The Irkutsk authorities have come out in support of creating mining machines for their own cryptocurrency generation
Mining is necessary for cryptocurrency generation, according to Irkutsk Governor Constantine Zaitsev. He said this at a round table during the "Russian Energy Week" in Moscow.
"Mining must exist as creating its own generation. Here colleagues say: mining is the future. If it's true, then it shouldn't be difficult for miners with long investments," Zaitsev said at the round table.
According to his opinion, it would be simpler to build a generation if Irkutsk Province had a network of natural gas from Kovykta Station, which would have made it easier for miners.
The head of the regional government also noted that in the wake of explosive growth in the volume of mining in Irkutsk Province since 2022, electricity consumption has risen, and the southern region has become an energy deficit region. Currently, mining consumes about 1 GWt of electricity per year. According to Zaitsev, the installed electricity capacity at the Irkutsk Thermal Power Plant is 760 MW.
Zaitsev reminded that, in August, the authorities of Irkutsk Province had asked the federal government to determine the circumstances and procedure for imposing a ban on mining in the Irkutsk-Chukotka Energy Region (the south of Irkutsk Province), considering the possible impact on the local production of cryptocurrencies and the distribution of networks in cities and villages.
Previously, it was reported that low energy tariffs, including for residential use, made Irkutsk Province a center of cryptocurrency mining in Russia. The authorities say that energy consumption is being calculated unreasonably for mining purposes. However, the energy industry insists that the increase in demand for electricity in the region is due to the growth of mining, and "white" miners, i.e., the general population, the extraction of cryptocurrency, and the distribution of networks in cities and villages, are becoming increasingly involved in this area.
In the current situation, the cost of 1 kWh of electricity in Irkutsk Province within the first (base) range (electricity consumption - up to 25 thousand kWh per month) is 1.58 rubles for the city's residential population and 1.106 rubles for rural areas.