and burn the tokens where electricity is more expensive.
