7 months ago
131
The United States Department of Energy precocious announced it volition cod vigor usage information from crypto miners adjacent week.
Crypto Miners Required To Give Their Energy Use Details
On January 31, The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced the initiation of a provisional survey to cod energy depletion information from identified crypto-mining companies operating successful the country.
The projected exigency survey, named “Cryptocurrency Mining Facilities,” was authorized arsenic an “emergency postulation of information request” by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) connected January 26, 2024.
We're initiating postulation of information regarding #electricity usage by US #cryptocurrency miners.
We'll inquire astir their energy depletion truthful we tin amended recognize their vigor demands.
👉https://t.co/gYpZgtiD6J pic.twitter.com/pQ9ULoLAAU
— EIA (@EIAgov) January 31, 2024
The EIA volition commencement collecting information connected a illustration of commercialized crypto-miners adjacent week. Miners volition beryllium “required to respond with details related to their vigor use.” The bureau volition besides solicit nationalist remark connected collecting crypto miners’ energy usage data.
As the OMB’s decision details, the EIA postulation of vigor information usage accusation will:
Develop a baseline snapshot of the cryptomining companies successful the sample; quantify the complaint of alteration successful cryptomining enactment among the companies successful the sample; place energy sources for US cryptominers successful the sample; and, place regions of the United States with concentrated cryptomining enactment is located based disconnected the companies successful the sample.
The EIA administrator, Joe DeCarolis, expressed the agency’s volition to analyse and constitute the vigor implications of crypto mining activities successful the US, detailing successful the EIA’s property merchandise that the bureau “will specifically absorption connected however the vigor request for cryptocurrency mining is evolving, place geographic areas of precocious growth, and quantify the sources of energy utilized to conscionable cryptocurrency mining demand.”
Electricity Expert astatine EIA Glenn McGrath told Reuters, “We bash deliberation it is simply a important root of request which is worthy of our efforts to quantify it,” adding that “Until we tin substantiate the enactment with amended data, we, too, person much questions to answer.”
The Potential Increase In Bitcoin Mining Activity
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) report, successful 2022, crypto mining accounted for 0.4% of the planetary yearly energy consumption, with astir 110TWh consumed. In 2023, the fig accrued to 130TWh consumed, with Bitcoin accounting for 120TWh retired of the full successful that year.
The study estimates that the energy depletion from crypto mining volition summation by 40% successful 2026, reaching 160 TWh.
The United States became the largest mining hub successful the satellite aft China banned crypto mining operations successful 2021. McGrath recognized that the EIA “has received requests from assorted sectors to statesman to quantify cryptocurrency mining vigor use,” according to Reuters.
In the EIA’s memo requesting exigency support of the project, the bureau explained that the 50% surge successful Bitcoin’s terms successful the past 3 months increases the likeliness of “public harm,” arsenic the higher terms reward volition incentivize much crypto mining activity, subsequentially expanding the energy consumption.
To the Agency, a crypto mining-related surge successful request could impact the already “stressed energy system,” the strategy operations, and user prices, justifying the exigency postulation information request.
However, the Bitcoin assemblage and autarkic institutions specified arsenic the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) person heavy questioned akin information and conclusions from different governments and BTC critics. An expert stated the pursuing regarding the study from the CCAF and Bitcoin’s vigor consumption:
Cambridge person conscionable updated their Bitcoin power/energy depletion methodology. It’s decreased astir 25% and is present looking overmuch much accurate. My exemplary says 13.095 GW. Very akin to Cambridge now.
Featured representation from Unsplash.com, Chart from Tradingview.com
English (US) 