Kazakhstan is cracking down on illegal crypto miners. The energy authority reported it has traced and disconnected 13 crypto mining farms in the country. These crypto miners operated without proper authorization.
The consumption power of these crypto miners amassed to 202 megawatts.
The Kazakhstan President, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev instructed the Financial Monitoring Agency to identify all crypto miners in the country and report back by 15 Match.
He added that the crypto mining industry in the country is neither creating 'mass jobs' nor products. Bitcoin miners receive tariffs that are much lower than the rest of the population. Tax is not paid on imported equipment.
Additionally, the President asked for a tax increase on crypto mining. The current tariff of 1 Kazakhstani Tenge (that is currently worth $.0023) per kilowatt is expected to increase. Local reports suggest the price per kilowatt may increase to 5 tenge, which is $0.012.
Measures to regulate the crypto mining are expected to be introduced by 1 April 2022.
Crypto Mining Companies Are Relocating
More than 6 companies are already planning to leave Kazakhstan due to power outages. BitFuFu, which moved 80,000 mining machinery from China to Kazakhstan in 2021, is relocating to the United States.
"To ensure the safety and sustainable operation of your server, BitFuFu had decided to relocate all cloud hosting servers from Kazakhstan to North America after careful studies in Dec. Now your cloud hosting servers have restarted mining in North America mining farms today."
Bagdat Musin, Kazakhstan’s Minister of Digital Development said that unauthorized miners consume over 1 gigawatt.
Bitcoin miners are considering relocating to the United States or Russia. Despite Russia's central bank view to ban cryptocurrencies the Government is on its way forward to regulate both cryptocurrencies and crypto mining.
The current tension between Russia and Ukraine may escalate quickly. In an event of direct sanctions on Russia, crypto miners may find themselves looking for a new home.
