According to Cointelegraph, Riot Platforms, a Bitcoin mining company, mined fewer Bitcoin in August compared to July but received over $31 million in power credits, equivalent to around 1,136 Bitcoin. CEO Jason Les revealed that the company received an estimated $24.2 million in power curtailment credits under its contract with Texas grid operator Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) and $7.4 million from ERCOT's demand response program. These monthly credits are greater than the credits Riot Platforms received for all of 2022.
Riot's power strategy is based on three mechanisms, all dependent on its long-term ERCOT contract. Power credits are received when the company curtails operations and returns power to ERCOT when the price of electricity makes mining unprofitable. Demand and response credits are received when Riot competitively bids to sell ERCOT the option to control Riot's electrical load, whether or not the electric company chooses to call on Riot to reduce consumption. Les stated that these credits significantly lower Riot's cost to mine Bitcoin and are a key element in making Riot one of the lowest cost producers of Bitcoin in the industry.
Texas experienced particularly harsh weather in August, with temperatures near or above record-high levels for days on end. Riot's presentation noted that Bitcoin mining is one of the few industries that can lower energy consumption and support the grid during times of demand stress. Riot Platforms reported a loss of $27.7 million in the second quarter of this year, but this is a significant improvement compared to the $353.6 million loss in Q2 2022, during the depths of the crypto winter. The company plans to install thousands of new miners before the Bitcoin halving.
