Cambridge assessed the share of environmentally friendly bitcoin mining at 52%. Report

In recent years, the share of clean energy sources used for bitcoin mining has increased to 52.4%, according to a new study by Cambridge University. In 2022, this figure was estimated at 37.6%.

9.8% of the energy used for mining comes from renewable sources generated by nuclear power plants, while 42.6% comes from wind and hydroelectric power plants, according to the report. Natural gas has replaced coal as the primary energy source for bitcoin mining: the share of gas increased to 38.2% from 25% in 2022, while the share of coal decreased from 36.6% to 8.9% over the same period.

These results were obtained from a survey conducted among 49 mining companies from 23 countries, including Bitfarms, CleanSpark, Hut 8, IREN, MARA, and Riot. According to the study, which covers about 48% of the global Bitcoin hash rate, the annual electricity consumption of the first cryptocurrency network is 138 TWh, or about 0.5% of global energy consumption.

The report notes that there are geographical inaccuracies in the calculations: data for regions such as the USA may be overstated, while data for Russia, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region may be underrepresented.

The report from Cambridge followed a recent publication by researchers from Harvard and several other academic institutions regarding the impact of mining on the environment, published in the journal Nature Communications. It stated that Bitcoin mining in the United States contributes significantly to air pollution, and around 1.9 million Americans were exposed to harmful substances due to mining farms. At the same time, experts surveyed by The Block called this study “deeply flawed,” stating that it is based on incorrect methodology and uses selective data.

Elon Musk’s Limit

Journalists also noted that the share of renewable energy at over 52%, indicated by specialists from Cambridge, exceeds the level set by Elon Musk as acceptable for Tesla to resume accepting payments in bitcoin. In May 2021, the electric car manufacturer temporarily stopped selling cars for the cryptocurrency, which it had accepted for two months. Musk emphasized at that time that mining is environmentally harmful and Tesla cannot afford to harm the environment.

Later, Canadian businessman Kevin O’Leary stated that shareholders had a significant influence on Tesla’s decision to stop accepting payments in Bitcoin. They did not consider it feasible to accept Bitcoin, pressured Musk, and he mentioned the environmental harm, O’Leary said.