Bitcoin

Japanese Miners See Solar Energy as ‘Only Way’ to Stay Profitable

Shaurya Malwa · @grittygatorr | Mar 10, 2018 | 15:00

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Kumamoto-Energy, a local power producer in Japan, has announced that they will use solar energy for mining cryptocurrencies.

Japan Looks to Greener Energy

Cryptocurrency mining farms are trying to reduce costs and consume as less energy as possible, but sometimes the task is very difficult. Japanese miners are trying to consume renewable energy make mining activities more sustainable in the long term.

Saburo Takashashi, a security analyst at Kansai Electric Power, says:

This is a time for improvisation, mining won’t go away fro the next 100 years, efficient renewable sources of energy are the only way that cryptocurrency mining will be profitable in the future.

Cryptocurrency mining if left unchecked will potentially lead to environmental disaster and major resource crunch.

Bitcoin’s Electricity Consumption

Across the globe, less than 1% of the world’s total energy is consumed for cryptocurrency mining. However, experts state that since cryptocurrencies are here to stay, so are environmental concerns.  If businesses do not find a way to reduce the impact on the earth through sustainable resources, it can become a problem for the next generations.

However, Kumamoto Energy hopes for a more sustainable and greener future, which does not exclude cryptocurrency mining.

The company has set up an affiliate called OZ Mining with the intention of using the excess power generated at solar power plants for mining operations. The company will also work with other Japanese electricity enterprises to run “mega solar plants” in the Kumamoto Prefecture.

Kumamoto Energy is also developing and preparing to sell eco-friendly systems that they say are very efficient at mining cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin.

The energy company is expecting that once they will go online, other companies will follow suit, making it a more affordable and profitable activity for local miners.

Japan and Kumamoto-Energy are doing what is possible to improve the efficiency of the energy used in cryptocurrency mining activities. The current challenges for clean energy are complex. It is more expensive than traditional energy sources, it is unevenly distributed, it is still being developed with a lot to improve.

The cost for mining 1 BTC in Japan is among the most expensive in the world, and using solar energy can significantly drive these costs down.

Once these challenges are addressed and the use of renewable energy increases, then mining activities will be more cost-effective, less harmful and ready to spread all over the world.

What do you think about the using Solar Power for cryptocurrency mining? Can we expect more of the same from other countries? Let us know in the comments below!

Images courtesy of Bitcoinist archives, Shutterstock