how big is the world bitcoin Riot Blockchain, one of the mining companies, has decided not to voluntarily use the state’s electrical energy before the big snowstorm expected in the US state of Texas.
Riot Blockchain Begins Temporarily Shutting Down Its Texas Facilities
Riot, Texas’ largest Bitcoin mining company, and also the largest publicly traded cryptocurrency among mining companies. According to company spokesperson Trystine Payfer, Riot began closing its Whinestone facilities as of last Tuesday and plans not to open them until the extreme cold leaves the area.
According to the company’s statements, as of Wednesday, the energy use of Whinestone facilities has been reduced by 98%. Payfer stated that Riot will implement this decision until the temperatures in the region return to normal levels. The company’s overall contribution to the Bitcoin network is estimated to be around 9 EH/s.
The fact that the company made this move actually has a connection with what happened in the past. In February 2021, the region experienced extraordinary snowstorms again, and millions of Texans were cut off from access to electricity and clean water as temperatures reached freezing levels. After this unexpected natural event, 210 people lost their lives in the state and $ 50 billion in damage was recorded. After the events, the Biden administration declared the province a national disaster area.
During the blizzard at that time, Riot Blockchain announced that they started to power off the Whinestone facilities in Rockdale, Texas on February 11, 2021, and completely cut off as of February 12. Facilities did not switch to 100% electricity use until February 19, 2021.
This year’s storms are likely to be quite strong, with around 68,000 outages in the state so far.
The US state of Texas has become one of the most important centers for Bitcoin miners to migrate after China, thanks to cheap electricity fees.