Sweden Needs Power for More Useful Things Than Bitcoin Mining, Energy Minister Says – Sweden may change its stance against cryptocurrency mining in light of predictions for rising energy needs in other sectors. The Swedish economy is moving “from a period of administration to an intense expansion where our entire manufacturing business is aiming to electrify,” Energy Minister Khashayar Farmanbar said in a recent interview.
Bloomberg cited the official as saying:
“We need energy for more useful things than bitcoin, to be honest.”
Sweden has attracted numerous bitcoin miners, and its coin minting sector has grown to be one of, if not the largest in Europe, thanks to its hydro reservoirs and wind farms that provide clean and affordable electricity. The Swedish Energy Agency has been assigned by the Stockholm government to assess the energy usage in the digital space, particularly crypto mining, because they are concerned about its rising power demand.
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While the profitability of their operators is heavily influenced by the values of crypto assets, the placement of mining farms is mostly decided by the availability of inexpensive electricity. The first of these problems is expected to get worse as a result of the mandated assessment, while the second has already been impacted by the current bear market in cryptocurrencies.
Farmanbar refuses to reveal what policies the government would use to limit mining, but two possibilities have been brought forward. One is to rearrange the order in which power users connect to the network, giving those connections priority that are ostensibly more beneficial to society, such as by producing a lot of jobs.
The other option is to restrict the application of the favorable tax benefit that all data centers currently receive. As highlighted by Erik Thornstrom, a senior consultant at business organization Swedenergy, who elaborated: “The argument is that the intended goal of this incentive was to attract global organizations such as Microsoft and Facebook, not crypto mining businesses.”
Companies from the Swedish steel sector, for instance, are among those who anticipate profiting from the constraint of crypto mining. In contrast to the present practice of connecting consumers on a first-come, first-served basis, SSAB, which intends to establish a fossil-free production, requests that grid operators prioritize industrial initiatives like its own.
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Minister Farmanbar remarked that Sweden should assess whether it is making the greatest use of its energy in light of anticipated constraints. He made his statement as politicians like him are coming under more and more pressure to do something about global warming.
