Legal Regulatory Challenges of the Electricity Market in the Face of Emerging Technologies

Recent advances in emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things and blockchain, have transformed the management of electricity generation, transmission, distribution and consumption and, through smart grids, enhanced energy efficiency and demand forecasting, thereby creating new opportunities for a more efficient and sustainable electricity market. At the same time, these developments give rise to complex legal challenges concerning the protection of privacy and data generated by IoT devices, the delimitation of civil liability for algorithmic errors, and the legal regulation of blockchain‑based smart contracts. Using an analytical and comparative methodology, the article examines the Iranian legal framework in light of international standards and the experience of leading jurisdictions such as the European Union, the United States and Canada, and identifies legal gaps and normative fragmentation in the regulation of these technologies in the electricity market. The findings indicate that, unlike those jurisdictions, Iranian law still lacks coherent rules on data protection, algorithmic liability and smart contracts in the context of the smart electricity market, and thus highlight the need to revise and modernize the relevant legislation and to design flexible and forward‑looking regulatory mechanisms that ensure legal certainty, transparency and fairness in access to energy services.