People Power: Why the answer to registries isn’t always tech

Registries are central to the markets for Energy Attribute Certificates (EACs). They are similarly at the core of markets for carbon offsets, biogas certificates, and many other mechanisms for providing environmental information.

What is a registry and what does it do?

A registry documents the life of an EAC (from I-RECs, GOs to RECs), from creation to consumption. EACs and similar certificates are not single commodities but vast collections of individual products.

Every EAC is unique to its place and time of creation, potentially with extensive complex information embedded within it. Other than accounting for its origin and destination, a registry also provides space for attaching additional information to a certificate and prevents double counting of environmental assets. Once an EAC has been consumed, it is locked as a permanent statement of fact.

Why registries matter

Secure and accurate data is vital for the proper functioning of markets. Underpinning every EAC market is a registry, which must provide reliable information to the parties who use it. This requirement has been at the centre of every registry developer’s mind since their requirements were first developed in the late 1990s. However, whilst data security is within the control of the registry developer, accuracy of that data is not something a registry can provide in isolation.

The tech way

When we consider how registries work, you might expect technology to be at the heart. For example, a registry may have features that identify anomalous data or provide warnings to prevent users from making mistakes, but, ultimately, it dispassionately reports the data that is provided.

However, it cannot be forgotten that whatever technology the registry uses for recording transactions - be it a relational database, immutable ledger, or blockchain - it is dependent on users or external systems for the provision and accuracy of the data held.

Contrary to popular belief, blockchain is neither saviour nor pariah. In fact, a well-designed registry using a relational database should have no quality, integrity, or auditability disadvantage to one developed using blockchain. Indeed, whilst the irreversible propagation of data via blockchain can deliver attractive benefits for ledger systems it can also create operational challenges for error management – potentially making errors extremely difficult to remedy.

Common problems and how to tackle them

I’ve been working with registries for the past 25 years, and have naturally considered best practice, implementation and responsibilities. Error management is a consideration every registry developer should have in mind, and good registries are developed in a way that allow errors to be corrected with full auditability.

I have provided registry services used in over 140 countries and am yet to find a single technology that is universally “better” than the others. What I have found is that the registries that are best received and of the highest quality are those that are developed and provided as part of a wider service that includes responsibility for the accuracy of data within the registries.

Registries are not inherently complex, but the markets they serve often are. It is therefore essential that a registry provider has a detailed understanding of the markets in which their software is used, as “simplification” and “optimisation” can often have a significant detrimental impact on quality. Quality and accuracy require error-tolerant design and corrective interventions that can rarely be achieved through technology alone.

Evident solutions

At Evident, we have always specified and developed our registries “in-house”. Our developers work alongside colleagues who are responsible not just for designing the markets we serve but also for operational data verification and registry management.

Evident’s developers provide direct support to our customers, and they have an in-depth understanding of the “why” behind the “what” they do. We have not developed a suite of technologies and sought to deliver them as part of a service created around functionality, we have developed bespoke services based on customer needs.

Passionate about ensuring we support rapid action to limit and ultimately reverse the negative consequences of climate change, we seek to partner rather than compete. There is amazing innovation happening around the world, with services and solutions that enable easier trade, enhanced reporting, and wider access to information being continually developed.