Driven by Sweden’s burgeoning renewable energy surplus, Bitcoin mining giant Genesis Digital Assets Limited (GDA) has begun operations of its latest mining facility in the country.
Genesis is equipped with mining and data centers worldwide that generate over 400 megawatts (MW) of power.
The data center inaugurated in June 2023 is fully powered by electricity produced from renewable resources.
Genesis Digital Assets To Run The Bitcoin Mining Center Entirely Using Renewable Energy
According to GDA founder and executive president Abdumalik Mirakhmedov, the company choose Porjus in northern Sweden as the location for its data center because of the region’s power grid being dominated by hydroelectricity.
The strategic positioning also brings the facility in close proximity to the Porjus Hydroelectric Power Station, which generates carbon-free electricity.
Sweden being an electric powerhouse, produced the fifth-most electricity per capita globally in 2021. Interestingly, almost all of its electricity was generated from nuclear and hydropower. Mirakhmedov expects to fully power Genesis’ Nordic mining and data center using renewable energy.
Genesis says the Porjus data center is equipped with 1,900 Bitcoin mining machines that have a total capacity of approximately 8 megawatts (MW) and an expected hashrate of approximately 155 petahashes per second.
Hashrate is the unit for measuring computational power on a blockchain network. The rate is determined by the number of guesses made every second to solve the mathematical puzzle that is required to create and add a block to the network. The overall hashrate of a blockchain signifies the security and mining difficulty of its protocol.
Nordic Countries Fast Becoming The Go-to Destination For Bitcoin Miners
The data center in Porjus is Genesis’ third facility in the country and has also announced plans to expand operations in the future. Tim Carra, the head of GDA’s Nordic operations highlighted Sweden’s pro-innovation environment and abundant energy sources as a reason for being optimistic about further investing in the region.
The company is committed to utilizing sustainable energy for its Bitcoin mining operations and selected Sweden as the primary hub for its activities.
GDA’s expansion in the Nordic region is part of a border trend in the Bitcoin mining industry. Analysts say that even though crypto mining businesses are rare due to the high energy costs involved, countries like Sweden, Finland, and Norway with their surplus energy derived in the form of hydro and nuclear power have become an attractive option as they enjoy negative energy prices from time to time.
Since miners prefer using untapped, stranded, and renewable energy to conduct their operations, Nordic countries make for a perfect spot to set up shop as it is more cost-effective and also offers a regulatory-friendly environment.
Regulators are starting to become more supportive of Bitcoin miners, with energy companies more understanding of its utility. Vattenfall, Sweden’s largest energy producer, has taken a pro-Bitcoin stance and is working on stabilizing the country’s electricity grid with Bitcoin mining, a practice that is growing widely popular in the United States.
Is Bitcoin Mining Harmful To The Planet?
However, not everyone is supportive of Bitcoin mining. Recently, the European Central Bank published a report that portrayed it as an energy-guzzling and carbon-intensive industry that has a massive carbon footprint and consumes more energy per year than some countries.
But a closer look at real data suggests otherwise. According to the Cambridge Center for Alternative Finance, Bitcoin mining consumes just 149.95 terawatt-hours of electricity per year, which is less than 0.7% of global energy demands.
Sweden’s Nordic neighbor Norway, also known as the “green oasis of renewable energy”, contributes to nearly 1% of the global Bitcoin hashrate and is entirely powered by renewable sources.
According to the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE), the country’s electricity grid is 100% renewable, with hydro and wind power sources responsible for contributing 88% and 10% of the power, respectively.
As the Bitcoin mining industry continues to evolve, miners have come to the realization that adopting green energy practices and harnessing power from renewable sources to power operations is important for their survival.
Many miners are following the path of Genesis Digital Assets to utilize sustainable energy for mining the apex cryptocurrency.
