The energy consumption of the Bitcoin network is lower than that of Google, YouTube, and Facebook. The analyst believes that the media are giving sensationalistic reports due to their ignorance about Bitcoin.
Financial analyst and strategist Lyn Alden once again dealt with criticism against Bitcoin. She presented a report in which she estimated that cryptocurrency mining uses less than 0.1% of global energy.
The electrical engineer believes that this figure indicates that the energy expenditure of Bitcoin is not as high as people think. For that reason, mining the pioneering cryptocurrency would pose no global problem.
She noted that the blockchain’s design prevents it from using more power than the advantage it gives to its many users.
The Mining of Precious Metals Consumes Twice the Energy of Bitcoin
Alden determined the percentage of energy expenditure of the Bitcoin network based on data from the University of Cambridge. The researchers calculate the maximum annualized rate of Bitcoin spending at less than 95 TW/h, which is consistent with current data.
The University of Cambridge even noted that Bitcoin only accounted for 0.27% of the planet’s electricity consumption in 2019. Galaxy Digital stated that banks and gold production systems consume twice as much energy as Bitcoin.
Regardless of the electricity consumption level of Bitcoin, Alden considers it a necessary expense resulting in greater security. The more energy the blockchain uses, the more secure it will be against most attacks.
The Benefits of Bitcoin Outweigh the Cost of Energy
Regarding the security the network gains due to its energy consumption, Alden also evaluated the incidences of this expense. She did so based on the growth of Bitcoin and the benefits its use would bring in the longer term.
She thinks that energy consumption would only reach a few tenths above 1% of global use if the network exceeded 100 million users. On the contrary, if the grid did not grow much compared to current levels, its energy use would stagnate and decline to almost 0%.
Therefore, Alden believes that Bitcoin’s energy consumption will never exceed its long-term advantage. Besides, she mentioned the comparison according to which Bitcoin uses more energy than some countries.
Alden said that Google, YouTube, Netflix, Facebook, Amazon, Christmas lights, household dryers, private jets, and the zinc industry, among others, do so as well.
Sensationalist Campaign Due to Ignorance about Bitcoin
The analyst refuted the body of opinion holding that Bitcoin uses too much energy, does not use it efficiently, or could cause a climate disaster.
According to Alden, all these criticisms are part of a sensationalist media campaign taking advantage of the ignorance about Bitcoin. She mentioned cases of apocalyptic news predicting that the planet’s energy will run out due to the power consumption of Bitcoin.
The financial strategist added that the media continue to publish such miscalculations even though Bitcoin’s energy use is almost irrelevant globally. She stated that she does not understand how journalists can make such big mistakes.
Alden said it usually comes down to people not understanding the growth process that the network undergoes. Besides, she stressed that it is easier to sensationalize things for page views or political gains.
By Alexander Salazar
