Also, because these rigs were apparently using stolen electricity, chances are that the only reason it was profitable for the owners to operate was that they we

Also, because these rigs were apparently using stolen electricity, chances are that the only reason it was profitable for the owners to operate was that they weren't paying market rates for electricity. So there's no way to legalize the operation and make it profitable (either because local electricity costs are higher than world average, or because these particular miners were inefficient, or whatever).