Bitcoin miners eye N-power as environmental criticism mounts

What is the news?

Amid a heated debate over Bitcoin’s environmental impact, two companies say they have an answer on mitigating some of the negative effects: Nuclear energy.

Two private companies are partnering to use advanced fission to the energy-intensive process of minting new coins.

Why such a move?

It’s an effort, the companies say, to

i). reduce fossil-fuel emissions from Bitcoin mining and;

ii). diversify energy sources used by the miners

How is Crypto-mining related to energy use?

Crypto miners use vast sums of computing power and energy to verify transactions on the blockchain.

Their energy use is comparable to that of many developed countries and rivals the emissions from major fossil-fuel users and producers such as airlines and oil-services firms, according to an analysis by Bank of America Corporation.

Though some others dispute this finding, arguing it’s no worse than the carbon footprint of cars, power plants and factories.

How do companies intend to use nuclear fission?

Companies are developing smaller reactors that they say would be faster and cheaper to build than conventional nuclear plants. Such reactors could be small and would generate a lot of power without harmful emissions.

Some companies are offering fission-as-a-service, meaning it sells power and heat in a way that will make it easier for customers to be able to buy.

Source: This post is based on the article “Bitcoin miners eye N-power as environmental criticism mounts” published in Business Standard on 26th Sep 2021.