Drift Marketplace (Drift) has received a new published patent application relating to the real-time management of renewable energy.

Renewable energy credits (RECs) are issued to suppliers of renewable energy to incentivize the production of renewable energy.  RECs are tradable, non-tangible energy commodities that represent proof that electricity was generated from an eligible renewable energy source and was fed into the electrical grid.

RECs are used by consumers who want to make a claim about their use of renewable energy. These consumers purchase RECs to support their claims. However, oftentimes there is no correlation between the electricity produced as evidenced by a REC and the electricity consumed that is the basis of a claim based on REC.

Drift's solution: Real-time RECs. By matching production and consumption using the actual location and time, suppliers of electricity generated using renewable energy are incentivized to build renewable energy plants close to consumers. This results in a reduction in pollution and a decrease in the loss of energy during transmission.