One Step Closer to Choosing Your Electricity Provider

Q: What were the challenges you identified that inspired you to create Vowat?

A: Many of the challenges are still there, so what we do is make the process easier. Vowat is a marketplace, a service company that connects both parties of an energy trading contract. The most complicated element is translating the role of all the parties involved and facilitating the transaction, creating the roadmap for these contracts. This information is already public but the language is not as accessible. This is the most complicated part of the platform and what we put the most effort into: making the process easy for everyone to understand and access. Even if they don't understand the sector, they can sell energy quickly, safely and easily.

Q: What makes Vowat unique in the market?

A: Energy contracts traditionally take months, sometimes years, not only because of their size but also because of a lack of understanding. Usually, people receive their electricity bill and subsequently forget about it. However, there are many factors involved. Receipts involve more products than people think. Companies are very used to signing and that's it. We designed a contract that everyone can understand. It is as simple as knowing that you are  buying something at a price, period. The platforms that exist today have long processes and are for large contracts because this is normal in the energy sector. We eliminate barriers even for smaller contracts, which in the sector in Mexico can amount to MX$5 million (US$270,000). We were able to design our platform so that it is transacted by the Bank of Mexico. As a result, we do not touch the money, unlike other marketplaces that pay the provider. We do not. The Bank of Mexico makes the immediate dispersal. The capital goes through directly.

There is no other platform in the world that creates this direct link and makes energy trading understandable to everyone.

We have also decentralized transactions, meaning the decision is up to the parties. We upload the offers that we negotiate directly with the generator and if someone wants to buy it, they can. We charge a small fee for the transaction because we are only facilitating it. Although we incorporated experience from other countries, there is no other platform with all these characteristics. Of course, we continue to evolve and are always aware of how we can improve.

Q: What role does regulation play in Vowat's operations?

A: The issue of regulation has to do with a lack of understanding. Whenever a new government takes office, they have to go over certain things that they do not understand because it is a new regulation for them. This is not the fault of the previous or new administration: it is normal to design policies that work differently when put into practice and must be modified. In my opinion, regulations should be changed and adapted everywhere. We are present in Colombia, Chile, Mexico and Spain. It is important to understand energy as a financial concept, so that the parties understand their energy costs well.

Q: What are your goals for Vowat? and how do you expect it to impact the electricity market? 

A: Our goal is to have a presence in all of Latin America and to manage at least 80% of the electricity through Vowat. Regarding regulation, our intention is to make Vowat an information tool for operators and thus be able to make consumption more efficient. This is already done in other countries; hopefully, it will be achieved here and people can more easily determine their consumption needs. On the other hand, we have the ability to inform users about their impact on emissions, and it would be ideal to be able to inform them in the same way that they are informed about  their food, such as with labels. I think that this would translate into more efficient consumption. It also becomes more affordable financially because you can see when you can buy something and manage it through two or three contracts or through 30 contracts.

Our motto is empowering the world. THis is not focused only on electricity but on all our actions as persons or companies. Taking the smallest actions can improve our impact on the environment, such as unplugging appliances we don't use, turning off the lights when we don't need them or walking to work. It is our priority to make caring for the planet a habit in all our actions.

Q: Regarding VIKI Data Centers, how can they help the cryptocurrency industry to use more renewable energy?

A: This started because a company contacted us. They needed power to mine bitcoin. We discovered there was mass consumption in small spaces. As a result, we thought about looking for similar companies to whom we could sell energy. We discovered that several operations were quite informal — some operators were even connected illegally and CFE disconnected them. The sector was also not highly regulated or standardized. We offered them our energy knowledge. Because they knew what their rates were,  they could pay at their own discretion. By generating these links, we were able to offer better options that helped them make energy more efficient. Bitcoin overall is not in our interest. We supply these companies with energy but they decide their strategies regarding cost. They have the decision on the risk. As a result of a lot of illegality in the sector, we were able to standardize their operations a little more and formalize them. 

I believe that blockchain is a great technological tool, and not only for cryptocurrencies. It creates a great deal of opportunity for banking transactions.

EON Energy is one of Mexico's largest operators of energy networks and energy infrastructure and a provider of innovative customer solutions for 50 million customers. Vowat is its digital energy platform.