The government of Kosovo on Tuesday issued a ban on cryptocurrency mining
The government of Kosovo on Tuesday issued a ban on cryptocurrency mining in an attempt to curb electricity consumption as the country faces its worst energy crisis in a decade due to production shutdowns. .
Economy and Energy Minister Artane Rizvanolli said: “All law enforcement agencies will cease production of this activity in cooperation with other relevant organizations to identify sites of money production. electronic”.
Due to cheap electricity prices in Kosovo in recent years, many young people in Kosovo have been engaged in cryptocurrency mining.
Faced with coal-fired power plant shutdowns and high import prices, authorities were forced to cut power last month.
European gas prices jumped more than 30% on Tuesday after low supplies from Russia stoked fears of an energy slowdown as colder weather approaches.
In December, Kosovo declared a state of emergency for 60 days, which would allow the government to allocate more money for energy imports, more power cuts and harsher measures.
An unnamed miner with 40 GPUs (Graphics Processing Units), told Reuters that he is paying around 170 euros per month for electricity and is receiving around 2,400 euros per month from mining.
Coin mining is on the rise in northern Kosovo, largely populated by Serbs, who do not recognize Kosovo’s status and refuse to pay electricity bills.
The country of 1.8 million people is currently importing more than 40% of its energy consumption with high demand in winter when people use electricity mainly for heating.
About 90% of energy production in Kosovo is from lignite, a soft coal that produces toxic pollution when burned.
Official figures show that Kosovo has the fifth largest lignite reserves in the world with 12-14 billion tons.
