Bitcoin Mining Takes Up 0.6% to 2.3% of US Electricity Consumption – Report

After tracking electricity consumption from the United States Bitcoin mining activities, it was reported that the industry takes as much as 0.6% to 2.3% of the entire electricity consumption in the country as of 2023.

Massive Electricity Consumed by Bitcoin Miners

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released a report that detailed the amount of electricity consumed by the Bitcoin mining industry in the nation. Per the report, the electricity demand of Bitcoin mining facilities in the United States annually is between 0.6% and 2.3%. According to these statistics, U.S. Bitcoin miners consume electricity that is enough for the entire state of Utah. 

As stated in the EIA report, electricity consumption from Bitcoin mining activities is approximately the annual demand of about three to six million homes. This is a clear indication that the mining activities in the U.S. have grown significantly in the last couple of years. 

Precisely, a significant amount of this growth is a result of the relocation of crypto mining operations from China to the United States following the ban placed on the sector in the Asian country. Additionally, within the last three years, quite some large-scale Bitcoin mining companies have gone public in the U.S., setting up their facilities in energy-rich regions like Texas and New York. 

Bitcoin Mining Growth Raising Concerns

The surge in electricity consumption has drawn the interest of policymakers as well as grid planners to the burgeoning ecosystem. Markedly, these industry players are concerned about the strain this growth will bring as well as its effect on cost, reliability, and emissions.

“Concerns expressed to EIA include strains to the electricity grid during periods of peak demand, the potential for higher electricity prices, as well as effects on energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions,” the report stated.

The growing concerns of policymakers and electricity grid planners attempt to support the myth that Bitcoin mining consumes too much energy. Mining is rather regarded as the cleanest industrial use of electricity as it is energy-efficient.

Bitcoin halving is only a few months away and like every other such event that was held in the past, Bitcoin mining reward will be cut in half to reduce the number of new coins entering the network. Once the block reward is halved, miners may dive into more mining activities to obtain new Bitcoin. These operations can trigger an upshoot in the amount of electricity utilized for Bitcoin mining activities.