The miners promised to operate without threatening Kazakhstan’s energy security. The Kazakh government official acknowledged the “high potential of the blockchain industry.”
Kazakhstan seems to be moving towards a healthy coexistence with Bitcoin (BTC) mining, an activity that has increased significantly since May in that region. The government highlighted that miners who comply with the policies would not suffer any power restrictions and disconnections.
This situation is relevant because that Asian country concentrates 18% of the global hash rate due to the prohibition of activity in China, which generated a significant exodus of BTC miners.
During a meeting between the Minister of Electric Power of Kazakhstan, Magzum Mirzagaliev, and various representatives of the cryptocurrency environment, the government officially recognized the high potential of the blockchain industry, for which he saw it necessary to join forces for its further development.
Mirzagaliev said he is a supporter of dialogue, so he encouraged the miners to jointly search for solutions to ensure the reliability of the power system. According to the minister, the miners promised to carry out their activities without threatening the energy security of Kazakhstan.
According to the miners, they reported that some might consider purchasing electricity from the Kazakh state. This decision got added to the intention to invest in generating new energy sources to mine cryptocurrencies.
The miners also proposed to the Ministry of Electric Energy new changes and additions to the local legislation related to the requirements and criteria for those who mine cryptocurrencies, allowing them to find and act against the so-called grey miners.
In that country, grey miners are the most vital operators that hide the electric consumption by mining and get settled in farms located in places where the growth in energy use is unpredictable, such as the towns in the south of that country. These miners, according to the law, must register with the government and legalize their business to continue their work.
With such grey miners, of course, it is necessary to fight with the combined efforts of state bodies and associations. So we can achieve results, “said Salzhanov.
The parties highlighted their intention to continue their joint work, to stabilize the electricity market and create the proper conditions for the development of digital mining as a new industry.
There Are Contradictions About the Situation
This meeting and support for bitcoin miners in Kazakhstan come just days after the Senate approved a bill that sets up the regulation of this activity and others related to cryptocurrencies because they think that financial crimes would take part in these activities.
For the deputy Olga Perepechina, the people who issue, organize the trade of digital assets, and exchange them for fiat money, securities, and other properties, are out of financial monitoring, which leads to possible money laundering and terrorism.
The law even intends to classify all those who operate with bitcoin as subjects of financial monitoring, being obliged to notify the Ministry of Digital Development, Aerospace Industry, and Defense of the start or end of activities.
By: Jenson Nuñez
