The Russian government is taking into account the possible impact of Bitcoin mining on its electrical system. Minister Shulginov believes that cryptocurrency miners cannot use energy at reduced rates.
Russia could subject the mining of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to special rates for the electricity service. The head of the Russian Energy Ministry, Nikolai Shulginov, made that statement this week.
According to a local media outlet, Shulginov said it is necessary to exclude the possibility that miners consume at reduced rates. He explained that that would allow maintaining the reliability and quality of the energy supply to the Russian population.
The Russian official stated that they could not allow miners to complicate the situation at the cost of reduced rates for the population. He referred particularly to possible power outages in some regions of the Eurasian country.
Igor Kobzev, the governor of Irkutsk, had shown his concern about Bitcoin mining and its alleged impact on the electricity supply in the region. He mentioned overloaded power lines and the risk of accidents in power plants.
Given that Irkutsk has the lowest energy fees in the country, cryptocurrency miners could see it as a privileged area in Russia. However, the possible measure to increase the rates to miners outlined by the energy minister could end that advantage.
Chinese Bitcoin Miners Migrate and Spread All Over the World
The Russian government is worried due to the wave of Bitcoin miners leaving China in the past months. The bans in the Asian country have forced them to seek new horizons, among which some of them have chosen Russia to settle.
According to recent reports, the United States now concentrates at least 30% of the Bitcoin mining power in the world.
Meanwhile, the Bitcoin network has regained the hash rate that it had lost following seizures and closures of Chinese mining farms. The Asian nation previously concentrated most of the mining processing power in its territory.
The President of Russia is in Favor of Cryptocurrencies
The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, recently accepted cryptocurrencies as a means of payment and a currency for cross-border transfers. In an interview with the television channel CNBC, he said that those assets have the right to exist and help citizens pay for products and services.
However, Putin warned that it was too early to use them in the exports of oil, gas, and other raw materials. He argued that it is premature to raise them to that level since nothing backs them.
The Russian head of state believes that they should see how that matter develops before cryptocurrencies become a means of accumulation. He stated that the value of crypto assets fluctuates, which has led him not to include them in exports by the government.
The position of the Russian central bank is similar to that of its European counterparts. It has warned the population that cryptocurrencies are complex and highly volatile investment products.
However, the Vice Minister of Finance, Alexei Moiseev, denied that Russia would take measures against cryptocurrencies, like China. Besides, he also said that the country would not prohibit transactions with cryptocurrencies in the short or medium term.
The relevance of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in the economy is increasingly evident, which has led many governments to have them in their sights. The Russian president allowed migrating Chinese miners to settle in the country and accepted their use to pay for products and services.
By Alexander Salazar
