While active equipment is migrating to other parts of Asia, new devices are going to North America. This migration process could be complete in the first quarter of 2022.
It is a fact that Bitcoin mining equipment is currently emigrating. Many of those devices are destined for North America, Europe, and other parts of Central Asia, such as Kazakhstan.
A series of tweets from Edward Evenson, Head of Business Development at Braiins, led to that information. He said that many devices dedicated to Bitcoin mining are moving from the Xinjiang region to other areas in Asia. Meanwhile, manufacturers Bitmain and MicroBT are sending new equipment primarily to North America.
A potential wave of measures by the Chinese government against mining farms could lead to mass emigration of miners. The authorities have reported that interest, generating a wave of fear in the industry and a steep drop in the network’s hash rate.
The executive said that this is not the first time that a situation like this has occurred. It is “the continuation of a trend that Chinese miners had already set in motion and which has spread to Central Asia, the Middle East, Russia and, to a lesser extent, North America.” According to Evenson, the total megawatts that would come out of China are equivalent to the capacity of all the miners in the Canadian region of Quebec.
Evenson agrees with various personalities that the news of this increased distribution is good for Bitcoin and the mining industry. This is especially true as miners are exchanging energy that comes primarily from coal for renewable energy.
Discussions on the environmental impact of Bitcoin mining have been on the table for a couple of weeks. The main reason for this has been billionaire Elon Musk’s attacks on the pioneering cryptocurrency. Musk himself, jointly with Michael Saylor (of MicroStrategy) formed the Bitcoin Mining Council. Through this organization, major miners in North America hope to develop mining policies that are more environmentally friendly.
Greater Hash Rate Distribution Means a More Decentralized Network
“The distribution of the hash rate is growing all over the world. That reduces attack vectors and alleviates concerns about the use of coal power in Xinjiang. This is a good time, considering the latest developments around energy use and mining,” said Edward Evenson.
Thanks to the highest distribution of the hash rate in the world, there is also less dependency of the network on a particular area. For example, most of the hash rate has been in Chinese territory. For that reason, the Bitcoin network has been at the expense of large sudden drops in the accumulated hash rate in seasons of heavy rain. This has happened in those regions of the Asian country with the highest concentration of mining devices.
The emigration of miners is already underway, but Evenson warned that this will not end in the short term. He predicts that this long process will be complete by the end of the first quarter of 2022.
By Alexander Salazar
