Tuesday, July 13th 2021
Crypto Goes Nuclear: Pennsylvania and Ohio to be Home to Nuclear-Powered Cryptomining
Crypto is going nuclear in the not so distant future, as US company Talen Energy revealed plans to construct a cryptomining data center in the immediate vicinity of the Susquehanna Steam Electric Station in Pennsylvania. Initial power consumption of the installation is expected to settle around 164 MW, with that figure climbing up to 300 MW once the infrastructure is complete - powered by dual 1+GW nuclear units and two independent substations. Talen Energy estimates maximum on-site power in the order of 1 GW.
The idea is to begin a narrative reversal around the environmental cost of cryptocurrency mining - if power is provided by cleaner technology, cryptocurrency mining's carbon footprint is bound to be reduced, in turn increasing attractiveness for environmentally-conscious businesses. Elon Musk, for one, made waves in both news outlets and cryptocurrency markets (and value) when he announced the decision for Tesla to cancel acceptance of Bitcoin as payment for its vehicles, citing environmental concerns regarding power sources keeping Bitcoin's blockchain secure. Another company, Energy Harbor Corp, announced a five-year collaboration with Standard Power to power its Bitcoin blockchain mining center in Coshocton, Ohio, starting December this year.
Love it or hate it, blockchain technology is going nowhere - it's one of the most important, fundamental and transformational technologies in recent decades. much like nuclear power (and nuclear weapons, for that matter) weren't loved by everyone at the technologies' introduction (and still aren't loved by everyone), so does the future contemplate blockchain technology irrespective of our own personal opinion on the matter. It was only a matter of time before crypto went nuclear - and for a technology that consumes more power than several countries combined, the change to more sustainable, less carbon-.intensive technologies surely is a welcome one.
Source:
TechSpot
The idea is to begin a narrative reversal around the environmental cost of cryptocurrency mining - if power is provided by cleaner technology, cryptocurrency mining's carbon footprint is bound to be reduced, in turn increasing attractiveness for environmentally-conscious businesses. Elon Musk, for one, made waves in both news outlets and cryptocurrency markets (and value) when he announced the decision for Tesla to cancel acceptance of Bitcoin as payment for its vehicles, citing environmental concerns regarding power sources keeping Bitcoin's blockchain secure. Another company, Energy Harbor Corp, announced a five-year collaboration with Standard Power to power its Bitcoin blockchain mining center in Coshocton, Ohio, starting December this year.
101 Comments on Crypto Goes Nuclear: Pennsylvania and Ohio to be Home to Nuclear-Powered Cryptomining
It means reworking the algorithms to consume less power. (99% less power)
I agree that it is here to stay , and that it is as big as nuclear power and so on. That is all true and clear.
But it seams you are missing the point when believing that one (or more) nuclear power plants will make ALL mining turn green.
Crypto is also funding Americas biggest solar project right now.Most of these projects split the output between mining and general electrical business. Maybe even less than that here.
Nuclear plant not sure that would happen EPA wouldn't sit still for that to happen anytime soon.
On the other, it seems like a waste, considering they could also be putting that same energy reserves into battery storage systems for the rare freak storm, or long-term energy contracts with local charging stations or hydrogen production stations (both would sell too, just not as instantly as mined coin) guaranteeing power (or fuel) even in brownout scenarios. It could also go into increasing the number of homes powered by "clean" energy, although that one is more an issue with the power distributors (the middlemen doing the last-mile hook-ups and connections, if they aren't a power producer) buying the cheapest power contracts to sell at mark-up.
Maybe a combination of the two could be agreeable? Spare excess electricity to mining to build up some cash reserves for operational and maintenance costs, and also to emergency reserve systems such as battery power plants or dedicated charging facilities. Granted, that seems more altruistic than what would really happen.
The mining site will use air for cooling
These things are subsidized by everyone on the planet, no matter your are a taxpayer or not
Onsite power, is expected to be 1GW, leaving 1GW to distribute into the local power grid. On the other hand, 1GW onsite power could mean they are running at 50% load.
Nuclear power plants typically operate at full rated power to stay as profitable as possible. This means that all energy produced by the plant is absorbed by grid load. Any additional demand from the grid is taken up by other power producers, in this case, natural gas power plants. Therefore, this installation will be just as polluting as any other which draws 300 MW.
Source: I am an electrical engineer who works on an electric transmission grid.
When and where in the US was the last nuclear power plant built ?
lmgtfy.app/?q=last+nuclear+power+plant+built+in+usa
I see nothing could possibly go wrong. KappaYes, nothing better to forcefully sell the excess electricity to the grid, i.e. poor Muricans, North or South.99% percent less power required? That's one helluva algo to run on a generic CPU/GPU, i.e. non-ASIC!They are chokning my reactor!Probably even worse.The grid controller from Kyev? End of the month and the productivity quotas?
Indeed I was thinking the last nuclear plant was built in Texas along gulf coast 30 or so years ago lol
I'll be laughing when we're all being sold and bought in the blockchain.I agree with you. I never wrote that ALL mining would turn green from this.
But it IS relatively easy for crypto to turn green. Algorand, for example, is even carbon negative.
And it is good to see countries other than China getting involved, it'll help with stability.
I guess none of that compares to a nuke plant an nuclear waste to make imaginary stuff to try to real money.
What a sad state of affairs.
Maybe try real mining, like gold, the traditional way to get money..........