ZEV City Whitepaper

ZEV City is a multi-engine clean energy ecosystem. It begins with travel and buildings, and is designed to expand into AI compute, so value from major footprint sectors can be redirected into renewable energy investment — tokenized, democratic, and verifiable.

Manifesto

The global travel industry generates over $9 trillion annually. Most of that value flows to centralised platforms that do nothing to address the climate impact of the journeys they sell. Meanwhile, millions of rooftops and balconies sit empty — perfectly suited for solar panels but disconnected from any meaningful energy ecosystem.

Two massive opportunities. One shared problem: the profits from travel and the savings from distributed solar could be transforming communities. Instead, they disappear into corporate balance sheets or remain locked in individual households.

ZEV City connects these two worlds. Travel profits fund clean energy. Solar panels become mining nodes. Together, they create a self-reinforcing ecosystem where every participant — traveller, solar owner, community — shares in the value created.

The Core Principle

ZEV City is built on one principle: redirect profits from private enterprise toward community-owned sustainability.

Travel affiliate commissions are the first revenue stream. Plug-in solar is the second. Any product that generates margin and connects to sustainability can become a future engine. The mission is to route verified economic value into clean energy allocation, tokenize that allocation, and share participation back to users under auditable rules.

Not Offsets — Participation

That last-minute checkout question — “Pay extra to offset your carbon?” — is designed to make you feel guilty. Only 1% of travellers ever pay. The model was built to fail.

ZEV City does not depend on guilt pricing. It redirects margin that platforms already extract into clean energy allocation. Users are rewarded for participating, but the exact allocation and token behavior must match what contracts and evidence records can actually prove.

The Multi-Engine Model

ZEV City is designed to reclaim value from three major everyday footprint sectors and feed them into a shared token and verification system:

Why This Matters

• Travel addresses the footprint of movement.
• Buildings address indoor energy footprint from home and office life.
• AI / Compute is positioned to address the rapidly rising footprint of intelligence infrastructure.

Together, these engines let ZEV City aim at the largest everyday footprint sectors, reclaim profits and value from them, and redirect that value into renewable investment.

How ZEV City Works

Profit → Investment → Token

Regardless of which engine generates the revenue, the fundamental mechanism is identical:

1. Revenue is earned — from travel commissions, solar sales margins, or any future product
2. Net allocable margin is directed into energy — under whatever accounting and contract rules are disclosed for that region and phase
3. zTokens are minted — 1 token per 1 unit of local currency invested
4. Tokens are distributed — to users, the community airdrop pool, and the ZEV City team

The “Produce Where You Consume” Principle

When you book a hotel in London, the commission funds solar energy in England. When you buy a plug-in solar panel in Germany, the margin funds clean energy in Germany. The investment is always local to where the activity happens.

Two Distribution Phases & Community Governance

ZEV City uses a phased distribution model with a built-in community governance mechanism:

How the Airdrop Governance Vote Works

The smart contract includes an airdropEnabled boolean (default: false) from day one. When the ecosystem transitions from Phase 1 to Phase 2, token holders can vote on which distribution model to adopt:

The decision is made by token holder governance vote. If Option B passes, the airdropEnabled flag is flipped to true — a one-way, irreversible change written into the smart contract.

Why Users Don’t Lose Out in Phase 2

The shift from 80% to 40% user share may seem like a reduction — but it isn’t. Phase 2 coincides with ZEV City transitioning from affiliate (3–5% commission) to OTA operations (10–15%+ commission). The per-booking revenue roughly triples:

The user receives more zTokens per booking in Phase 2 despite a lower percentage — because the underlying commission is significantly larger.

Why governance matters: The airdrop is activated by community decision, not by the company. “Token holders voted to reallocate distribution” is fundamentally different from “the company distributed profit-sharing tokens.” This distinction is significant for regulatory classification.

Both travel and solar start in Phase 1 (Affiliate) and transition to Phase 2 independently as margins grow.

Engine 1 Travel → Energy

How Travel Creates Energy

ZEV City plugs into the global travel ecosystem through affiliate partnerships with major OTAs (Trip.com, Agoda, and others). Users search and book low-carbon transport — trains, EVs, hotels, flights — with the goal of staying close to standard market pricing.

Net commission from each booking is allocated to clean energy projects in the destination country. This creates a direct, verifiable link between where you travel and where clean energy is built, once the evidence record is attached.

Commission Rates (ZEV UK, Phase 1)

Travel Token Flow

Pending Tokens (pzTokens)

Travel bookings involve delays — a hotel with “pay at checkout” may not generate confirmed profit for 30–60 days. Instead of making users wait, ZEV City awards pzTokens instantly upon booking.

Three Possible Outcomes

pzToken Cross-Engine Incentive

pzTokens from travel bookings can serve as a bridge to the solar engine. Users who hold pzTokens and meet activation criteria (e.g., complete their journey, maintain active solar node) can qualify for bonus zToken airdrops. This creates a cross-engine incentive: travel unlocks solar rewards, solar data strengthens travel credibility.

Engine 2 Solar Mining Nodes

Your Balcony Is Your Mining Rig

Plug-in solar panels are a growing market across Europe — over 1 million installed in Germany alone. They're affordable ($200–600), easy to install (plug into any outlet), and legal in 25 of 27 EU countries. The UK is legalising them in 2026. The US is following (Utah first, 2025).

Today, when you buy a plug-in solar panel, you get one benefit: lower electricity bills. With ZEV City, you get three:

1. Lower electricity bills — the panel still saves you money on energy costs
2. zToken mining rewards — connect your inverter API, upload generation data, earn zTokens over time
3. Participation in a collective energy network — your panel becomes part of a verified, decentralised energy portfolio

Buy a plug-in solar panel through ZEV City. Connect the API. Your balcony becomes a mining node. Every kWh generated is verified and earns you zTokens. No blockchain knowledge needed — just sunshine.

How Solar Mining Works

When a user purchases a plug-in solar panel through ZEV City (as an affiliate or wholesaler), the sale generates revenue. ZEV City treats this revenue as a fixed-term energy investment — exactly like a travel booking, but with a multi-year data commitment.

The Key Innovation: Revenue, Not Generation

ZEV City does not depend on the actual electricity output of any individual panel for its economics. The revenue comes from the sale itself (commission or margin). The panel's actual generation is used for:

• Mining reward eligibility — upload data to earn your tokens
• Collective portfolio proof — aggregated data proves real energy production across the network
• Future carbon credit aggregation — at scale, generation data can be packaged for carbon markets

This means ZEV City's model works regardless of how much or little any individual panel generates. The revenue is already captured at point of sale.

Solar Tokenomics

Affiliate Phase: $300 Panel, 5% Commission

Wholesaler Phase: $300 Panel, 20% Net Margin

What “3-Year Micro Energy Project” Means

Each solar sale is registered on-chain as a fixed-term energy project within its regional ecosystem. The key properties:

• Investment amount: The commission/margin ($15 or $60)
• Duration: 3 years (the mining reward period)
• Revenue: Fixed at point of sale — not dependent on actual energy generation
• Data requirement: User must upload generation data to receive monthly mining rewards
• Regional assignment: Assigned to the country ecosystem where the user is located (e.g., ZEV DE, ZEV UK)

At the end of 3 years, the mining rewards are fully distributed. The user keeps their zTokens (and any airdrops earned). The panel continues generating electricity for the user indefinitely — they just don't receive additional mining rewards unless they renew.

User Value Comparison

Comparable hardware, with additional token rewards and ecosystem participation through ZEV City. Actual value depends on margin, phase, and verified data continuity.

Data-Driven Mining

Upload Data, Earn Tokens

The mining reward is not automatic. Users must connect their inverter's cloud API to the ZEV City dashboard and maintain an active data stream. This is the “proof of work” for solar mining.

How It Works

1. Purchase panel through ZEV City (affiliate or direct)
2. Install panel on balcony, rooftop, or any suitable location
3. Connect inverter API — Hoymiles, Deye, and other major brands have WiFi-enabled inverters with cloud APIs
4. Data flows automatically — generation data (kWh per day) is pulled from the inverter cloud and recorded on the ZEV City dashboard
5. Monthly reward — if the user has ≥25 days of data in a calendar month, they receive that month's full mining reward

Mining Reward Conditions

The threshold approach (25 days) is intentionally simple. It encourages consistent connectivity without penalising brief outages (maintenance, router restarts, etc.).

Why Data Matters

The generation data from solar mining nodes serves multiple purposes beyond individual rewards:

• Collective portfolio proof — “ZEV DE has 500 active nodes generating 150 MWh/year” is a powerful, verifiable claim that strengthens the entire ecosystem
• AI verification — AI agents can audit real generation data to validate ZEV City's clean energy claims
• Token credibility — real, ongoing energy data makes every zToken more credible as an “energy-backed” asset
• Carbon credit potential — at scale (1,000+ nodes), aggregated generation data can be packaged for voluntary carbon markets

Beyond Mining Rewards

1. Performance-Based Purchase Discounts

Users whose solar nodes demonstrate strong, consistent generation performance earn the right to purchase additional zTokens at a discount. This creates buy-side demand for zTokens — something the ecosystem needs alongside the mint-and-distribute supply.

• High-performing node → eligible to buy zTokens at 10–15% discount
• Purchase quota proportional to verified generation (e.g., 1 zToken purchase right per 100 kWh verified)
• Effect: Rewards engaged users, creates market liquidity, incentivises equipment maintenance

2. Carbon Credit Aggregation (Future)

Individual plug-in solar panels produce modest carbon savings — approximately 0.15–0.2 tonnes CO₂ per year for a 400W panel. At $5–15 per tonne in voluntary carbon markets, a single panel generates $1–3/year in carbon credit value.

This is economically insignificant for an individual. But at scale:

• 1,000 nodes → 150–200 tonnes CO₂/year → $1,500–3,000 in carbon credits
• 10,000 nodes → 1,500–2,000 tonnes CO₂/year → $15,000–30,000 in carbon credits
• Revenue from carbon credit sales → minted as additional zTokens → distributed to contributing nodes

The verified generation data from solar mining nodes is the prerequisite. The infrastructure (data collection, API integration, dashboard) is the same. Carbon credit monetisation simply becomes an additional revenue layer that activates when the network reaches sufficient scale.

3. Collective Energy Projects

At scale, the network of individual solar nodes in a region can be presented as a collective energy project: “The Bavaria Solar Network — 500 balcony nodes, 250 kW total capacity, generating 200 MWh annually.” This aggregate identity has value for:

• Governance participation — active miners can vote on regional energy decisions with data-weighted voting power (more generation = more weight)
• Community identity — users are part of something larger than their individual panel
• Institutional credibility — aggregated, verified data attracts institutional partners, energy cooperatives, and municipal programmes

Token Economics

zTokens — Regional Energy Tokens

Creation: For every unit of local currency allocated under the relevant regional rules, one zToken is created. The goal is that no production zToken can exist without a corresponding evidence-backed energy allocation.

Both engines contribute to the same token pools. Whether the investment comes from a travel commission or a solar sale margin, the resulting zTokens are identical and fungible within their regional ecosystem.

zEUR and Origin Tags

In the Eurozone, each zEUR carries an on-chain origin tag identifying which country's energy it funds. A solar mining node in Munich mints zEUR with origin DE. A hotel booking in Rome mints zEUR with origin IT. In daily use, 1 zEUR is simply 1 zEUR — but the origin is always verifiable.

Phase 1: 80:20 (Affiliate)

During the early phase of each engine (when margins are low and the ecosystem is young), a simplified 80:20 distribution applies — 80% to the user, 20% to the team, no airdrop, no governance. This maximises early user rewards and reduces complexity while the network bootstraps.

Phase 2 Default: 40:60 (OTA/Wholesaler)

When an engine transitions to higher-margin operations (OTA travel or wholesale solar), the distribution shifts to 40% user / 60% team. This is the default state before community governance activates the airdrop pool.

Phase 2 After Community Vote: 40:40:20

• 40% to the User — the person who booked travel or purchased solar (unchanged from default)
• 40% to the Airdrop Pool — accumulated and shared weekly among all zToken and pzToken holders in that ecosystem
• 20% to the ZEV City Team — team receives zTokens (not fiat), aligning interests with the community

The target design sends most tokenized value back toward users and the holder community. Team tokens are excluded from weekly airdrops. The airdrop activation is a one-way governance flip once implemented in the production contract version.

Token Supply

There is no pre-mined supply. No ICO. No venture capital token allocation. Every zToken in existence was created by an actual energy investment — from a travel commission, a solar margin, or a carbon credit sale. The total supply grows organically as the ecosystem grows.

Airdrop Governance

The airdrop mechanism is one of the most significant economic features in ZEV City’s tokenomics. Rather than activating it by company decision, the target design uses a community governance vote to let token holders decide when and whether the airdrop pool should be activated.

The Mechanism

The smart contract includes an airdropEnabled boolean, set to false by default. This variable is present in the contract from deployment — even in Phase 1. The governance vote to flip it becomes available when an engine transitions to Phase 2.

The Two Options

Token holders choose between two distribution models. The user’s 40% share is the same in both options — the vote determines how the remaining 60% is allocated:

If Option B passes, the airdropEnabled flag is flipped to true — a one-way, irreversible change. If the vote does not pass, Option A remains the default.

Why Governance Matters

The airdrop is activated by community decision, not by the company. This distinction is legally and structurally significant:

• Regulatory clarity: “Token holders voted to reallocate distribution” is fundamentally different from “the company distributed profit-sharing tokens.”
• Decentralised governance: ZEV City designed the mechanism; the community decides whether to activate it.
• Alignment: Under Option B, ZEV City’s share decreases from 60% to 20%. This is a real, material commitment — not a performative gesture.

Airdrop Distribution Details

• Distribution method: Pro-rata by token holdings. Larger holders receive proportionally more airdrops.
• Fairness guarantee: In Phase 1, all tokens are earned through usage (proof-of-usage minting). Large holders are high-frequency users and early adopters — the distribution is naturally meritocratic.
• Defensive cap: The contract includes a configurable maximum per-address cap (e.g., single address max 5% of airdrop pool) as a safeguard, though the usage-based minting model makes concentration unlikely.
• One-way flip: Once airdropEnabled is set to true, it cannot be reversed. The community’s decision is permanent.
• Team tokens excluded: ZEV City team tokens do not receive airdrops.

Contract Design

// Simplified governance interface
bool public airdropEnabled = false;  // Present from deployment

function voteAirdropActivation(bool activate) external;
// Requires: token holder with balance > 0
// Threshold: simple majority of participating votes
// Effect: flips airdropEnabled to true (irreversible)

function getDistribution() public view returns (uint256 user, uint256 airdrop, uint256 team) {
    if (airdropEnabled) return (40, 40, 20);
    else return (40, 0, 60);
}

Full source: gitlab.com/zevcity/contracts

Stabilisation & Liquidity

This section describes the intended mature-state design. It is not fully implemented in the current Sepolia prototype and should not be read as already-live redemption functionality.

Energy-Backed Stabilisation

When energy assets generate surplus revenue, the community decides through governance voting:

• Option A: Expand energy capacity — surplus invested in new projects, minting additional zTokens distributed through weekly airdrops
• Option B: Strengthen liquidity — surplus converted into reserve-side liquidity assets and added to the liquidity pool

The decision is made per country — French zEUR holders vote on French surplus, UK zGBP holders vote on UK surplus.

Protocol Burn (Peg Anchor)

In the mature design, a holder may be able to burn tokens against a disclosed reserve mechanism. This redemption path is not yet live in the current prototype, so it should be treated as planned architecture rather than current functionality.

AMM Liquidity Pool

Each country has an AMM pool (e.g., zGBP/GBPC, zEUR-DE/EUROC) for continuous trading. Below peg: arbitrageurs buy and burn. Above peg: protocol mints and sells.

Cross-Border Tokens

Each zToken exists within its own regional ecosystem. A zGBP cannot be converted to zEUR within the ZEV City protocol. Cross-region liquidity and redemption rules belong to the mature design and must be explicitly implemented before they are treated as live functionality.

The Flywheel: 4 Positive Loops

The current system begins with travel and buildings, and is designed to expand into a broader multi-engine flywheel.

The key insight: travel provides capital, solar provides data. Neither engine alone creates a complete ecosystem. Together, they form a self-reinforcing cycle where investment credibility (from data) attracts more investment (from travel and solar).

Regional Ecosystems

ZEV City is a network of regional ecosystems, each adapted to its local energy market, currency, and regulatory environment. Both engines activate independently per region.

Hardware Ecosystem

ZEV City does not manufacture or supply hardware. The solar engine relies on existing manufacturers and their cloud APIs:

• Hoymiles — leading micro-inverter manufacturer with WiFi + cloud API
• Deye — budget-friendly inverters with cloud monitoring
• Any inverter with an accessible API can be integrated as a solar mining node

ZEV City's role is purely finance + data + token. No hardware inventory, no supply chain, no warranty obligations.

ZEV UK — First Ecosystem

ZEV UK is the proof-of-concept for the entire model.

Phase 1: Pre-Launch (Current)

Travel affiliate platform. Current public story: travel margin routed into UK energy allocation with 80:20 prototype distribution logic. This still needs to be reimplemented in the new v3 contract architecture.

• Restricted zGBP held in transparent, on-chain custody vault
• Users vote on which energy projects receive funding
• 10% liquidity reserve for first-come exit
• No crypto wallet needed — managed custody

Phase 2: Full Tokenomics (at £1M TVL)

• Default 40:60 distribution (user:team)
• Community governance vote to activate airdrop pool → 40:40:20
• zGBP trading on crypto exchanges
• Solar engine activates (UK plug-in solar legalisation)
• OTA transition: 12–15% value capture

Phase 3: Transport Decarbonisation (Future)

• P2P ride-sharing and mobility services
• Value capture up to 25% of booking
• Solar mining network across UK

Tackling Inequality

Two rules change everything:

1. The user who booked/purchased chooses which energy project receives the investment
2. The user receives the same number of zTokens regardless of which project they pick

Because token rewards are fixed by the transaction amount — not by project returns — users are free to choose the project with the greatest social impact.

In traditional investment, money always flows to Project A. With ZEV City, users can choose Project B — because choosing impact carries no financial penalty.

Solar Mining and Inequality

Plug-in solar has a natural equity challenge: it's easiest for people who own balconies or rooftops. ZEV City addresses this by ensuring that travel users who don't own panels still benefit from the solar network through airdrops. Every active solar node strengthens the airdrop pool, which distributes value to all token holders — including those who only participate through travel.

Verify Our Claims

Every claim is verifiable on the blockchain and through live data feeds.

Three Layers of Protection

Current Smart Contracts (Sepolia Testnet, legacy prototype)

ZGBP Token:          0xA75f7669492B6c1CdF01E35f39884f037F7Da262
pZGBP Token:         0x9df2589d79C0FF33AD118B1A05351e0EB810a273
BookingManager:      0xb8A851bB56097b9B6C8AEffF82d5Ea260B04896B
EnergyAssetRegistry: 0x1Ec21aCB549741e978C2aaa719B8De15e3DCF8a9
AirdropPool:         0x64d6F2D9406CBDF317F83177FDc64cB455A3DAb0
RedemptionPool:      0xDec66F9166F0A33Eb6A333Df40541D0E66AB85Dc
GovernanceVoting:    0x15C89C1BB40aA9de71656546f7fc4E9619C957c6
ZEVTimeLock:         0x87570D4465170423879B3512aF71556399e3a144
Multi-sig:           0xCe52abA025d1AF9d53f79a43CF7CDD0edEB109Ec

Built on OpenZeppelin v5.x. Network: Ethereum Sepolia Testnet. Status: earlier travel-first prototype. Next: finalize the v3 multi-engine architecture, implement it on testnet, then promote to mainnet after validation. View on Etherscan → · Source Code →

Roadmap

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