Cryptocurrency mining firm Argo Blockchain has continued its move toward environmentally-friendly bitcoin mining by purchasing two hydroelectric-powered data centers in Quebec, Canada, according to a press release on the London Stock Exchange, on which Argo is listed.
“Argo’s purchase of data [centers] in Canada represents another milestone for the Company as we seek to take greater control over our mining production and mining cost base, while also laying solid foundations for long-term growth,” shared Argo’s CEO Peter Wall in the release.
The two data centers amount to 20 megawatts of power capacity, currently housing a significant portion of Argo’s bitcoin mining equipment. In addition, the acquisition seeks to provide the company with long-term stability by increasing its control over the facilities which house its mining machines.
“The data [centers] are powered almost entirely by electricity generated from hydro power, which is a key part of [Argo’s] green mining vision,” per the release.
Argo Blockchain is taking action to shift its bitcoin mining operations to “green” alternatives and solutions on a number of fronts. With a focus on renewable energy sources, the company purchased a 320-acre plot in Texas last month, which gives it access to 800 megawatts of electrical power. Wall shared at the time that it chose that site in particular because it offers “some of the lowest electricity rates in the world and the majority is from renewable sources, namely wind and solar.”
The low-cost aspect is essential because bitcoin mining is a free market, meaning miners will always gravitate toward the cheapest energy sources available. In this case, Texas resolving to provide renewable energy sources for little cost is what attracted and allowed Argo Blockchain to apply its “green mining vision.”
With the correct incentives, nation-states can proactively empower bitcoin mining pools to shift even more to energy sources that are less detrimental to our planet, accelerating the entire world’s energy transition to renewables with clean energy production and storage.