Iceland Becomes World’s Largest Hash Rate Producer Per Capita

• Iceland has become the world’s largest hash rate producer per capita.
• Environmental concerns are making Iceland’s government turn BTC miners away.
• The country is powered by renewable energy, with National Iceland electrical company Landsvirkjun reducing the amount of power it will provide to certain industries, such as Bitcoin mining.

Iceland Becomes World’s Largest Hash Rate Producer Per Capita

Bitcoin [BTC] mining researcher Jaran Mellerud published a report on the state of Bitcoin mining in Iceland in February 2021. He noted that the European country is now the world’s largest hash rate producer per capita, according to Hashrate Index.

Vast Amounts of Stranded Hydro and Geothermal Energy

Iceland has vast amounts of stranded hydro and geothermal energy which makes it one of Europe’s last Bitcoin mining havens. It is estimated that around 120 megawatts of electricity is consumed by the country’s BTC mining industry globally, equating to 1.3% hash rate – a relatively small number considering its population size (just over 370,000 people).

Environmental Concerns Lead to Reduction in Power Allocations

Despite being an ideal location for Bitcoin miners due to its abundance of renewable energy sources, obtaining energy allocations for new data centers is becoming increasingly difficult in Iceland due to environmental concerns. In December 2021, National Iceland electrical company Landsvirkjun reduced the amount of power it will provide to certain industries including Bitcoin mining. This was attributed to a problem at a power station, low hydro-reservoir levels and accessing energy from an external supplier.

Companies Relocating Due To Renewable Power Sources

United Kingdom-based mining group Cloud Hashing relocated 100 miners to Iceland in 2013 due to its renewable sources of power generation capabilities. Austrian company HydroMiner GmbH also raised approximately $2.8 million in its initial coin offering in November 2017 specifically for installing mining rigs directly at Icelandic power plants.

Network Hash Rate Reaches All-Time High

The network hash rate reached an all-time high this week – 318 exahashes per second (EH/s) – and currently sits just below those levels having risen by 25% since January 2021.