Authorities in Iran plan to unplug licensed crypto mining facilities as electricity consumption in the country reaches record highs. Mining farms will be cut off the grid on Wednesday, the Islamic Republic’s Ministry of Energy announced.
Legal crypto miners in Iran to cease operations again due to power shortage
Authorized crypto mining enterprises in Iran will have to unplug their power-hungry coin mining equipment from the beginning of tir next month, or Wednesday, June 22, in the Iranian calendar. Energy Ministry spokesman Mustafa Rajabi Mashhadi announced the decision, quoted by The Tehran Times.
The government official said the measure currently applies to 118 licensed mining farms operating in the Islamic republic. The temporary restrictions will be imposed after electricity consumption in the country reached a record high of 62,500 megawatts (MW) during peak hours last week.
Mashhadi said electricity demand for this week ending Friday is expected to exceed 63,000 megawatts according to the local calendar. A representative of the Ministry of Power called these figures significant and warned that it would lead to limited power supply across the country.
Tehran authorities legalized cryptocurrency mining as an industrial activity in 2019. Since then, dozens of companies have applied for licenses from the Ministry of Industry and began to mint digital currencies, taking advantage of the low-cost energy offered by Iranian power plants.
In addition to sanctioned mining operations, a growing number of Iranians have set up mining installations using subsidized domestic electricity to carry digital coins, increasing the burden on the Iranian power generation industry. The latter is facing serious problems due to drafts due to less than expected rains and rising demand in hot weather. A report in May revealed that Iran has busted about 7,000 illegal crypto farms.
The country’s power shortages and repeated blackouts last summer were partly blamed on increased use of electricity for mining and even licensed miners were ordered to shut down. . They were allowed to resume operations in September, but were then asked to suspend activities in view of the increasing power shortage during the colder months.
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