Russia's Crypto Miners Consume More Energy Than Farmers, Says Minister

Russia's cryptocurrency mining businesses consume more energy than the local agriculture industry, a minister said.

Deputy Industry Minister Vasily Shpak said that the local cryptocurrency enterprises consume more than 2% of the total electricity volume in the nation.

In a speech on May 27, Shpak pointed out that domestic cryptocurrency mining falls into the economy’s “gray zone” since it is not taxed and not regulated by the authorities.

“Here, our position is completely unambiguous: mining must be recognized, regulated, and built into an industrial activity," Shpak said.

“Do you know how much mining accounts for in the overall map of electricity generation in our country? And I’ll tell you: more than 2%. This is more than the cost of electricity for agriculture,” Shpak added.

It should be noted that Russia is a leading name on the cryptocurrency mining map. A study conducted by the Cambridge Center for Alternative Finance estimated that the country accounts for over 11% of the global hash rate.

The cryptocurrency mining sector has a good chance to remain a crucial part of Russia’s ecosystem since President Vladimir Putin is also supposedly in favour of it.

“Although, of course, we also have certain competitive advantages here, especially in the so-called mining. I mean the surplus of electricity and the well-trained personnel available in the country," Putin has said.