The Labyrinth of Electricity--Shadows of the Future Lit by Bitcoin Mining (2023-Present)

The Labyrinth of Electricity--Shadows of the Future Lit by Bitcoin Mining (2023-Present)

Power consumption in bitcoin mining is one of the most notable environmental issues in the world. Mining is a mechanism that performs a large amount of computational processing in order to create new records. In order to survive this process, specialized machines must be kept running for long periods of time, which consumes enormous amounts of electricity.

According to a study by the University of Cambridge, by the end of 2023, the amount of electricity used by Bitcoin as a whole will amount to approximately 100 to 140 terawatt-hours per year. This is comparable to the annual electricity use of a medium-sized country such as Argentina or the Netherlands.

This huge power consumption is problematic mainly because the power sources are often not environmentally friendly. Coal-fired power is still the dominant source, especially in parts of China and Kazakhstan, where electricity costs are low, and greenhouse gas emissions tend to be high. On the other hand, more environmentally friendly mining is being promoted in regions such as Iceland, Canada, and Sweden, where renewable energy sources such as hydroelectric and geothermal power are abundant.

The electricity required for a single bitcoin transfer has also attracted attention. One study suggests that the amount of electricity consumed is equivalent to a month's worth of household use, making it extremely inefficient compared to centrally managed credit card company transactions.

And what will happen to electricity consumption in the future? Many experts believe that it will continue to increase for the foreseeable future. The reasons are clear. The difficulty of the calculations required to mine bitcoin is increasing every year, and to cope with this, more machines must be run and more power must be used.

However, it is not without hope. Environmental concerns in some countries have led to moves to regulate mining and encourage the use of renewable energy. If these efforts spread globally, overall electricity consumption could be curbed.

At this point, however, there are no signs that the bitcoin system itself will change. Therefore, without technological advances or policy changes, electricity consumption from mining will continue to cast a large shadow over the global environment for some time to come.