Bhutan Starts Mining Bitcoin With Green Energy

Bhutan, known to have started secretly collecting and mining Bitcoins. (photo: dock. pexels)

JAKARTA - Bhutan, a small country in the Himalayan, was recently known to have started secretly collecting and mining Bitcoin. The country with a population of less than 800,000 people uses its green energy resources to drive Bitcoin mining operations.

Bhutan is known for its focus on "Gross National Happiness" and beautiful natural scenery. The country has found ways to take advantage of its huge hydroelectric potential, which accounts for 30% of its gross domestic product.

According to reports from local media Bhutan, Bitcoin mining in the country began in April 2019 when the price of Bitcoin was in the range of $5.000 (Rp73.6 million) per coin. The current price per Bitcoin coin has soared to around US$28,000 (Rp412.6 million) per coin.

It was reported by Cointelegraph that Bhutan has explored partnerships to expand its Bitcoin mining operations. The country is negotiating with the mining company listed on Nasdaq, Bitdeer, to obtain 100 megawatts of power for Bitcoin mining data centers in Bhutan. This partnership will increase Bitdeer mining capacity by about 12%.

Although the scale of Bitcoin mining operations in Bhutan is still a mystery, little information is available about the location, size, and profitability of mining farms. Several employees of Druk Holding and Investments (DHI) have listed "crypto mining" as their duties and skills on their LinkedIn profile.

It is unclear why the government chose not to disclose this project to its citizens or international partners. However, it is known that the state-owned parent company, DHI, has invested millions of dollars in its crypto holdings, where the funds are managed for the benefit of its people.

Although the main media suggest otherwise, Bitcoin mining is the cleanst industry in the world, with more than 50% of its energy sources coming from renewable or clean energy. Bitcoin mining advocates, such as MicroStrategy Chair Michael Saylor, explained that "99.92% of the world's carbon emissions are due to the use of industrial energy other than Bitcoin mining." Thanks to its cheap and abundant hydroelectric resources, DHI reports that Bhutan is the ideal destination for mining Bitcoin.

Bhutan is a long list of countries from East Africa to Scandinavia that mines hydroelectric power Bitcoin, one of the sources of clean and cheap energy.