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0 CommentsMajor Bitcoin miners in the US are looking at the Middle East, Europe, and other regions to expand their energy-intensive industry, Bloomberg reported. They are seeking low local electricity prices and liberal regulations on crypto mining.
“We are geographically diversified in the US … but we are also looking outside the US,” Mike Levitt, chief executive of Austin, Texas-based mining company Core Scientific, said at the Bitcoin Conference 2022 in Miami.
As per him, the most logical regions are the Middle East and Scandinavia, where some nations have capital and suitable power sources.
Also, Bitcoin miners are searching for regions with lower policy risks after China’s crypto ban last May. As well as, the Texas state energy operator sanctioned a review process last month that could delay crypto miners from connecting to the power grid for a few months.
Bitcoin miners had been flocking to Texas for its low electricity prices and liberal regulations on crypto mining. New York and Washington have put forward strict regulations on crypto miners due to their large demand for local grids and environmental concerns. Miners say the regulatory efforts are a reason to look elsewhere.
Fred Thiel, chief executive of Marathon Digital, described the political stance on crypto in Europe as “very anti,” unlike the Middle East.
“The Middle East is a very interesting place because they have asymmetry in power and energy,” he said at the conference. “In the UAE in the summertime, they generate four gigawatts of power to run their air conditioners, the other nine months of the year they only use one gigawatt and three gigawatts sitting idle.”
US crypto entrepreneurs say Saudi Arabia and the UAE are rolling out a red carpet of easy crypto regulation. It’s setting up a contrast to the US, where officials are tightening crypto rules.
In the last few years, Saudi Arabia made a lot of effort to attract crypto companies. The Saudi Central Bank and Central Bank of the UAE have been working together to learn how the two banks can adopt blockchain and digital payments.
The country’s emphasis on crypto is part of the country’s Saudi Vision 2030, which aims to diversify the economy and make the country an innovation hub.
