Kazakhstan’s government is discussing a plan to build a nuclear power plant, which might boost the country’s Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto mining industries in the long run.
According to the Russian news agency Vedomosti, Kazakhstan’s Minister of Energy, Magzum Mirzagaliyev, informed reporters that two places are being considered as “possible sites” for a new nuclear power plant: Ulken, a town in the Alma-Ata region, and Kurchatov, a city in eastern Kazakhstan.
Grid expansion plans
Although the minister did not specifically reference Bitcoin and crypto mining, his colleagues have done so in the past when discussing grid expansion in the wake of power outages caused by mining.
The government sees this industry as a growth driver, but given that the national grid is still 70% reliant on coal-fired power plants, nuclear expansion may be the only option.
This winter has put a huge demand on the grid, resulting in power disruptions for many miners — and millions of dollars in losses for both industrial and licensed token miners as well as the national economy. Some miner centers have been without electricity for up to a month.
Since September’s crackdown, an estimated 88,000 mining rigs have been smuggled across the border from China, increasing electricity demand in many places, based on multiple sources.
Nuclear power would fulfill electrical needs
The proposed nuclear power station “would be able to fulfill the country’s future electrical needs,” per the energy minister, although construction might take up to 10 years.
Not only in Central Asia, but also in the United States and Europe, the cooperation between mining and nuclear energy providers is deepening.
In the United States, a handful of miners have already begun getting power from nuclear reactors, while in Ukraine, the national nuclear energy supplier has been collaborating with miners at Europe’s largest nuclear plants in an attempt to mitigate financial losses.
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