Democrats press cryptomining companies on energy consumption

Eight Democratic members of Congress on Thursday wrote to major cryptocurrency-mining companies for information on their energy usage and its potential effects on climate change.

The House and Senate members noted that estimates of the power consumption associated with bitcoin increased more than threefold between 2019 and 2021. The energy consumption is roughly equivalent to that of Washington state or the entire nation of Denmark, according to a September 2021 analysis by The New York Times.

Members who signed the letter included Democratic Sens. Elizabeth WarrenElizabeth WarrenOver 80 lawmakers urge Biden to release memo outlining his authority on student debt cancellation Kelly pushes back on Arizona Democrats’ move to censure Sinema Fiscal conservatives should support postal reform  MORE (Mass.), Sheldon WhitehouseSheldon WhitehouseOvernight Energy & Environment — Starting from ‘scratch’ on climate, spending bill Oath Keeper charges renew attention on Trump orbit Democrats call on Biden administration to ease entry to US for at-risk Afghans MORE (R.I.), Jeff MerkleyJeff MerkleyDemocrats say change to filibuster just a matter of time Democrats call on Biden administration to ease entry to US for at-risk Afghans Manchin, Sinema join GOP to sink filibuster change for voting bill MORE (Ore.) and Maggie HassanMargaret (Maggie) HassanDemocrats say change to filibuster just a matter of time Democrats torn over pushing stolen-election narrative These Senate seats are up for election in 2022 MORE (N.H.), as well as Democratic Reps. Katie Porter (Calif.), Rashida TlaibRashida Harbi TlaibOvernight Energy & Environment — Biden announces green buildings initiative Tlaib blasts Biden judicial nominee whose firm sued environmental lawyer House Democrats inquire about possible census undercount in Detroit, other communities MORE (Mich.) and Jared HuffmanJared William HuffmanIn their own words: Lawmakers, staffers remember Jan. 6 insurrection Overnight Energy & Environment — Manchin raises hopes on climate spending Energy & Environment — Advocates look for Plan B climate legislation MORE (Calif.).

Copies of the letter were sent to six mining companies, including Riot Blockchain, Marathon Digital Holdings, Stronghold Digital Mining, Bitdeer, Bitfury Group and Bit Digital.

Recent crackdowns on cryptocurrency mining by the Chinese government will likely lead to increased concentration of operations, and the associated carbon emissions, within North America.

In addition to those emissions, the lawmakers expressed concerns at reports of associated energy cost increases. One recent study estimated upstate New York mining operations led to an increase of about $79 million in annual electric costs for individual consumers and $165 million for small businesses.

“Given the extraordinarily high energy usage and carbon emissions associated with Bitcoin mining, mining operations raise concerns about their impacts on the global environment, local ecosystems, and consumer electricity costs,” the lawmakers wrote. “States like Texas with relatively cheap electricity costs are experiencing an influx of cryptomining companies, raising concerns about the state’s unreliable electricity market and the potential for cryptomining to add to the stress on the state’s power grid.”

In addition to the annual electricity consumption at each of the recipients’ facilities, they asked for information about plans to scale operations, purchasing agreements with electricity providers, and whether the companies had any estimates of impacts on local energy costs.

The Hill has reached out to the six companies for comment.