⚡️ Norwegian Bitcoin Mine Shutdown Backfires, Spiking Electricity Costs by 20%

In the Norwegian town of Hadsel, a Bitcoin mining facility operated by Kryptovault was shut down following years of noise complaints from residents, causing a 20% spike in electricity bills. The closure of the mine, which accounted for 20% of local power company Noranett's revenue, has led to an estimated annual cost increase of $235 to $280 per household.

While the mine's noise disturbances were a concern for many locals, the economic impact of its shutdown is now evident, with higher electricity costs affecting the community. Noranett’s network manager explained that losing such a large customer overnight had significant financial repercussions, leading to increased rates for residents.

This situation mirrors a broader debate in Norway about Bitcoin mining's impact on local communities, where noise complaints have led to similar tensions. However, only the industry voices argue that Bitcoin mining helps lower electricity costs by contributing revenue to the grid, as seen in Hadsel.

Daniel Batten remarked that the town’s push to close the mine ultimately harmed residents, as they now bear the financial burden of the lost revenue. The site had consumed about 80 GWh of electricity annually, equivalent to the power usage of 3,200 households, and its closure has left the town seeking new projects to offset the reduced energy consumption.

⛏️ In the News

• Bhutan, with a $3b GDP, has amassed over $780 million in bitcoin through state-owned Druk Holdings' mining operations, partnering with Bitdeer to expand mining capacity as part of a broader strategy to diversify its economy.

• Cathedra Bitcoin and Metaplanet are focusing on maximizing bitcoin holdings per share. Metaplanet's stock surged 587% YTD due to its aggressive bitcoin accumulation strategy.

👁️ Iris Energy Expands AI Cloud Services

• Iris Energy Limited (IREN) announced the purchase of 1,080 NVIDIA H200 GPUs to expand its AI Cloud Services business.

• This purchase is expected to increase AI Cloud Services' contribution to earnings to approximately 10% by year-end 2024.

• The GPUs are estimated to cost $43.9m, with delivery and commissioning expected in Q4 2024.

• Following this purchase, IREN's total GPU fleet will comprise 1,896 NVIDIA H100 and H200 GPUs, generating an estimated annualized hardware profit of $32m.

• IREN's current Bitcoin mining capacity stands at 18.8 EH/s, with plans to expand to 20 EH/s this month and 30 EH/s by Q4 2024.

• The company estimates a $20,000 electricity cost and a $31,000 all-in cash cost per Bitcoin mined at the planned capacity.

• By the end of 2024, AI Cloud Services are projected to contribute about 10% of run-rate earnings, up from zero seven months ago, within IREN's 510MW data center portfolio.

• Projected annual revenue for AI Cloud Services is $33m, while Bitcoin mining is expected to generate $460m in revenue, with AI services contributing approximately 10% to total earnings.

  

📈 CleanSpark Expands with Two New Mississippi Sites

• CleanSpark Inc. announced the acquisition of two Bitcoin mining sites near Clinton, Mississippi, for a total of $5.78m, which will support 16.5 MW.

• The Mississippi sites are partially complete, and the purchase price includes the cost to finish the infrastructure, with expected completion by December 1, 2024.

• Once operational, the Mississippi sites will host S21 pro miners, achieving a combined hashrate of approximately 1 EH/s, bringing CleanSpark's total capacity in the state to 60.5 MW.

• Additionally, CleanSpark closed on a previously announced 45 MW site in Wyoming on September 11, 2024, expected to add 3 EH/s to the company’s hashrate.

• The Wyoming site will feature immersion-cooled Bitcoin mining data centers for the latest S21 immersion XPs.

• CleanSpark's total operational capacity has increased to 211.5 MW, a nearly 38% rise, supporting targets of 37 EH/s by the end of 2024 and 50 EH/s by 2025.

👀 Bitcoin Mining Quarterly Block Reward in BTC Versus USD