on the crypto
Iran has decided to suspend the supply of electricity to the facilities dedicated to mining of cryptocurrencies, at least until new energy tariffs are approved.
This was stated by the local press agency Iran Daily in a note the June 24 was published. A measure that would be due in particular to the soaring consumption on a monthly basis, with a growth of the 7% revealed by a representative of the Iranian Ministry of Energy, Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi. An increase that experts have not hesitated to attribute to the increasingly intense mining activity that is taking place in the Middle Eastern country, to which the government now seems intent on sheltering.
Iran's mining boom
It should also be stressed that the Iranian government has long since adopted a openness orientation towards digital assets, witnessed by the decision to favor mining, taken in September of the 2018. A decision from which the country has benefited if we consider that Tehran pays on an annual basis about 1 billion dollars in subsidies in order to fill the gap between the real costs of electricity and that charged to consumers. A discount they were able to take advantage of in particular the miners of cryptocurrency, with a significant increase in activity within national borders.
Now, however, the situation could change radically, as the government is examining the possibility of calculating the mining bills applying the rates reserved for those who export energy. An orientation which the 9 June past had already been made explicit by the Deputy Minister of Energy, which could soon turn into reality.
Mining concerns
Tehran's decision does not surprise the most attentive observers, who have long been ready to underline that this is an activity to be carefully monitored. Based on a report prepared by PowerCompare, a British platform that deals with comparing energy tariffs, the average amount of electricity that was used during the 2017 in order to undermine Bitcoin was higher than the average annual energy consumption of well 159 nations. It is indeed 30,14 terawattora (TWh), well 9 more than those that make up Ireland's average annual energy consumption. Numbers that start to cause a certain fear, considered as a good computer was sufficient to undermine BTC a few years ago now you need to use thousands of machines in so-called server farms.
The Iranian cryptocurrency
However, it should be considered as for Iran that mining can be considered a problem at least for now secondary and not such as to influence the decision taken by the authorities for the launch of a digital uniform which would be entrusted with the task of circumventing the US embargo activated after Washington's decision to withdraw from the nuclear deal, paving the way for a new period of instability.
A decision which followed the path taken by Venezuela with its Petro, but founded on one private blockchain which will be managed by the central bank of Tehran, as a result of which typical mining operations will not be required.
