By George Ward
A state-operated power service provider in British Columbia has decided to pause all new power requests from crypto miners for the next 18 months.
The government announced this in a press statement on December 21st. According to the government, this step would allow the state to create a new electricity framework.
This new framework would serve the needs of residents, businesses, and crypto mines in the state. Josie Osborne, the state’s minister of energy, said this stance would benefit its residents.
British Columbia Goes Hard On Crypto Miners
Meanwhile, it is worth saying that British Columbia depends on green energy for electricity consumption. Hence, this is the reason most crypto miners moved to the region.
According to Osborne, crypto mining is not environmentally friendly and creates few job opportunities for the residents.
“Crypto mining needs a huge amount of power to operate and cool thousands of supercomputers all year round. Unfortunately, it creates very few jobs compared to other businesses,” Osborne stated.
Presently, BC Hydro offers electricity services to seven crypto miners. Six miners have reached the advanced connection stage. They are requesting a total of 273 megawatts.
Unfortunately, new crypto mining firms cannot connect with BC Hydro for the next 18 months. Also, the power authority will stop the connection process for companies still in the early phases.
According to BC Hydro, 21 new crypto-mining projects require 1,403 megawatts. The ministry argued that this energy is almost enough to power 2.1 million electric cars or 570,000 homes annually.
Crypto Miners Might Increase Power Cost In British Columbia – Report
Earlier in December, the hydro and power agency in British Columbia published a report titled “Crypto conundrum.” In the report, the power authority warned the people that the number of crypto miners could increase.
If this happens, there will be more strain on the country’s power supply. The report added that the cost of electricity in British Columbia could increase over time.
“Crypto mining activities in British Columbia could affect the available power in the country. This would consequently mean less power for green projects like hydrogen production. It could also lead to increased electricity rates.”
According to a Statista report released at the beginning of the year, BTC’s estimated power consumption touched a new record of 204.5 TWh per year. This was higher than the total amount of power consumed by Finland.
Recently, the New York government placed a moratorium on PoW mining. The government cited the increased energy consumption of Bitcoin miners as the reason for its action.
New York became the first American state to take drastic steps on crypto mining. According to the moratorium, new miners must use 100% renewable energy.