Layer1 Stabilizes Texas Grids With 'Bitcoin Batteries'

U.S.-based Bitcoin (BTC) mining datacenter operator Layer1 Technologies has deployed its mining containers as “Bitcoin Batteries” comprising large-scale energy storage systems.

Layer1 asserts that its bitcoin batteries will help stabilize Texas’ seasonally volatile energy market by releasing electricity to meet demand.

“By centralizing the consumption and release of multiple megawatts per data center container, Layer1’s Bitcoin Batteries stabilize national and local energy grids that frequently suffer from the demand shacks,” the firm stated.

Bitcoin Batteries to stabilize electricity market

With the installation of the Bitcoin Batteries, Layer1 co-founder and CEO Alexander Liegl claims the mining firm is “the first company in the global Bitcoin mining industry that can curtail large amounts of energy consumption during times of market need and release it to the grid at the push of a button.”

We are the first company to perfectly align the economic incentives of large-scale energy consumption for high-performance computing, such as Bitcoin mining or cloud computing, and the need for grid stabilization by energy market regulators.

The firm plans to deploy energy in response to local spikes in consumer demand, such as during heat waves — where amplified use of air conditioning may threaten blackouts.

Layer1 to repatriate 30% of global hashpower

In February, Layer1 Technologies outlined an ambitious plan to repatriate 30% of Bitcoin’s total hashrate back to the United States by the end of next year.

Layer1 plans to comprise the industry’s first fully vertically integrated miner — boasting wholly owned electricity creation, proprietary ASIC chips, and mining containers featuring a patent-pending liquid immersion cooling system that reduces electricity expenditure by 75%.

Large Chinese miners want to operate in US

Speaking to Cointelegraph, Adam Traidman, the head of Ripple SBI Asia, attesting to already seeing a “massive” shift from east to west in the mining sector.

Traidman predicted a “huge influx” of “wealthy Chinese miners [moving] into the United States” over the next three years, highlighting that Texas offers electricity prices often significantly lower than the $0.03 to $0.05 per kilowatt-hour that miners pay in China.

However, Traidman noted that President Trump’s tariffs against China are “really hurting things,” adding: “As soon as those are lifted, it’ll be a huge acceleration.”