The Bitcoin hash rate recently fell slightly after the electric operator of Kazakhstan suspended the electricity service. A tense situation with the energy balance in the Asian country forced them to take that measure.

The Bitcoin (BTC) mining activity continues receiving the impact of the energy crisis in Kazakhstan. The electric operator of that country suspended the service to farms until the end of the month. A massive blackout affected that nation and two others supplied from the same network.

Bekzhan Mukatov is the director of the Kazakhstan Electric Grid Operating Company (KEGOC). The executive said they completely stopped the planned electricity supply to people engaged in cryptocurrency mining until January 31st.

He stated that a tense situation with the maintenance and balance of electricity in Kazakhstan caused the restriction. However, he did not provide any further details.

The manager highlighted they would lift the restrictions when the situation improves, implying higher balance and power over the consumption volume. That would happen prior decision of the operator, who would communicate it through the operational channels.

The Asian Country Faces a Tense Situation

A massive blackout affected Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan when people heard of the electrical restriction for Bitcoin miners. The three electrically-interconnected Central Asian countries recently remained dark after the suspension.

The authorities already restored the service, but an accident damaged the Uzbek energy network connected to the Unified Electricity Network. That situation triggered sudden changes in voltage and frequency in 530 lines from Kazakhstan, said the Minister of Energy of Uzbekistan.

A representative of the Kyrgyz Ministry of Energy said that an accident caused the cut in the regional energy network.

The electric operator of Kazakhstan reported a significant emergency imbalance in the electrical system of Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan) at 11:59 a.m. (local time). That provoked an increase in tension in the power transmission line.

That led to the disconnection of the Northeast-South line of Kazakhstan, cutting the power supply to many consumers. They reported that the amount of load shedding is about 1,500 MW.

The Disconnection Has a Minimal Impact on the Bitcoin Hash Rate

Kazakhstan is the second country with the highest hash rate, which is the processing power of the Bitcoin network. That nation concentrates 18% of the total supply worldwide.

For that reason, the disconnection of miners affects the hash rate of the Bitcoin network but minimally, as seen a few days ago. Protests led to interrupting the electricity service and the operation of miners, which caused a slight drop in the computing power.

However, the indicator rose again after gradually reconnecting until reaching the same levels as before Kazakhstan interrupted it. The Bitcoin hash rate even hit a new all-time high of 215.28 exahashes per second (EH/s) on January 13th, according to Glassnode.

This time, the hash rate dropped to 183 EH/s, according to mining firm Braiins. That represents a drop of 15% from its latest all-time high, but the mining capacity still secures the decentralized BTC protocol.

The new devices launched for sale this year have contributed to the growth of the indicator in Kazakhstan. Besides, the high number of miners in the United States and Latin America has played a crucial role in the Bitcoin hash rate.

By Alexander Salazar

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