Bitcoin mining project in Kenya helps power a rural community

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An Africa-based hydropower crypto-mining project has released an update on its efforts to bring energy developments to rural communities via Bitcoin (BTC).

On December 9, Gridless Compute tweeted photos and comments about how their BTC hydro mining rigs are powering an entire rural settlement while reducing energy rates for 2,000 people, the equivalent of 500 families. According to the tweet, the costs drop from $10 per month to $4.

All this while securing the underlying BTC blockchain network.

Powering a rural village in Kenya and securing the #Bitcoin network with excess hydroelectricity, while lowering tariffs to 2000 people (500 families, ~$10/month to $4). @GridlessCompute pic.twitter.com/9GUlAU6265

jack (@jack) December 9, 2022

Earlier this week, the project also shared the results of a successful $2 million funding round led by VC Stillmark and Blocks, the parent company of CashApp and Square.

According to Gridless, funds from this round will be used to further expand BTC mining in African markets while targeting rural communities for accessible energy.

Erik Hersman, CEO of Gridless, said that while BTC mining is prevalent in North America, Europe and Asia, Africa has great opportunities to diversify mining. He pointed out that renewable energy is abundant on the continent.

“It has excellent profit potential for energy producers and miners, as well as the ability to have a real positive impact on the communities where it is used.”

Miles Suter, an active figure in the BTC community and head of CashApp, visited one of the locations in rural Kenya. Suter highlighted the renewable energy aspect of the project, as BTC mining has already come under scrutiny for its harsh environmental impact.

Next week, an additional 10x hash will go live – allowing power providers to make the initial investment in hydropower for remote areas, monetizing the stranded energy that previously made such deployments unprofitable.

A game-changing model for #Bitcoin and the world. pic.twitter.com/B5a5iuxKlE

Miles Suter (@milessuter) December 9, 2022

This comes as BTC’s hash rate has declined over the past month, allowing miners to regain losses after mining operations reported the lowest revenue in both years.

Related: The Middle East and North Africa Are the Fastest Growing Crypto Markets: Data

Crypto activity on the African continent has grown over the past year as practical use cases for crypto and its technology continue to emerge.

This is so the case that the International Monetary Fund recently called for tighter regulation of crypto in Africa.

Additionally, new partnerships have made cross-border payments between US citizens possible, sending funds to Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya via the BTC Lightning Network.

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