“The China ban that resulted in the de-powering of mining infrastructure was a trillion-dollar gift to the US,” said Core Scientific co-founder Darin Feinstein.

Bitcoin mining, in particular, has earned a reputation for its large carbon footprint driven by the energy demands of the mining rigs. When China was home to the majority of bitcoin miners, the total energy derived from sustainable sources was only 37% for the industry; now, with miners established in the US and Canada, 59% of the industry has sustainable energy.

“I don’t know of any other industry that is upgrading its energy mix so quickly,” said Charlie Schumacher, Marathon’s vice president of corporate communications.

Mining companies are not only settling in areas that offer easy access to renewable energy sources, such as Texas, which offers wind and solar power, but they are also building relationships with their local grid power companies.

“Our industry can really release energy utilization to the grid in quite a legitimate, effective and unique way; it’s almost like we’re acting like a drum kit,” said Mike Levitt, CEO of Scientific Nucleus.

Many major bitcoin operations have agreements with the operators of the networks they are on to shut down operations during peak hours of network demand. In turn, by being a flexible charging provider and returning power to the grid when you need it most by putting operations into sleep mode, bitcoin miners in Texas get discounts while avoiding the need for power plants. peak. These plants are often the oldest, dirtiest and most expensive to operate, Levitt explained.

Major miners like Argo Blockchain have set up plants in Texas and are generating some of their own renewable energy from solar panels and wind turbines, reports the New York Times. Eventually, Peter Wall, CEO of Argo, hopes to be able to make deals with local renewable energy companies to get most of Argo’s power from renewable sources.

“A lot of those renewable energy producers are still a bit skeptical of cryptocurrencies,” Wall said. “Crypto miners don’t have the credit profiles to sign 10 or 15 year deals.”

For now, the newness of the crypto industry remains a barrier, though there is hope that as mining companies become established over time, they may also help drive the need for more renewable energy companies to come online. around.

For investors who want to access the growing crypto space with a diversified exposure, the Amplify transformational data sharing exchange traded fund (BLOCK) can be a great solution.

BLOCK currently has $1 billion in AUMactively manages and invests in companies directly involved in the development and use of blockchain technology. BLOCK it was also the first blockchain exchange traded fund approved by the SECOND and released in 2018.

The fund invests in associated companies or that invest directly in companies that use and develop blockchain technologies. However, the fund does not directly invest in blockchain technology or cryptocurrencies.

BLOCK spreads its holdings across the size spectrum, investing in all market capitalizations. At the end of December, the top allocations within the blockchain industry included transactions at 38.0%, crypto miners at 23.0%, and ventures at 11%. BLOCK invests across the entire blockchain landscape, in miners, exchanges, and developers.

Major blockchain miners like Marathon, Argo, Riot Blockchain, Hive Blockchain and more are included in the pool.

BLOCK it has an expense ratio of 0.71% and currently has 46 holdings.

For more news, information and strategy, visit the crypto channel.