Bitcoin mining operations in Chelan County, Washington, are about to be charge more for the electricity they use.

According to NewsRadio 560 KPQ, County Public Utility District (PUD) commissioners approved the move this week, which will increase energy costs for Bitcoin mining by about 29%.

“What we did as a commission, and what we did as a utility was industry-leading, to create a new rate for this type of demand,” Commissioner Garry Arseneault told NewsRadio 560 KPQ.

The new tariff should have come into effect early this year, however, possibly due to all the new rules and regulations being implemented in the country, it was delayed until June.

For the past four years, Chelan County’s PUD has taken steps to stop illegal cryptocurrency mining as, initially, the city was at the forefront of this type of activity. However, later it became a problem for the county due to the amount of electricity needed by the miners. This led the PUD to carry out several outages in order to protect equipment.

Arseneault clarified that Chelan county is not against mining or cryptocurrencies. Still, the country cannot tolerate underground miners operating illegally, utilizing the county’s energy deliberately and without paying the appropriate fee for it, he said.

Representations of virtual currency Bitcoin are placed on U.S. Dollar banknotes in this illustration taken May 26, 2020.
Representations of virtual currency Bitcoin are placed on U.S. Dollar banknotes in this illustration taken May 26, 2020. Reuters / Dado Ruvic
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