Hadsel, Norway, residents were relieved when a noisy Bitcoin mining facility was shut down earlier this month.
The small town, with a population of about 8,200, had been dealing with the noise for years, leading to complaints from many locals. Let’s discover more about this important news for Bitcoin mining.
Closure Hits Local Power Provider, Raises Electricity Bills
While most locals welcomed the closure, it also came with a downside. The Bitcoin mining center contributed about 20% of the income for local electricity provider Noranett. And its closure is expected to raise electricity bills for the town.
Noranett’s network manager, Robin Jakobsen, explained that households in Hadsel could see a spike in their annual electricity costs of 2,500 to 3,000 Norwegian krone ($235 to USD 280).
Yet another datapoint showing how Bitcoin mining keeps power prices lower for everyday people.
Brad Jones, the grid operator in Texas said the same thing.
The peer review research says the same thing.
When politicians gaslight Bitcoin, the people suffer. https://t.co/j8ySlP9KnJ
— Daniel Batten (@DSBatten) September 14, 2024
The Hadsel Bitcoin mining center consumes around 80 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity each year. This was similar to the annual consumption of 3,200 households in Hadsel. The situation has led to arguments about the pros and cons of Bitcoin mining facilities.
On the downside, these facilities are major sources of environmental hazards such as noise pollution. However, others argue that Bitcoin miners are major power consumers, meaning they can help keep power prices low.
What’s the way forward?
Mayor Kjell-Børge Freiberg mentioned that the town is looking for new projects to handle the electricity consumption. This would help the town avoid paying more for power. Interestingly, Hadsel is not the first town in Norway to complain about the disruption caused by Bitcoin mining facilities.
An important factor about this site was that it plagued the community with noise.
I don’t know if saving $300/year on power bills is worth bearing with the summing noise of 10,000 #bitcoin mining machines.
I wonder why they just didn’t do hydro cooling.
— Jaran Mellerud 🟧⛏️ (@JMellerud) September 14, 2024
In September 2022, residents of Sortland, another Norwegian town, raised similar concerns about noise from a local Bitcoin mining operation. However, some believe Bitcoin miners are targets of negative media opinions. But it is safe to say that the concerns about crypto mining are global.
Several countries and regions have taken steps to mitigate the noise levels of mining farms. In Arkansas, USA, a bill that limits noise levels for crypto mining farms was recently passed. Other states are looking at similar ways to curb the downsides of these farms.
Disclaimer
The information discussed by Altcoin Buzz is not financial advice. This is for educational, entertainment, and informational purposes only. Any information or strategies are thoughts and opinions relevant to the accepted risk tolerance levels of the writer/reviewers and their risk tolerance may be different than yours. We are not responsible for any losses you may incur due to any investments directly or indirectly related to the information provided. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are high-risk investments so please do your due diligence. Copyright Altcoin Buzz Pte Ltd.
