Crypto miners in Iran face new energy tariffs

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The government of Iran has published finalized energy tariffs for crypto miners in the country, establishing a new baseline energy cost for those mining cryptocurrencies from the national grid.

The new rules also include restrictions on the use of subsidized electricity, with a bounty of up to 20% of recoverable damages payable to anyone identifying illegal mining operations in the country, PressTV reported.

As part of the new rules, crypto mining will be banned altogether during peak hours of energy consumption, in a bid to ease pressures on national infrastructure caused by the crypto mining sector.

Across the year, the measures mean miners can now expect to pay an average of $0.08 per kilowatt-hour (KWh). During the eight cold months of the year, this cost is expected to fall to an average of $0.04, while during the remaining warmer months, it is likely to increase to $0.16 per kWh.

Subsidized energy for the crypto mining sector in Iran has previously put a strain on the country’s infrastructure, with a resulting 7% surge in energy consumption attributed to increased mining activity.

The decision to introduce tariffs along similar lines as those payable for electricity exports has been billed as a means of reducing the reliance on subsidized electricity and negating the impact of the sector on national supply.

The news comes after authorities in Iran recently exposed a mining operation spanning 1,000 BTC mining units, which were detected due to a surge in energy consumption at two disused factories.

 The Iranian government hopes the measures will reduce the impact of cryptocurrency mining while establishing a fair baseline price for miners to compete on a level playing field.

 Iran had emerged as a global destination for the crypto mining sector after introduced subsidized energy for miners to encourage the growth of the industry there. With the new tariffs in operation, it remains to be seen whether miners still see Iran as an attractive and viable destination to house their crypto mining equipment.