TRON (TRX)

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Field

Content

General information

S.1

CASP Name

BB TRADE ESTONIA OÜ

S.2

Relevant legal entity identifier

984500L05A5D0E66Q610

S.3

Blockchain network name

Tron

S.4

Name of the crypto-asset

TRX

S.5

Consensus Mechanism

Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS)

S.6

Incentive Mechanisms and Applicable Fees

TRON operates on a Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) consensus model. In this system, TRX token holders "freeze" (stake) their tokens to gain "TRON Power" and vote for Super Representatives (SRs). The 27 elected SRs are responsible for producing blocks, validating transactions, and maintaining the network's security.

Incentives: SRs are rewarded with newly minted TRX tokens for successfully producing blocks. A portion of these rewards is often shared with the voters who elected them, incentivizing token holders to participate in governance and select effective SRs.

Fees: TRON transactions consume "Bandwidth" and "Energy" resources. Users can obtain these resources for free by freezing TRX (staking), or they can pay a small fee in TRX if they run out of free resources.

Bandwidth Points: Consumed for basic transactions (like sending TRX or TRC-10 tokens). Accounts receive a daily free allocation.

Energy: Consumed for more complex operations, particularly smart contract interactions (e.g., TRC-20 token transfers, dApp interactions). Energy is primarily obtained by freezing TRX.

This mechanism allows for high transaction throughput and extremely low transaction costs, contributing to a user-friendly experience. The DPoS model is designed to be highly energy-efficient compared to PoW, as it eliminates the need for competitive computational mining. SRs face penalties for malicious behavior, ensuring network integrity.

S.7

Beginning of the period to which the disclosure relates

2024-01-01

S.8

End of the period to which the disclosure relates

2024-12-31

Mandatory key indicator on energy consumption

S.9

Energy consumption

~162,867 kWh per calendar year

S.10

Energy consumption sources and methodologies

The energy consumption of the TRON network is primarily from the electricity used by its Super Representatives (SRs) and other nodes (like full nodes, API nodes). As a DPoS network, it does not involve energy-intensive mining. Methodologies typically involve:

Estimating hardware consumption: Analyzing the power draw of typical server hardware used by SRs and general nodes.

Scaling by node count: Multiplying estimated hardware consumption by the number of active SRs and a representative sample of other network nodes. 

Reports often refer to studies by the Crypto Carbon Ratings Institute (CCRI), which employs a "bottom-up" approach to model energy consumption for DPoS networks based on hardware requirements and operational uptime.

Supplementary key indicators on energy and GHG emissions

S.11

Renewable energy consumption

~24%

S.12

Energy intensity 

~0.00002 kWh per transaction

S.13

Scope 1 DLT GHG emissions – Controlled

0 t CO2eq per calendar year

S.14

Scope 2 DLT GHG emissions – Purchased

~69.47 t CO2eq per calendar year

S.15

GHG intensity 

~0.00000 kg CO2eq per transaction

S.16

Key energy sources and methodologies

Energy sources for TRON's DPoS nodes reflect the diverse electricity grid mixes of their global distribution. This includes a combination of conventional sources (e.g., natural gas, coal) and renewable sources (e.g., hydro, solar, wind, nuclear). Methodologies for determining the energy mix and sources involve:

Geographic distribution analysis: Attempting to identify the physical locations of Super Representatives and other critical nodes.

Grid mix data integration: Merging this geo-information with public datasets on national/regional electricity generation mixes and their associated carbon intensities (e.g., from Our World in Data, Ember, Energy Institute). As the network is decentralized, this relies on best-effort estimation.

S.17

Key GHG sources and methodologies

The predominant source of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions for TRON is Scope 2 (indirect emissions from purchased electricity). Methodologies for estimating these emissions typically involve: 

Energy consumption * Emission Factor: Multiplying the estimated total electricity consumption (S.8) by the carbon intensity (grams of CO2 equivalent per kWh) of the electricity mix used by the TRON network's nodes. 

Focus on operational emissions: Given the DPoS mechanism, the primary focus is on the operational energy usage of the validator nodes, with Scope 1 (direct emissions) and Scope 3 (e.g., hardware manufacturing) typically being negligible or outside the scope of core network operation reports. Researchers from institutions like the Crypto Carbon Ratings Institute (CCRI) are key in developing and applying these specific methodologies for PoS/DPoS blockchains.