Data from a recent Ark Invest report highlights another utility for Bitcoin (BTC) mining in the realm of sustainability and energy.
According to the results, There is huge potential to transform methane emissions into energy for Bitcoin mining, which, in turn, will power solar and wind-generated electricity in wells on site.
Important research from @skorusARK on #bitcoin‘s potential role in transforming methane emissions into bitcoin mining that will turbocharge electricity generated by solar and wind. @skorusARK https://t.co/6cgxGHNcJZ
— Cathie Wood (@CathieDWood) July 26, 2022
Important research by @skorusARK on Bitcoin’s potential role in transforming methane emissions into bitcoin mining that will turbocharge electricity generated by solar and wind power.
Annual flared gas emissions are equivalent to 140 billion cubic meters, along with another 125 billion cubic meters of annual methane emissions. Therefore, untouched, this means that 265 billion cubic meters of natural gas emissions are wasted each year. However, an analysis of the methane needed for the current Bitcoin hash rate is only 25 billion.
Although harnessing all of the emissions is impossible due to investments in pre-existing combustion operations in the oil industry, methane capture is a viable and early solution.. Sam Korus of Ark Invest tweeted that more than half of the expelled methane is produced in situ in the wells. This makes the location a prime location for mining to capture those emissions and use them productively.
In addition, instead of expelling the methane, electricity could be generated at prices much lower than those currently paid by mining companies.
Recently, the mining industry has shown signs of increased energy efficiency and a shift towards sustainability.
Last week, the Bitcoin Mining Council published its Q2 review of the network. It revealed that the use of sustainable energy by the industry has increased by 6% compared to the same quarter of previous years. In concluding its results, the council referred to Bitcoin mining as “one of the most sustainable industries globally.”
However, this has been an active change effort by the mining industry. Previously, environmentalists shamed the industry for its unjustifiable carbon footprint.
Korus suggests that while there are other ways to harness methane, Bitcoin mining is an ideal option as it “is highly scalable with modular hardware that can be transported and changed between operating well sites.”
Although new data supports these claims, they are not new. There are already companies that actively do so. Back in February, Cointelegraph spoke with Kristian Csepcsa, director of marketing at Slush Pool, about how miners are helping oil companies reduce flare-ups by running their generators on natural gas, which would otherwise burn.
However, skeptics remain. One Twitter user pointed out that the emissions in question do not occur naturally. Rather, they are obtained through the extraction of fossil fuels, which, due to climate change, is under pressure to be completely reduced.
@skorusARK U seem to be missing the big picture. We aren’t talking about naturally occurring gas emissions, but emissions caused by extracting fossil fuels from the ground, right? This extraction has to stop completely in the next few years @fossiltreaty. That’s the real solution
— siegfried.arweave.dev (@ZwigoZwitscher) July 26, 2022
@skorusARK You seem to misunderstand the big picture. We’re not talking about naturally occurring gas emissions, but emissions caused by extracting fossil fuels from the ground, right? This mining has to stop completely in the next few years @fossiltreaty. that is the real solution
As the industry continues to adapt to global sustainability standards, time will tell if these types of solutions will bring the future of Bitcoin mining and energy production.
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