As of the first quarter, more than half of Bitcoin (BTC) mining consumption accounts for sustainable energy, according to the Cambridge Center for Alternative Finance’s digital mining report.
Despite rising energy consumption, the industry’s reliance on sustainable energy has increased, and operational metrics show a drive towards long-term resilience through diversification and innovation.
Bitcoin mining’s estimated annual electricity consumption increased to 138 terawatt hours (TWH), an increase of 17% from the previous year. Greenhouse gas emissions related to mining reached 39.8 million tonnes of CO2E, accounting for 0.08% of global emissions.
Natural gas remained the largest monoenergy source of energy at 38.2%, while sustainable energy sources such as hydroelectric power and wind accounted for 52.4% of the total electricity mixture.
North American domination
The US continued to dominate the global mining environment, with 75.4% of the reported Bitcoin hashrates from the country, and Canada chased 7.1%.
Although North America’s position remains dominant, new mining activities have been identified in South America and the Middle East.
The mining hardware market exhibits high concentration levels, with Bitmain holding a market share of 82%, holding the top three manufacturers Bitmain, Microbut and Canaan, collectively controlling more than 99% of the market.
Industry-wide ASIC efficiency increased to 28.2 Joules per Terrahash, reflecting a 24% increase in efficiency compared to the previous year.
E-Waste was expected to remain relatively contained, with 86.9% of the decommissioned mining hardware expected to be reused or recycled. Actual e-waste production during the assessed period points to approximately 2.3 kilotonnes.
Tension Minor Economics
Electricity accounted for more than 80% of miners’ operating costs, with a median electricity cost of $45 per megawatt hour, with a total comprehensive operating costs of $55.50 per megawatt hour.
Despite the impactful impact reducing profit margins, the sector has maintained profitability through increased efficiency and power management strategies.
Miners surveyed were identified as primary concerns: energy price volatility and regulatory uncertainty. To mitigate these risks, they adopted business diversification, geographical expansion, and power hedging strategies.
The report cited limited deployment capacity and bottlenecks in the hardware supply chain as key barriers to industrial expansion.
The forecast data suggested that miners remained strong predictive capabilities. The expected median Bitcoin price for 2024 at the end of the year was $80,500 compared to the actual closing price of $93,390.
The median network hashrate forecast was 750 exahashes per second (EH/s) intimately matched the realized hashrate of 796 EH/s.
New revenue streams and environmental initiatives
Traditional minor revenue models, which rely heavily on block subsidies, face increasing pressure in evolving market conditions.
In response, mining companies are exploring sustainable energy initiatives while serving the high-performance computing sector, particularly the workloads of artificial intelligence.
Energy innovation is becoming a focus of core operations, with mining companies increasingly involved in gas flare mitigation projects, developing waste heat recovery solutions and participating in demand response programs to more effectively integrate with the power grid.
Approximately 70.8% of miners surveyed reported active involvement in climate mitigation efforts, reflecting industry-wide pushes to mitigate environmental impacts.
The Cambridge report concluded that Bitcoin’s mining sector is evolving towards a more sustainable and diverse operating model driven by technological, economic and environmental pressures.
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