How much energy does cryptocurrency mining consume in the US?
In a recent analysis, energy information bureau (EIA) estimates that large-scale cryptocurrency operations consume more than 2% of the country’s electricity.
And, as Ars Technica pointed out in a report Friday (February 2), this is roughly equivalent to adding. another state to the national power grid.
Although some mining is done on a small scale on home computers, most cryptocurrency mining is done on a large scale, and the majority of the costs associated with these operations are reported to be spent on electricity. The book says: This has led miners to move to areas where electricity is cheaper.
According to the EIA, much crypto mining has moved to the United States, where lower energy prices are generally a policy priority. China’s oppression About the digital asset space.
Meanwhile, the Ars Technica report also cited independent estimates by the Cambridge Center for Alternative Finance, which found that as of early 2020, the US was home to 38% of Bitcoin mining, up from 3% two years ago. This is said to have increased from just over %.
A study by the Cambridge Center estimates that Bitcoin mining currently uses as much electricity as the state of Utah. This is a more conservative estimate. At high levels, this number could be equivalent to all the electricity used in Washington state.
It was information like this that led the White House to propose the Digital Asset Mining Energy (DAME) excise tax last year, which would impose a tax equal to 30% of sales tax on crypto mining companies. . the cost of electricity they use.
“Currently, crypto mining companies do not have to pay the full costs they impose on others, including local environmental pollution, rising energy prices, and climate impacts from increased greenhouse gas emissions.” White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) wrote on its blog:
The CEA claims that, in contrast to other energy-intensive industries, “cryptocurrency mining does not generate the local and national economic benefits typically associated with companies that use the same amount of electricity.”
In response, the Digital Chamber of Commerce called on lawmakers to focus less on penalizing crypto miners and more on working with the industry on ways to reduce energy consumption while allowing the industry to grow.
