Fuse Energy Explained: How a UK-based Company Using Tokens to Balance the Grid

Fuse Energy is a London-based energy company building a vertically integrated power business and a blockchain-based incentive system to manage electricity demand, distributed energy resources, and grid stress. It combines renewable generation, retail supply, hardware installation, and a tokenized coordination layer called The Energy Network, powered by the Energy Dollar ($ENERGY).

What Problem is Fuse Energy Trying to Solve?

Electricity demand is rising fast. AI data centres, electric vehicles, and home electrification are pushing grids harder each year. At the same time, many energy suppliers rely on outsourced generation, third-party trading desks, and fragmented installers. This setup adds cost, slows innovation, and exposes consumers to volatile prices.

Fuse Energy argues the system itself is the problem.

The company points to several structural issues:

• Power grids were designed for large, centralised fossil fuel plants, not local solar or batteries
• Renewable projects face long grid connection delays, sometimes over 10 years in the UK
• Consumers struggle with high upfront costs and complex installation processes for solar and batteries
• Energy suppliers often lack direct control over generation and demand response

According to Ofgem, the energy regulator for Great Britain, UK electricity demand could rise 64% by 2035. At the same time, global AI workloads could consume up to 3–4% of global electricity by 2030, up from about 1% today. Fuse Energy’s view is that cheaper renewables alone are not enough if the grid and incentives remain misaligned.

Who Founded Fuse Energy?

Fuse Energy was founded in 2022 by Alan Chang and Charles Orr, both former executives at Revolut.

Chang previously served as Revolut’s chief revenue officer, while Orr held senior operational roles. Their background is not in utilities but in scaling fintech products with tight cost control and full-stack ownership.

They applied the same thinking to energy. Instead of outsourcing generation, trading, and installations, Fuse chose to own the entire chain. The goal was to remove middlemen and move faster than traditional suppliers.

How Does Fuse Energy Work?

Fuse Energy operates as a licensed electricity retailer, generator, trader, and distributed energy resource installer. This means it controls power from production to delivery.

The company’s model includes:

• Building and owning renewable assets such as solar farms
• Supplying electricity directly to households
• Trading power internally rather than via third parties
• Installing solar panels, batteries, and EV chargers in homes
• Developing consumer hardware, including micro solar-battery kits

Fuse says this vertical integration cuts costs by about 10% compared to incumbents. UK households on Fuse tariffs have reportedly saved up to £200 per year compared to the price cap.

In 2024, Fuse built its first solar farm in Hampshire. By late 2025, the company reported serving more than 200,000 households and generating between $300 million and $400 million in annual recurring revenue, with roughly 8x year-on-year growth.

Why is Fuse Energy Compared to Octopus Energy?

Octopus Energy is the UK’s largest challenger supplier, with around 10 million customers globally. It relies heavily on third-party generation and focuses on software licensing.

Fuse Energy takes a different approach.

Instead of focusing on energy software alone, Fuse builds and owns assets across the stack. It also installs distributed energy resources directly, rather than relying on partner networks.

Worth noting, the UK energy crisis of 2021–2022 showed how fragile supplier models can be. Around 30 suppliers collapsed due to exposure to gas prices and weak balance sheets. Regulators later introduced capital adequacy rules to prevent repeats.

Fuse claims its model allows tighter risk control and faster product launches. Investors appear to agree.

How much funding has Fuse Energy raised?

Fuse Energy has raised significant capital in a short time.

Key funding milestones include:

• Early backing from Accel, Lakestar, Creandum, Ribbit, and others
• A previous round of about $100 million
• A recent round of roughly $70 million led by Balderton Capital and Lowercarbon Capital

The latest round values Fuse at about $5 billion, compared to Octopus Energy’s $9 billion valuation despite Octopus being much larger.

Lowercarbon Capital, led by Chris Sacca, focuses on climate-related infrastructure. Balderton was an early investor in Revolut and backed Fuse early as well.

What is The Energy Network?

The Energy Network is Fuse Energy’s blockchain-based coordination layer for managing distributed energy resources and flexible demand.

It is designed to connect millions of small energy assets, such as:

• Home solar panels
• Batteries
• Smart EV chargers
• Flexible household demand

These assets are often called distributed energy resources, or DERs. When coordinated, they can reduce grid stress, lower peak prices, and improve reliability. Large coordinated groups of DERs are sometimes referred to as virtual power plants.

The Energy Network aims to automate incentives for this coordination using a native token.

What is the Energy Dollar ($ENERGY)?

The Energy Dollar is the native token of The Energy Network. It is a utility token, not a memecoin, and is used to reward actions that help balance the grid.

The token rewards users for:

• Connecting DERs to the network
• Shifting electricity usage away from peak price periods
• Providing flexibility during periods of grid stress

Rewards are earned based on real-world value. For example, shifting demand in a high-price region during peak hours earns more than shifting demand in a low-price region during off-peak hours.

Users can burn Energy Dollars to receive discounts on Fuse products and services, such as:

• EV chargers
• Battery installations
• Solar installations
• Later, possibly energy bills and public EV charging

Burning permanently removes tokens from circulation, creating a deflationary effect over time.

How Does Energy Dollar Tokenomics Work?

The Energy Dollar tokenomics are designed around long-term grid participation rather than short-term trading. Of the 10 billion tokens, 60.8% is allocated to network operations, 13.8% to the team, and 25.4% to investors.

Key points include:

• Maximum supply capped at 10 billion tokens
• Tokens minted gradually from 2025 to 2050
• Up to 5 billion tokens can be burned
• Rewards distributed over a 25-year schedule
• No team or investor unlocks in the first year

After the first year, team and investor tokens unlock in stages:

• 20% unlock at 12 months
• 20% at 15 months
• 20% at 18 months
• 20% at 21 months
• 20% at 24 months

Rewards are calculated using a pro-rata formula based on the value contributed during a given period. Higher-value actions earn higher rewards.

Energy Dollars will be listed on third-party exchanges to allow price discovery. This enables large DER owners to sell tokens to users who want discounts on energy hardware or services.

Why is the Energy Network Built on Solana?

The Energy Dollar is deployed on the Solana blockchain using the SPL token standard.

According to the Fuse Energy team, Solana was chosen for several reasons:

• Low transaction fees
• High throughput suitable for millions of users
• Strong security model
• Native token controls

Solana’s consensus design allows scaling with limited increases in energy consumption, which aligns with the project’s goals. All smart programs will be audited before deployment.

Users interact with Energy Dollars through a self-custodial wallet embedded in Fuse’s web and mobile apps. Tokens can also be transferred to external wallets for use across the Solana ecosystem.

How does Fuse Energy plan to scale?

Fuse plans to expand beyond the UK into Europe, the United States, and other markets where regulation allows.

Its advantages include:

• Existing licences as a retailer, generator, and installer
• Experience building utility-scale renewables
• In-house installation teams
• A ready-made incentive layer through the Energy Network

The company also plans to launch consumer hardware, including low-cost solar and battery kits designed for faster deployment and simpler installation.

The Energy Network is scheduled to begin rolling out features such as off-peak rewards under a program called The Energy Network in early 2026.

What does this mean for consumers?

For households, Fuse Energy’s model combines lower electricity prices with optional participation in demand flexibility.

Consumers can:

• Pay less for electricity through vertically integrated supply
• Earn rewards for shifting usage, even without owning solar or batteries
• Use rewards to reduce the cost of future energy hardware

For the grid, coordinated DERs reduce peak demand, which lowers system costs for everyone.

Conclusion

Fuse Energy combines traditional energy operations with a blockchain-based coordination system. By owning generation, supply, installations, and incentives, it reduces reliance on third parties and aligns costs with grid needs.

The Energy Network and Energy Dollar provide a structured way to reward demand flexibility and DER participation at scale. Together, they form a vertically integrated energy model designed for modern electricity demand, without relying on speculative narratives or promotional claims.

Resources

1. Fuse energy on X: Posts (November 2025 - December 2025)

2. Fuse Energy Website: General info

3. Ofgem report: Preparing for a faster, more efficient electricity connections process

4. Fuse Energy whitepaper: About Fuse Energy

5. Report by Financial Times: UK start-up Fuse Energy nears new funding at $5bn valuation