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Crypto mining injects virtually zero dollars into the local community. If this passes, and miners move to, say, Mexico, what benefit does that grant Mexico? The
by ProjectArcturis 3y ago
Crypto mining injects virtually zero dollars into the local community. If this passes, and miners move to, say, Mexico, what benefit does that grant Mexico? They'll have higher local electric costs. The bitcoins will be sold internationally and the owners will keep the money wherever they live.
- perihelions 3y agoBuying electricity (wasteful as this use is) is an injection of cash into the local economy.
- audunw 3y agoThat’s not a given. If the local power plant is owned by a foreign investor, and there isn’t a reasonable tax on the electricity, there’s very little money going into the local economy. Both the mining itself, and many forms of electricity (especially the cheaper kinds), do not require a lot of labour.
- swatcoder 3y agoNo. Margins on power delivery are marginal. Very little of the money paid for power stays local. The bulk of the money goes to supply and transportation, which is usually a foreign state or a trans-national entity of some kind, far far from the point of consumption. Mexico (in this example) could try to siphon off money through a tax or regularion or by investing capital in local supply, but the OP believes taxes/regularions are just a way to foreclose on any opportunity because the miners will just go elsewhere, and investing capital in growing local supply means redirecting it from somewhere else (assuming you can even make local supply price competitive without subsidies). Some spending can stay local and benefit local economies. Spending on power is generally not one of those.
- MichaelMug 3y agoDo you have a reputable source on that?
- latchkey 3y agoI was at a large bitcoin mining farm today and talked to them about that. Their substation feeds the local community and they paid for upgrades to it so that the local community could have a more reliable source of power. Their funds also go towards maintaining all the lines that feed the community too. They employ about a dozen people from the area. We ate lunch at a local restaurant. Bought groceries from the local grocery store. Staying in a local airbnb. Does this count as reputable?
- yosame 3y agoSince it's a personal anecdote from a biased source, I'd say it's probably not reputable.
- latchkey 3y agoI this case, I find that response weird because I'm being factual about spending money in a local community that surrounds a large bitcoin mining operation. The bar for proof here is pretty low, it isn't like I am claiming to prove that the MRNA vaccine works or not. Do you need to see my receipts for purchases at the local stores? My airbnb account?
- seanmcdirmid 3y agoMuch of the developing world operate their grids at a loss (so basically subsidized). Parts of China had to ban bitcoin mining because miners were using a lot of underpriced electricity to mine bitcoin to noticeable effect.