Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Bitcoin is being mined in El Salvador with green volcanic energy

Bitcoin is being mined in El Salvador with green volcanic energy

Of the 107 megawatts generated by the plant, five are used for the operation and mining of Bitcoin and the rest for the country's power grid.

Despite being a small country, El Salvador is home to 30 volcanoes, among which 20 are thought to be potentially active.

Geothermal energy generated by these volcanoes is a rich source, which is now being harnessed to mine Bitcoin in a new pilot project in the Central American country.

Bitcoin has been an official currency El Salvador since September with mixed reaction from its citizens.

How can you mine Bitcoin using volcanoes?


The city of Berlin, 112 km south of the capital city San Salvador, has a geothermal plant that was built in 1999. The plant is composed of 16 2,000 to 3,000 deep shafts from which steam circulates and makes three turbines function.

The energy generated by those turbines can reach up to 107 megawatts, but only five are used for the operation and mining of Bitcoin. The rest of the energy is used for the country’s grid.

Thanks to this energy source, about 300 computers can work day and night. Bitcoins are created using computers that solve complex mathematical problems and require a large amount of electricity to operate.


"We have a container where there are a series of processors that are currently working," said Gustavo Cuellar, technical manager of the Rio Lempa Hydroelectric Executive Commission (CEL), the state-owned company on which the plant depends.

"Structurally, renewable energy produces more than it sells," Sebastien Gouspillou, head of BigBlock Datacenter, said.

BigBlock Datacenter is a French bitcoin mining company that advised Salvador on the project.

"Mining is a crutch for renewable energy... a real boon" to use surplus electricity, the entrepreneur told AFP. He also pointed out that mining plants using geothermal energy have already been installed in Iceland.

An eco-geo-political innovation


"The mining industry is in a state of flux after China's crackdown in June," say researchers at Britain's Cambridge University in a recent study.

But for the time being "we lack data to establish how the redistribution of mining activity affects the energy mix of the global grid," the researchers note, estimating the energy consumption of miners at 0.4 per cent of global electricity production.

"We are not reducing the energy supply of El Salvador, on the contrary, we are increasing it, and from the amount that we have increased, we have taken these 1.5 megawatts to start this first step with mining,” Daniel Alvarez, president of for the Rio Lempa Hydroelectric Executive Commission (CEL), argued.

Since September 7, El Salvador has been using Bitcoin as an official currency on a par with the US dollar. In an industry that still relies heavily on polluting coal-fired power plants, the government is touting the use of clean energy for local mining.

Since the legalisation of the cryptocurrency in the country, some 3 million of the 6.7 million Salvadorans have downloaded the government-launched Chivo app for Bitcoin transactions, according to official data.

But the policy of 40-year-old president Bukele is also opposed by some Salvadorans who denounce an "authoritarian government" and "bad ideas that harm the economy, like Bitcoin".

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Unelected PM of the UK holds an emergency meeting because a candidate got voted in… which he says is a threat to democracy…
Farmers break through police barriers in Brussels.
Ukraine Arrests Father-Son Duo In Lockbit Cybercrime Bust
US Offers $15 Million For Info On Leaders Of Cybercrime Group Lockbit
Apple warns against drying iPhones with rice
Alexei Navalny: UK sanctions Russian prison chiefs after activist's death
German economy is in 'troubled waters' - ministry
In a recent High Court hearing, the U.S. argued that Julian Assange endangered lives by releasing classified information.
Tucker Carlson says Boris Johnson wants "a million dollars, in Bitcoin or cash, from Tucker Carlson to talk about Ukraine.
Russia is rebuilding capacity to destabilize European countries, new UK report warns
EU Commission wants anti-drone defenses at Brussels HQ
Von der Leyen’s 2nd-term pitch: More military might, less climate talk
EU Investigates TikTok for Child Safety Concerns
EU Launches Probe Into TikTok Over Child Protection Under Digital Content Law
EU and UK Announce Joint Effort on Migration
Ministers Confirm Proposal to Prohibit Mobile Phone Usage in English Schools
Avdiivka - Symbol Of Ukrainian Resistance Now In Control Of Russian Troops
"Historic Step": Zelensky Signs Security Pact With Germany
"Historic Step": Zelensky Signs Security Pact With Germany
Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has died at the Arctic prison colony
Tucker Carlson grocery shopping in Russia. This is so interesting.
France and Germany Struggle to Align on European Defense Strategy
‘A lot higher than we expected’: Russian arms production worries Europe’s war planners
Greece Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage and Adoption Rights
Russia "Very Close" To Creating Cancer Vaccines, Says Vladimir Putin
Hungarian Foreign Minister: Europeans will lose Europe, the Union's policy must change drastically
Microsoft says it caught hackers from China, Russia and Iran using its AI tools
US Rejects Putin's Ceasefire Offer in Ukraine
The Dangers of Wildfire Smoke and Self-Protection Strategies
A Londoner has been arrested for expressing his Christian beliefs.
Chinese Women Favor AI Boyfriends Over Humans
Greece must address role in migrant vessel disaster that killed 600: Amnesty
Google pledges 25 million euros to boost AI skills in Europe
Hungarian President Katalin Novák Steps Down Amid Pardon Controversy
Activist crashes Hillary Clinton's speech, calls her a 'war criminal.'
In El Salvador, the 'Trump of Latin America' stuns the world with a speech slamming woke policing after winning a landslide election
Trudeau reacts to Putin's mention of Canadian Parliament applauding a former Ukrainian Nazi in his interview with Tucker Carlson.
The Spanish police blocked the farmers protest. So the farmers went out and moved the police car out of the way.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy fires top Ukraine army commander
Tucker Carlson's interview with Vladimir Putin raises EU concerns
Finnish Airline, Finnair, is voluntarily weighing passengers to better estimate flight cargo weight
Russia's Economy Expands by 3.6% Due to Increased Military Spending
Ukraine MPs Vote To Permit Use Of Dead Soldiers' Sperm
German Princess Becomes First Aristocrat To Pose Naked On Playboy Cover
UK’s King Charles III diagnosed with cancer
EU's Ursula von der Leyen Confronts Farmer Protests Amid Land Policy Debates
Distinguishing Between Harmful AI Media and Positive AI-Generated Content: A Crucial Challenge for the EU
Tucker Carlson explains why he interviewed Putin
Dutch farmers are still protesting in the Netherlands against the government, following the World Economic Forum's call for 'owning nothing.'
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stands up for European farmers and says, 'Brussels is suffocating European farmers.
×