According to the Cambridge Digital Mining Industry Report, Bitcoin mining’s reliance on sustainable energy has grown to 52.4%.
Over 9.5% of the sustainable energy for BTC mining comes from nuclear and 42.6% from renewable resources such as hydropower and wind.
Bitcoin mining consumes approximately 138 TWh annually, producing around 39.8 MtCO2e greenhouse gas emissions. This electricity consumption also represents a 17% rise year-over-year and about 0.54% of global electricity consumption.
North America is still leading in global Bitcoin mining activity, with the US accounting for 75.4% hashrate and Canada with 7.1%.
Bitcoin mining still uses fossil fuels as an energy source, with 47% use
Cambridge’s mining report reveals that there have been improvements in mining efficiency, particularly in hardware efficiency and e-waste. As of June 2024, the industry-wide ASIC (SHA-256) hardware efficiency was at 28.2 J/TH, marking a 24% YoY improvement. Moreover, nearly 90% of decommissioned hardware is expected to be repurposed or recycled, with actual e-waste estimated at 2.3 kilo-tonnes.
However, despite a predominantly sustainable source mix, electricity bills constitute over 80% of their cash-based operational expenses. Miners are still paying high prices for their electricity consumption, costing them an average of $45/MWh and an all-in cost of $55.5/MWh.
Bitcoin mining sustainable energy use is 52.4%, with renewables accounting for roughly 42.6%. Among the renewables, hydropower is the most significant source with 23.4%, followed by wind at 15.4%, nuclear at 9.8%, solar at 3.2%, and other renewables at 0.5%.
Fossil fuels account for the rest, 47.6%, with natural gas at 38.2%, coal at 8.9%, and oil at 0.5%, still riling up emissions count.
Mining firms are worried about high energy prices and incoming regulations
Mining firms are currently troubled by rising energy prices. At least 57% of respondents raised concerns about high energy prices, especially considering electricity demand is still surging.
Another 47% were worried about government action at the local and federal levels and the regulations they intend to impose on the industry. In addition, 40% are still concerned over BTC price volatility and changes.
Additionally, most miners have named business and geographical diversification and power hedging as key risk management strategies. They also included the lack of deployment opportunities and logistical challenges such as ASIC supply bottlenecks and delivery delays as primary factors slowing their growth.
Commerce Department launched the investment accelerator to help BTC miners
Meanwhile, the US Commerce Department introduced a new investment accelerator on March 31, hoping to help BTC miners and investors.
In one interview, Secretary Howard Lutnick even commented, “We’re going to make it so that if you want to mine Bitcoin and you find the right place to do it, you can build your own power plant next to it.”
He also welcomed more Bitcoiners to the country, adding that he and the White House AI and Crypto Czar David Sacks want to see BTC succeed in the US. Additionally, he noted that he wants Bitcoin treated more like a commodity than a currency. He even considered having the Bureau of Economic Affairs (BEA) incorporate BTC into its calculations.
Presently, the BEA utilizes gold to refine and calculate its National Economic Accounts, which includes GDP. The bureau also accounts for gold in trade statistics, recording gold exports and imports as part of its International Transactions Accounts (ITAs.)
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