Key takeaways:
- Kazakhstan’s Minister claims that electricity would not be restricted to legal crypto miners.
- According to Kazakhstan Minister of Energy Magzum Mirzagaliyev, legal crypto mining will not encounter difficulties or be removed from the national grid if they do not compromise the country’s energy security.
- He claims that entrepreneurs involved in digital mining should not be treated differently than other firms because they are full-fledged enterprises themselves.
- Kazakhstan is the second-largest producer of cryptocurrency, accounting for 18.1 percent of the worldwide market.
Following an inflow of miners this year, electricity has been in short supply in Kazakhstan, heavily reliant on fossil fuels. Since September, the national grid operator KEGOC has been restricting electricity to miners. In addition, the government has proposed a measure that would limit the amount of power delivered to new mines via the national grid to 100 megawatts.
On Nov. 10, Energy Minister Magzum Mirzagaliyev gathered with representatives of the National Association of Blockchain and Data Center Industry, the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry, and KEGOC to discuss how the Kazakh Ministry of Energy can work with lawful miners to ensure an uninterrupted supply of energy.
As long as legal crypto mining does not jeopardize the country’s energy security, they will not face limitations or be pulled from the national grid, as per the ministry press release on Wednesday.
Both parties agreed to put continuous power supply for the people and social facilities first, speed up the passage of a legislative act governing the electrical balancing market, and encourage investments in renewable energy projects.
Companies involved in digital mining, according to Mirzagaliyev, should not be treated differently than other firms because they are full-fledged enterprises themselves. However, given the blockchain industry’s enormous potential, it’s critical to pool resources for its growth. “I support dialogue. Therefore, I urge white miners to jointly search for solutions to ensure the reliability of the unified electric power system,” Mirzagaliyev stated.
“The so-called “grey” miners are those who hide the electricity consumption of digital mining behind other activities,” said Mirzagaliyev, calling on lawful miners to work together to find “solutions to ensure the reliability of the unified electric power system.”
These farms are frequently positioned in areas where energy consumption growth is unexpected, such as the South Kazakhstan Region.
The Minister recommended revisions to regulatory, legislative acts that would establish rules and criteria for companies engaged in digital mining. As a result of these modifications, it will be possible to detect and respond to grey miners.
The energy and digital development ministries, as well as the Kazakhstan Association of Blockchain Technologies and the Association of Blockchain and Data Center and Technology Industry, as well as KEGOC, signed a protocol to avoid electricity rationing, develop demand for legislative changes to balance the energy market and encourage investment for renewable energy projects at the meeting.
Following China’s crackdown on cryptocurrency in May, Kazakhstan has surpassed the United States as the world’s second-largest bitcoin miner. According to the government, the crypto business is predicted to generate 500 billion tenges (US$1.16 billion) in the next five years.
