Bitcoin miners in the Lone Star State are back in action after halting operations over power cuts at the start of the month.
Texas power grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) had previously launched a policy of electricity rationing to grapple with the energy demands caused by a spike in temperatures.
ERCOT advised users to limit their power usage, as residents turned on air conditioners at full blast to cope with sweltering conditions.
One of the victims of the rationing were bitcoin miners, as “big power consumers” were forced to stop operations. This was done to prevent a grid collapse and statewide blackouts, according to ERCOT.
Bitcoin miners back online
After over a week, a Reuters report indicates that the miners have recommenced their operations in full scale. The brief pause in mining activity affected Bitcoin hashrates negatively, as they slipped below 200 exahashes per second amid reports of miner capitulation caused by low asset prices.
“The miners are all back on, several days ago,” noted Lee Bratcher, president of the Texas Blockchain Council. Bratcher added that “ERCOT is back into normal operating mode with over 3,000 megawatts (MW) of spare capacity on the grid.
Texas has become the hub of crypto mining activity in the North American continent, with large mining firms jostling for scarce energy resources.
Leading firms like Riot Blockchain, Poolin, and Geosyn Mining have all called Texas home over the last year, and experts predict that the resumption of mining will lead to electricity usage reaching new highs.
Democrats worry over increasing miner activity
A group of concerned Democrat lawmakers wrote a letter to the heads of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy to work together to regulate the growing crypto mining industry.
The lawmakers stated that “state and federal regulators know little about the scope of the problem” despite the harsh impacts on the environment and energy usage.
The senators noted that an independent study revealed that the energy requirements of the big seven mining firms were able to “power all domestic residences in Houston, Texas.”
In New York, skyrocketing energy demands have forced the state to place a two-year moratorium on all proof-of-work cryptocurrency mining activity.
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