Iceland: Iceland refuses crypto miners due to electrical malfunction and low water reservoirs

[ad_1]

Iceland’s electricity deficit has led the main power utility Landsvirkjun to cut power to some of the country’s energy-intensive sectors. Industrial sectors such as aluminum smelters, data centers and fishmeal factories, in addition to Bitcoin miners, have been turned down. The miners’ requests to connect new mining facilities to the grid were rejected by Landsvirkjun. The power cut was also imposed on large customers on short-term reducible contracts. The immediate electricity deficit in Iceland was caused by the following factors: low levels of hydropower reservoirs, a malfunction at a power plant and a delay in obtaining electricity from an external generator on December 7, reported Bloomberg. Extremely high demand levels also led to the electricity crisis, according to Tinna Traustadottir, executive vice president of sales and customer service at Landsvirkjun. The biggest consumers of electricity in the country are the aluminum smelters which benefit from cheap electricity and these smelters need to secure their power supply in the long term, explained Traustadottir. Due to the limitations of the country’s electricity distribution system, Landsvirkjun cannot serve the charging points of the country’s largest power plant, Karahnjukavirkjun, located in the east of the country. On the other hand, the western region of the island is mainly experiencing an energy crisis. The main crypto mining companies already operating in Iceland are Canadian Hive Blockchain Technologies, Genesis Mining and Bitfury Holding, listed in Hong Kong. However, the main utility is now rejecting applications from new clients in the mining sector. Previously, two Nordic countries, Sweden and Norway, had raised concerns about rising energy consumption and the resulting growing environmental impact of cryptocurrency mining. In November, Swedish regulators called for an EU-wide ban on crypto mining. For the latest cryptocurrency news and investment tips follow our Cryptocurrency page and for live cryptocurrency price updates click here.

[ad_2]