Electricity Shut off for Bitcoin Miners in China

According to reports from local media, there are many strict measures taken by the authorities to break down bitcoin miners in Baoshan in Yunnan province in China. The recent move of the authorities was an order to the city’s power suppliers to shut it off, in order to prevent bitcoin mining activities.

Colin Wu, who is a crypto reporter in China, said that many miners told him that the Chinese authorities targeted Baoshan, Yunnan, which is where a majority of crypto miners in China operate and was the only region that received the notice to stop supplying electricity. He also indicated that the region was the third-largest in the country known for bitcoin mining after Sichuan and Xinjiang. He also shared a copy of the notice on his Twitter and added that the electricity ban is more of an economic interest than political because the attitude of the local power supply companies towards crypto mining changes all the time.

This restriction happened at the same time as the 24 hours global hash rate drop. With an estimated fall of 19% from 140 exahashes every second to 125 exa hashes per second, though it was only coincidental. 

Yunnan province Bitcoin hash rate rank and power restrictions

As reported by the Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index of Cambridge University, Yunnan ranks as the fourth-largest zone in China by their hash mining rate, and the top three are Inner Mongolia, Sichuan, and Xinjiang, as of April this year. About 7.07% of the worldwide Bitcoin hash rate was represented by Yunnan, which ranked more than all countries except the United States, China, Kazakhstan, and Russia. 

According to Wu, in June, the government of Yunnan ordered over 64 mining operations that were not authorized to shut down. This included 7 that was still undergoing construction. The government stated that the reason for this is because of security and tax evasion and that the mines were connected to the power stations in the region. A local bitcoin mine got burnt and thousands of bitcoin units went down in ashes.

There was also a mid-year suppression that was caused by an explosion at a hydropower station on May 29, in Yunnan injuring 5 people and killing 6. Individuals believe that it is as a result of this explosion that the government is enforcing stricter measures for safety, especially with regards to the power stations in the region. A document was also issued by Yunnan’s state grid in April cautioning the producers of electricity in the region against the Bitcoin miners illegally using power.

Bitcoin miners continue to mine with whatever power available because of the profits without thinking about any consequences. At times even done in very risky conditions. The power consumption rate of crypto mining is very high and local governments are doing all they can to restrict mining activities to avoid power shortages, and this is more especially for those who operate without authorization from the local authorities.