🇪🇹 Ethiopia's Bitcoin Mining Surge

Ethiopia has significantly expanded its commitment to Bitcoin mining by increasing the country's power allocation to 600 MW, positioning itself as one of the fastest-growing markets for this activity globally.

This expansion is part of Ethiopia’s broader ambition to leverage its abundant hydroelectric resources, particularly following the completion of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which has greatly boosted its energy production capabilities. The country's Bitcoin mining capacity is expected to continue growing, with plans to further increase power allocation in the near future.

Many of Ethiopia's Bitcoin miners are using mid-generation machines, such as the S19J Pro and A1346 models, which are favored for their low power consumption. Additionally, the mining farms have adopted evaporative cooling systems, though Ethiopia's relatively cool climate means these systems are only necessary part of the year.

Ethan Vera, co-founder and CEO of Bitcoin mining company Luxor, has highlighted Ethiopia’s advantageous position due to its excess electricity generated by the country’s hydroelectric infrastructure. Currently, Ethiopia uses only about 5% of the 4.9 GW of hydroelectric power it has generated since 2021, as only about half of the population has access to electricity.

The growth of Bitcoin mining in Ethiopia is further supported by prominent figures such as local miner Kal Kassa, who has shared images of newly established mining facilities. Seb Gouspillou, CEO of BigBlock Datacenter, emphasized the potential of Africa’s hydroelectric power for Bitcoin mining, stating, "For the hydroelectricity sector, it’s like a miracle. The fact that all the African dams currently under construction can be guaranteed to sell as much electricity as they can produce was unimaginable until now. Bitcoin fixes this.”

This surge in Bitcoin mining activity aligns with an earlier report from asset management firm VanEck, which identified Ethiopia as one of seven countries mining Bitcoin with direct government support. In a further indication of Ethiopia's commitment to expanding its cryptocurrency sector, the government’s investment arm, Ethiopian Investment Holdings, signed a preliminary agreement with Hong Kong-based West Data Group for a $250m project aimed at enhancing the nation's digital infrastructure to support Bitcoin mining.

However, despite these ambitions, Ethiopia faces significant challenges. The country’s installed energy capacity is 5,200 MW, primarily from hydroelectric power, yet more than 40% of Ethiopia’s 130 million citizens still lack access to electricity. Although the government aims to generate 25 GW of renewable energy by 2030, the lack of widespread electricity access presents a major obstacle to Bitcoin mining expansion.

By diverting its excess energy into Bitcoin mining, Ethiopia has the potential to create a new source of foreign exchange, which could help fund infrastructure development and improve electricity distribution across the country.

Earlier this year, Ethiopia took a major step toward becoming a key player in global Bitcoin mining by signing power supply agreements with 21 mining companies, many of which are Chinese.

For Ethiopia to fully realize its potential in Bitcoin mining, however, the government must address regulatory challenges. Bureaucratic hurdles, particularly from agencies such as the Ethiopian Information and Network Security Administration, need to be reduced to facilitate further growth in the sector and enable Ethiopia to become a true global leader in Bitcoin mining.

⛏️ In the News

• Cipher Mining is building a 300 MW Bitcoin mining data center in West Texas, expected to launch in 2025.

• Compass Mining has partnered with Mindshift, a South Korean Virtual Asset Service Provider, to offer turnkey Bitcoin mining solutions in South Korea.

• Bitmain has launched two new ASICS, the air-cooled Antminer S21+ with a rate of 216 TH/s and the hydro-cooled version reaching 319 TH/s.

• CleanSpark has achieved an operational hashrate of 30 EH/s, marking a 200% increase since October 2023, and plans to grow to 50 EH/s by 2025, fueled by strategic acquisitions and efficiency improvements.

• TeraWulf has signed a 35-year ground lease at Lake Mariner, expanding its land by nearly 50% and securing 750 MW of infrastructure for high-performance computing, compensating Somerset with 20 million shares and $12m in cash.

📥️ September Updates

🧑‍🔬 Core Scientific

• 345 BTC of self-mined BTC in September 2024, down 3.6% MoM from 358 BTC in August and down 16.0% YoY from 411 BTC in July, with a total of 1,115 BTC in Q3.

• Hosting energized hash rate was 3.0 EH/s in September, a decrease of 38.8% MoM from 4.9 EH/s in August and down 42.3% YoY from 5.2 EH/s in July.

• Bitcoin sales proceeds were approximately $22.2m in September, down 1.3% MoM from about $22.5m in August and down 12.0% YoY from $25.2m in July, totaling approximately $69.8m in Q3.

• Core Scientific operated about 198,000 Bitcoin miners by month-end, achieving a total energized hash rate of 23.4 EH/s, with 20.4 EH/s dedicated to self-mining down 0.5% MoM from 20.5 EH/s in August and up 1.5% YoY from 20.1 EH/s in July.

• The company is constructing a 100 MW data center in Muskogee, OK, and expanding its Pecos, TX facility by 100 MW, aiming to provide advanced cooling systems for AI workloads by mid-2025.

• Approximately 22,000 customer-owned Bitcoin miners were hosted, contributing to the estimated 66 BTC earned by clients in September.

• The company delivered 45,262 MWh back to local grids by reducing power consumption during economic curtailments and other events.

🖥️ Bit Digital

• Bit Digital produced 51.5 BTC in September 2024, a 3.6% decrease compared to the previous month, reflecting slight fluctuations in mining performance.

• The active hashrate stood at approximately 2.43 EH/s as of September 30, 2024, showcasing the company's mining capacity.

• Treasury holdings included 731.3 BTC and 27,388.9 ETH, valued at approximately $46.3m and $71.3m, respectively, underscoring a robust asset base.

• The BTC equivalent of the company’s digital assets was about 1,863.0 BTC, valued at approximately $118m, reinforcing financial stability.

• Cash and cash equivalents totaled $104m, with total liquidity (including USDC and digital assets) reaching approximately $222m.

• Bit Digital had 21,568 ETH actively staked in native protocols, demonstrating its commitment to staking in the Ethereum ecosystem.

• Bit Digital operated 256 servers generating revenue from its initial AI contract, focusing on sustainable digital assets and AI infrastructure. The company reported approximately $4.2m in unaudited revenue from the AI contract in September 2024.