The hashrate of the Bitcoin network has fallen by almost 40% by Christmas. We have not seen such a drop since May 2021, during the mass exodus of Chinese miners.
When the blizzard hits bitcoin
The hash rate increased from 254 to 155 exahashes per second (EH/s) between December 21 and 24. This drop is equivalent to stopping one million S19j Pro miners, each producing 100 Th/s.
Since then, Bitcoin network power has returned to around 200 PE/s, still up 13% from a year ago. We have also grown sharply since December 2017: +1400%.
This instant fall is not due to the capitulation of the miners, but to the storm of the century that swept the United States. Faced with this historic blizzard that killed more than 50 people across the country, US BTC miners stepped aside to restore power to the grid.
Here is what the Texas Blockchain Council had to say shortly before the storm hit:
“As Texas and much of the United States faces this winter storm, the bitcoin mining industry in Texas will support the Texas network by actively reducing consumption. Texas-based miners are cooperating with energy companies that are closely monitoring the situation. They are ready to help the state to keep families warm and safe during these extreme weather conditions. »
Miners have significantly reduced the risk of power outages by shutting down their operations. This “downsizing” offloaded energy workers, who were able to cope with the peak in energy consumption caused by polar temperatures.
However, some miners did not have much choice:
“It is not easy to mine bitcoins in winter.
Here are some photos of our containers taken during the recent snow storm. »
The mining industry strengthens the power grid
In Texas, this was understood a long time ago, and recently the Japanese energy company Tepco realized the obvious.
Since the construction of high-voltage lines is not as fast as the deployment of renewable energy sources, a huge amount of electricity is wasted. Therefore, Tepco decided to mine bitcoins in strategic locations in order to use excess renewable energy more efficiently.
You must score it. One watt consumed by a bitcoin miner is not that much. The miners strengthen Energetika.
On the one hand, being able to regulate their electricity consumption in real time, and on the other hand, buying electricity, which is not of decisive importance for society.
Miners are valuable customers for energy companies that need every possible cash flow to fund their transition to renewable energy.
As a final note, we now know that almost 40% of Bitcoin miners are located in the United States…
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Journalist reporting on the bitcoin revolution. My articles look at bitcoin through a geopolitical, economic, and libertarian lens.