President Nayib Bukele teases ‘rent-a-volcano’ Bitcoin mining initiative

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele shared his considerations for a “rent your volcano” Bitcoin mining program following the country’s success in its geothermal mining venture.

On November 25, President Bukele, on X, said the idea to monetize the country’s 170 volcanoes could “make sense,” reacting to another X user’s post on the 474 Bitcoins mined with geothermal power.

Nayib Bukele hints at a new “rent a volcano” program

On November 24, Vivek, an X user and a reporter at Bitcoin Magazine, commented on El Salvador’s successful mine of about 474 Bitcoins, now valued at over $46 million, using volcano-fueled geothermal power.

President Nayib Bukele then later reacted to his post, saying:

And with 170 volcanoes…A “rent your volcano to mine Bitcoin” program might make sense.

~ President Nayib Bukele

El Salvador has been heavily invested in producing clean energy, and volcano-powered geothermal sources now provide a quarter of the nation’s electricity.

The country only began using geothermal power for Bitcoin mining in 2021, using 1.5MW from the Tecapa Volcano. The same year, President Nayib Bukele shared the first steps in developing the Berlin plant, which had ties to several Bitcoin miners.

Some of the country’s citizens were not too happy with the plans despite pro-Bitcoin analysts supporting them. Some complained that their electricity needs had been ignored for years, yet the country still prioritizes electricity generation for Bitcoin mining facilities.

Ecologists criticize Bukele’s geothermal Bitcoin mining

Some ecologists also criticized Nayib Bukele’s geothermal power initiative, claiming that volcano power may not meet the demand for Bitcoin mining operations.

El Salvador’s leading ecologist, Ricardo Navarro, commented in 2021 when the country started using volcano geothermal power for Bitcoin use. He noted that it seems Bukele doesn’t really understand what is going on with the energy situation, and he added that it was certainly going to complicate demand.

Moreover, in September 2021, Bukele introduced plans for a volcano-powered Bitcoin mining facility, but Navarro argued against them, stating that creating a ‘Bitcoin City’ near a volcano was impractical. He compared Navarro’s idea to one who thinks they are rich just because they live near a bank.

The ecologist added that geothermal energy is still costly and might not be better than petroleum sources. Navarro also insisted that digital asset trade in the country may pull in drug barons, adding that the Bitcoin tender law was rushed and not debated enough.