Texas crypto miner operator Layer1 Technologies has been able to sell back its power supply for 8X the price. According to a Sept. 1 Bloomberg report, Layer1 reported nearly 700% profits from selling excess electricity from its 'Bitcoin Batteries' - large-scale energy storage systems used on the firm’s crypto farms in Texas. When the power demand for air conditioning is highest in Texas — where it’s regularly above 37 degrees Celsius (100 in Fahrenheit) in the summer — Layer1 reduces or stops crypto mining as needed to send any unused power back onto the grid during the day. The excess …

Bulgarian authorities have arrested two men for illegally siphoning off more than $1.5 million in electricity to operate two crypto mining farms. According to an Aug. 14 report from Bulgaria Today, two men have been detained in connection with the theft of $1.5 million in electricity used for mining Bitcoin (BTC) in the small town of Kyustendil. Representatives from the Oblast Directorate of the Ministry of Interior Affairs (ODMVR) and CEZ Electro Bulgaria spoke at a news conference, stating that the two Bulgarian nationals from Sofia, aged 31 and 38, were caught funneling power to their two illegal crypto mining …

This week’s headlines from Japan included Coincheck readying its digital shareholder meeting solution, GMO Coin announcing negative leverage trading fees, Decurret testing transactions with a power company, Japanese authorities proposing tax changes, and Japanese finance company FISCO developing apps for shareholder voting and staking. Check out some of this week’s crypto and blockchain headlines, originally reported by Cointelegraph Japan. Coincheck setting up for digital shareholder service As Tokyo-based crypto exchange Coincheck readies its new digital meeting avenue, the exchange's co-founder expressed confidence in the project. Known as Sharely, unveiled in June 2020, the digital shareholder gathering solution allows for participant …

Energy and transportation startup EVShare is launching a community energy-sharing pilot in Los Angeles. The initiative, which received $20 million in partner funding and a $9 million grant from the California Energy Commission, is set to test the application of blockchain technology in managing a localized renewable energy grid. The system relies on connecting local solar energy systems with electricity-based transportation to create an organic energy market. The goal is to connect 50 households to a localized grid used to provide energy for a pool of shared electric vans. A blockchain system based on the RSK Bitcoin sidechain and the …

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc., or Tepco, partnered with major Japanese trading company Itochu Corporation and started building a blockchain-based system to trade surplus electricity. According to Nikkei on June 18, the new system will be available to households in Japan within three years. The firms plan to collaborate with local governments and start a proof-of-concept by March 2021. If successful, it will be the first instance of surplus electricity trading between households in Japan. Tepco and Itochu will give households AI-based storage batteries and solar panels for free. The AI technology controls the amount of generated and consumed …

Australian firm Power Ledger announced a partnership with Thai Digital Energy Development (TDED) on May 25 to create a blockchain-based digital energy platform in the country. The platform will enable environmental commodity and peer-to-peer (P2P) energy trading, in order to accelerate adoption of renewable energy sources. Thailand aims to generate 25% of its electricity from renewables by the year 2037. Public/private partnership to promote green energy use Power Ledger’s blockchain-based transactive energy solutions include peer-to-peer energy trading and virtual power plants, along with trading in carbon credits and renewable energy certificates (REC). TDED is a joint public/private sector venture between …

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 …

A report compiled by non-profit research institute, dGen, has found that European crypto miners believe that the region’s higher electricity prices when compared to China and Russia are offset by political stability, robust regulation, and strong protections. The study also found that many miners based in Europe feel prepared for the Bitcoin (BTC) block reward halving, emphasizing that higher electricity prices have forced many miners to invest in highly efficient technologies. Robust regulation offsets expensive electricity in Europe F2Pool’s global business director, Thomas Heller, stated that “[h]igher electricity prices are offset by smoother business, better regulation, and more protection,” adding …

As the benchmark oil futures contract in the United States fell into negative territory this week for the first time in history, blockchain devs have been focusing on greener, sustainable energy projects. Australian blockchain firm Power Ledger has just signed a deal with the largest medium-density residential developer in Perth to roll out its blockchain-based solar energy trading platform for local residents over the next three years. On April 22, Power Ledger and developer Nicheliving revealed that the platform will initially roll out in 62 apartments in Nicheliving’s flagship SkyHomes development in Inglewood, followed by 10 further developments in the …

A Bitcoin-mining power plant in upstate New York has sold 106 petahash of its computing power to an undisclosed buyer using a “hashpower contract” settled in Bitcoin (BTC). The contract — brokered by BitOoda Digital — first launched in January with the aim of providing institutional investors to purchase large blocks of Bitcoin hashpower in over-the-counter markets. On April 10, the chief financial officer of Greenidge Generation claimed that the new instrument provides: “The same kind of time-tested hedging capabilities seen in traditional commodity markets [...] bring[ing] the benefits of clean and energy-efficient bitcoin mining from Greenidge to institutional investors …

The Missoula County Board of Commissioners in Montana, United States, has extended its green regulations for cryptocurrency miners, which are designed to control the energy consumption of the industry in the county. The regulations, which require crypto miners to set up their operations only in light industrial and heavy industrial districts, and only after they have been reviewed and approved as a conditional use, are now extended until April 3, 2021. County authorities initially adopted the rules a year ago, with a view “to protect the public health, safety, morals, and general welfare of county residents.” For the sake of …

A Washington court has ruled against one individual and five companies that sued the Grant County Public Utility District No.2 for suddenly creating a new electricity pricing schedule for power consumed by “emerging industries” in December 2018. On March 12, Judge Rosanna Peterson of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington found that the plaintiffs were unable to demonstrate that the country violated federal electricity laws. Cryptocurrency mining nearly tripled the annual electricity demand in Grant County The miners first began operating in the county during 2017 — with the municipality then-offering among the cheapest electricity available …