As Bitcoin is about to usher in its fourth halving, miners are spreading their computing power to new geographical areas at a rapid pace. Recently, Bitdeer, a leading mining company, announced its latest operating results for September, and its Bitcoin mine in Bhutan alone produced 217 Bitcoins.
Regarding Bhutan, a small landlocked country located in the Himalayas, I believe most people's impression of it is probably just that it is rumored to be "the country with the highest national happiness index."
Things are different now. Bhutan, a Buddhist country, began to use its advantages in hydropower resources to vigorously promote the construction of Bitcoin mining bases this year and mine Bitcoin in the Himalayas. Its vigorous path of modernization and transformation is truly extraordinary.
In this episode, we will talk about Bhutan, whose official name is the "Kingdom of Bhutan". It has a total area of 38,000 square kilometers and a population of only 760,000. It leads the world in English proficiency in Asia. Its territory borders Tibet and India in my country. It is the only border country that has not established formal diplomatic relations with my country.
Bhutan is a typical non-industrialized country, with no polluting factories, no high-rise buildings, and even no traffic lights on the streets. It also completely prohibits the import of chemicals, genetically modified products, and the felling of trees. Bhutan is the most proud resource of being the most environmentally friendly region in the world.
Unlike our domestic tourist attractions, traveling in Bhutan is not crowded, and there is no crowded flow of people. Because it is expensive for foreigners to travel to Bhutan, foreign tourists will be forced to pay a consumption tax of US$200 to US$250 per person per day.
That is to say, even if you are prepared to travel on a budget and sleep on the streets at night in Bhutan, the daily hard cost will be more than 200 US dollars. If you plan to stay in Bhutan, a budget of 1,000 US dollars can only be used to stay in a four-star hotel in Bhutan for one night, and a five-star hotel generally costs more than 2,000 US dollars.
Indeed, tourism used to be Bhutan's biggest source of income. But now Bhutan is no longer satisfied with this, but has greater ambitions and ambitions. Renewable hydropower is increasingly becoming its largest product, and "selling electricity" has become Bhutan's main means of export and foreign exchange.
Bhutan has many mountains and rivers, with mountains accounting for more than 95% of the total area. There are seven peaks over 4,500 meters, including the Himalayas. Due to the large difference in terrain, the highest altitude is over 7,000 meters and is covered with ice and snow all year round, while the hilly plains in the south are only 97 meters above sea level.
It is precisely because of the water from the melting glaciers and the towering and steep terrain that Bhutan has huge hydropower resources. Therefore, hydropower has always been a pillar industry that the Bhutanese government has vigorously developed. The Bhutanese government has planned to open two new hydropower stations with a total capacity of 1,400 megawatts by the end of 2024.
It is reported that BitDeer had previously reached an agreement with Bhutan’s sovereign wealth fund DHI (Druk Holding & Investments) to build a 600-megawatt Bitcoin mining farm.
DHI is a state-owned holding company in Bhutan, with the Ministry of Finance of Bhutan as the sole shareholder. Its operation mode is more like that of a state-owned enterprise. The first batch of 100 megawatt Gedu mines was put into operation in September this year, and another 500 megawatt mines are expected to be put online in the next three years. The Bhutan State Electricity Company will supply electricity to the mines at a long-term contract price.
It is worth mentioning that the Gedu mine with only 100 megawatts has become the largest electricity user in Bhutan. When the entire 600 megawatt mine is online in the future, the electricity consumption will be more than the total production and life in Bhutan. According to statistics from the Bhutan Energy Company, Bhutan’s historical electricity consumption capacity record is less than 500 megawatts.
However, hydropower in Bhutan is also seasonal. When power generation is greatly reduced during the dry season, according to the agreement between BitDeer and the Bhutan DHI, Bhutan’s domestic demand is given priority, and residents’ needs are prioritized. If necessary, the Bitcoin mine may be shut down in winter.
Nevertheless, compared to the past, most of Bhutan’s excess hydropower could only be exported cheaply to India. Now, by mining Bitcoin, it can not only obtain higher electricity income, but also have a rare opportunity for digital transformation.
In particular, Bhutan’s decision to enter Bitcoin mining is closely related to its current economic crisis. Due to the continuous interest rate hikes in the United States in recent years, Bhutan’s currency has depreciated sharply, Bhutan’s foreign exchange reserves have plummeted, and foreign debt pressure has risen sharply.
Bhutan is eager to participate in the operation of Bitcoin mines at this time. In addition to bringing stable income (selling electricity) to itself, more importantly, it can also bring generous taxes and profits based on the US dollar (U).
Obviously, Bhutan is determined to become a new "Bitcoin mining power" in the future.
