- The Swedish government might change its stance on crypto mining owing to energy demand in the country.
- The country is moving towards a large-scale expansion and needs energy for other “useful” industries.
- The government has discussed two methods to restrict the energy consumption by mining.
The Swedish government might reconsider their take on crypto mining. As energy-demand is increasing in other sectors. Recently, Khashayar Farmanbar, the minister of Energy, in a statement said the Swedish economy is transitioning from an era of administration to a large-scale expansion where the whole manufacturing industry seeks electrification. The official said that the country needs energy from more useful things than Bitcoin.
The wind parks and hydro reservoirs serve as the source of clean and low-cost electricity. These resources of energy have attracted several Bitcoin miners. In turn, making Sweden one of the largest in Europe. Owing to the concerns about digital consumption, the government in Stockholm has ordered the Swedish Energy Agency to estimate the energy usage in digital space, particularly stressing on crypto mining. The availability of cheap electricity makes a location suitable for crypto mining. However, the prices of crypto assets largely determine the profits for their operators.
The minister however didn’t reveal the measures the government would take to restrict mining. However, the government held discussion on two options. One is to change the order in such a way that power users are connected to the network in such a way that those who bring more economical benefits to the society are prioritized, for instance, those who generate jobs.
Another option to mitigate the preferential tax treatment currently relished by data centers. The purpose behind this is to attract multinational corporations such as Facebook and Microsoft. And not crypto firms, stated Erik Thornstrom, a senior advisor at industry group Swedenergy.
Thornstrom also explained that the existing tax reliefs should prioritize activities that they were meant to allure in the first place. Mining of cryptocurrencies is more debatable. Sukesh Kumar Tedla, chairperson at the Swedish Blockchain Association, believes that various public identities having strong views on blockchain and cryptocurrency should require further education and awareness. He also acknowledged that the energy consumption of crypto mining is quite high. But so do other innovative technologies.
Source: https://www.thecoinrepublic.com/2022/07/18/we-need-energy-for-other-useful-things-than-bitcoin-swedish-energy-minister/