Bitfarms signals massive hardware expansion with MicroBT ASIC miners purchase

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Canadian block reward mining operators Bitfarms Ltd. (TSXV: BITF) has confirmed its latest purchase of 48,000 new ASIC miners from MicroBT. Once operational, they expect the new miners to increase their hashing capacity by approximately 5.0 EH. 

This purchase, announced via a press release, is a continuation of the growing relationship between the hardware manufacture and Bitfarms. During the last eight months, the publicly listed company has bought over 12,000 latest-generation blockchain miners from the Chinese hardware maker. 

Bitfarms and MicroBT agreed that the first shipment of miners would occur by January 2022. After that, shipments will arrive monthly, with the last batch of mining rigs scheduled to arrive in December 2022.

Bitfarms stated they would install the blockchain miners at both existing facilities and new mining farms currently in development. The precise terms of the deal were not disclosed; however, in the event market conditions change unfavorable, Bitfarm stated it has already negotiated delivery and contract modification options. 

With this recent addition, the overall production capability of the Bitfarms mining fleet is forecast to grow from over 1.0 EH at present to 3.0 EH by the end of 2021. It will exceed 8.0 EH by the end of 2022. 

Emiliano Grodzki, CEO of Bitfarms, said, “With this equipment purchase agreement, Bitfarms is positioned to remain in the top tier of publicly traded crypto mining companies in the world.” 

Grodziki added, “The supply of miners will be one of the greatest challenges in for the foreseeable future due to a global shortage of wafers used to create semiconductor chips…Our strategy will be to continue to grow our own infrastructure and professional operations and conduct mining in our own facilities, which increases operational efficiency and profitability.”

In the past, CoinGeek has reported that Chinese ASIC hardware manufacturers are struggling to cope with the rise in demand. Most next-generation miners are entirely sold out, forcing the smaller block reward miner companies to turn towards the second-hand markets. Even the Bitfarms announcement notes the hardware delivery isn’t slated to begin this calendar year. 

In keeping with the current trend, Bitfarms is following the playbook used by other publicly listed block reward mining companies who leverage their massive buying power in order to purchase ASIC mining rigs in advance.

See also: TAAL’s Jerry Chan presentation at CoinGeek Live, The Shift from Bitcoin “Miners” to “Transaction Processors”