With the growing popularity of Bitcoin (BTC) among leading political figures, Republican Congressman Pete Sessions, from Texas said that Bitcoin mining will play a pivotal role in rebuilding US energy policy.
On March 21, Pete Sessions, a 12-term Republican congressman from Waco, Texas, tweeted that Bitcoin (BTC) mining will play a critical role in rebuilding energy independence in the USA. The tweet attracted a mixed set of reactions from netizens, with some supporting the motion and some against it. Among the supporters is U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis from Wyoming who responded to his tweet with a laconic reply, “Indeed.”
Bitcoin Mining Could Drive A Clean Energy Transition
Amidst the Russia-Ukraine war, crude oil prices skyrocketed surging over 7 per cent to their highest since 2014. Leading politicians have started debating on how the country can reduce its dependence on external energy sources after witnessing the vulnerability caused due to geo-political tension.
Bitcoin mining is aligning with the energy sector with great speed, yielding an explosion of innovation that will both decarbonize bitcoin in the medium term, and will dramatically benefit increasingly renewable grids.
Bitcoin enthusiasts have long maintained that bitcoin mining could drive a clean energy transition. According to them, Bitcoin miners voraciously buy the cheapest sources of energy available; renewable (wind and solar) sources of energy are getting progressively cheaper and will soon outmatch thermal energy on cost; bitcoin miners will therefore subsidize the buildout of renewable energy, benefiting everyone.
Renewable Energy to Power Bitcoin Mining Operation
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), Texas is already the country’s leading wind power generator. Therefore, miners may already have access to renewable energy when needed, promoting miners to utilize a flexible data center model could stimulate greater growth in renewable energy accessibility and reliability. The paper stated,
“Hence, the (integrated energy system) may contribute to grid stability by locally using generated electricity instead of feeding it into the grid.”
As per a report by Bitcoin Mining Council (BMC), the global bitcoin mining industry’s sustainable electricity mix more than doubled to around 58 per cent during Q4 2021, up 1 per cent from Q3 2021 making it one of the most sustainable industries worldwide.
Earlier this year, as reported by Blockchainjournal, an obsolete hydroelectric power plant in Costa Rica was revived to power several cryptocurrency mining operations. Last year, in a bid to use more of renewable energy, the state of New York, revived a 123 year old hydroelectric power plant to power Bitcoin mining.
