China’s Sichuan government requested that hydropower stations suspend power supply to crypto mines
According to Colin Wu, a Chinese cryptocurrency reporter, China’s Sichuan government has requested that hydropower stations suspend power due to supply to crypto mines from December 8th to insufficient electricity consumption for industries and residents.
Exclusive: Wu learned that China’s Sichuan government has requested that hydropower stations suspend power supply to crypto mines from December 8th due to insufficient electricity consumption for industries and residents. , pic.twitter.com/IPl4dlA80W
— Colin Wu（Wu Blockchain） (@WuBlockchain) December 12, 2020
China is ramping up efforts to crack down on Bitcoin miners
Elsewhere, local sources reported that authorities from the Baoshan city of Yunnan province, China, are ramping up efforts to crack down on Bitcoin miners, demanding that power producers stop supply power the city’s miners.
Several miners have announced the ban, sharing what appears to be scanned copies of official documents issued to electricity producers.
However, the ban could be announced by localized economic interests and is probably not an indication of a desire to prevent crypto mining from Beijing.
According to Cambridge University’s Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index, Yunnan was China’s fourth-largest region by mining hash rate, behind Xinjian, Sichuan, and Inner Mongolia as of April 2020. Yunnan then represented 5.42% of the global hash rate – ranking it above all countries except for China, the United States, Russia, and Kazakhstan.
In June, the Yunnan government ordered the closure of 64 illegal mining operations, of which seven are still under construction. The government cites tax evasion and security risks including how mines are connected to local hydropower stations. That same month, a local Bitcoin mine caught fire, destroying thousands of units.
In April, the Yunnan state grid also issued a document warning power producers against the unauthorized redirection of electricity to Bitcoin miners.
Read more:
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