Russia’s Anti-Monopoly Agency Proposes Higher Electricity Rates for Home Crypto Miners – Mining Bitcoin News

Russia’s anti-monopoly agency suggested that Russians using digital currencies to make money at home would have to pay higher prices for electrical energy. This proposal was made after a Russian bill to regulate cryptocurrency mining was submitted to parliament.

Anti-Monopoly Organization Says Russian Miners Should Have Higher Electricity Bills

Russia’s Federal Anti-monopoly Service (FAS) has designed a scheme to charge amateur crypto miners increased rates for the electricity they use. According to the agency, its solution to rising residential electricity consumption can be influenced by the popularity of crypto mining.

The Russian Federation has differentiated electricity rates, according to the location and status of customers. This is explained in an article by the Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper. Business tariffs can double the rate of the average household price, and they are often subsidized by businesses.

The Community of Energy Consumers Association notes that private consumers are known to try and profit from their low rates of electricity to power everything, including car repair shops or woodworking shops. The result is that grids within residential areas become overwhelmed because they can’t handle excessive power usage. This has also been caused by the rise in home mining.

FAS is now proposing to set a limit on electricity consumption. If this threshold is exceeded, higher rates may be applied. The anti-monopoly system will allow household requirements to be distinguished from those of commercial customers. All household appliances will be counted, even those that use more electricity, such as air conditioners.

The FAS stated that each Russian region can decide the electricity supply at preferred rates. This will take into consideration factors like heating use in cold months, and length of heating season. The Federal Government granted December permission to regional authorities to set local electricity tariffs.

Due to the proliferation of underground crypto mining farms that mint coins in garages and basements, power supply networks in many areas with historically low electricity prices such as Irkutsk Oblast and Krasnoyarsk Krai have been unable to function properly.

Differentiated tariffs are expected to decrease interest in mining and other means of earning, at the cost for subsidized household electric. This agency believes that the new approach will allow businesses to lower their production costs and ultimately reduce inflation by lowering the prices they charge for goods or services.

Russian legislators are currently reviewing a draft law regarding cryptocurrency mining. It aims to regulate this industry, as it is a country rich in energy resources and has favorable climatic conditions. According to officials, Russia could become a leader in global mining by virtue of its competitive advantages.

How will the new pricing system affect Russian crypto miners? Leave a comment below.

Lubomir Tassav

Lubomir Tassev is a journalist from tech-savvy Eastern Europe who likes Hitchens’s quote: “Being a writer is what I am, rather than what I do.” Besides crypto, blockchain and fintech, international politics and economics are two other sources of inspiration.