Despite Heat Wave, Bitcoin Miners Turn on Rigs As BTC Price Jumps

The recent price surge by Bitcoin over the last two weeks has forced BTC miners to turn on their rigs despite the ongoing heat wave in the west.

Amid the Bitcoin price crossing $23,000, the BTC mining difficulty rate has jumped more than 1.7% in the last two weeks. During the previous bi-weekly adjustment, the Bitcoin mining rate dropped to its lowest a year ago.

Amid the current heat wave, electricity costs have gone up significantly which is also the biggest expense for Bitcoin miners. With soaring electricity prices due to heat waves, Bitcoin miners shuttered operations.

Over the last two weeks, the BTC price has surged by 6.2%. This price jump has boosted mining revenue and forced miners to turn on their rigs. Speaking to Bloomberg, Jaran Mellerud, crypto-mining analyst at research firm Arcane Crypto said:

“The Bitcoin price increase has led to increased profitability for miners and some miners who were pushed offline in June and July have likely plugged in their machines again”.

Bitcoin Miners Concentrating in Texas and Georgia

Once again, Bitcoin miners have been flocking to the southern U.S. states of Georgia and Texas which have crypto-friendly regulations and low price electricity supply. Last month in early July, miners had to shut down all industrial-scale operations after a strong heat wave hit Texas.

Some of the large-scale miners in Texas have participated in demand response programs by the state operator – Electric Reliability Council. This program involves a voluntary curtailing of energy consumption during peak hours, however, miners get compensated later.

By shutting down its Bitcoin mining rigs in Texas last month, Riot Blockchain has accumulated $9.5 million in credits last month. Jaran Mellerud said:

“In July, many American miners unplugged their machines as part of their participation in demand response programs. This led to a considerable drop in Bitcoin’s computing power in that month”.