Russia has offered to supply Kazakhstan additional energy to enable it to run its crypto mining operations in Central Asia. New arrangements will allow Kazakhstan’s miners to buy electricity directly from the Russian power generation and distribution giant Inter RAO.
Kazakhstan Miners to Get Energy from Russia
Kazakhstan’s crypto mining companies will have the ability to use electricity from Russia for their power needs. Two partnering countries will change a bilateral accord governing their coordinated energy system operation to enable this.
The government in Moscow has already ordered the necessary changes and begun preparations to organize the supply of power for Kazakhstan’s crypto mining sector, the crypto news page of the Russian business information portal RBC unveiled.
Inter RAO (Russia’s sole authority on electricity export and import) will be able, under commercial agreements, to sell Kazakhstani products directly through the companies involved in mining.
Kazakhstan’s low electricity prices and subsidies attracted many mining firms after China cracked down last year. The subsequent surge in consumption was blamed for the power shortages and multiple breakdowns of the country’s aging energy infrastructure. Kazakh authorities shut down 200 mines temporarily in January.
Russia’s state-owned energy company began considering more supplies for Kazakhstan in fall 2017. This was when Kazakhstan expected its electricity shortage to rise to 600 megawatts due to rising demand during winter months. After consuming 83 billion kWh (kWh) over the first nine months, the Russian power giant started to consider additional supplies.
At the time, Inter RAO criticized Kazakhstan for its capped tariffs which the Russian holding said had led to lack of funds for investments in modernizing and upgrading the country’s generation capacities and distribution network. In Kazakhstan, imports of electricity were once restricted unless KEGOC, the national grid operator, identified a danger of shortages.
Lawmakers in Nur-Sultan have recently proposed a bill aiming to reduce what they describe as “uncontrolled use of electricity by ‘gray’ miners.” The new legislation seeks to reserve the opportunity to mint digital coins only for mining companies registered with the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC). The law would allow foreign companies to only mine with licensed domestic data centers if it is approved.
Is Kazakhstan able to overcome power supply problems and maintain sufficient electricity supply for its crypto mining sector? Please share your opinions on this topic in the comment section.
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