[Bitcoin mining hailed as solution to UK renewable energy targets]
Bitcoin Policy UK, a cryptocurrency advocacy group in the United Kingdom, has urged the new government to consider Bitcoin mining to bolster the country’s renewable energy grid. Bitcoin mining creates new Bitcoins by solving complex mathematical problems that are used to verify transactions. KPMG’s report states that Bitcoin mining can help stabilize the power grid and harness underutilized renewable energy.
The report mentions that the UK grid needs to adapt to changes in demand due to electrification and renewable energy generation and intermittency. The report points out that Bitcoin mining is the only technology that can provide fully elastic demand for remaining renewable energy, setting a "floor price" and monetizing otherwise unused or even restricted supply.
The organization also stated that Bitcoin mining can increase the competitiveness of renewable energy and provide demand-side response (DSR) capabilities with millisecond response. Furthermore, Bitcoin mining does not require subsidies or government payments, but instead utilizes idle energy, lowering unit prices by increasing the proportion of the UK’s green energy supply.
The report suggests that adopting mining will create a stronger business case, provide stable income, and increase green energy. At the same time, this will increase the resilience of the grid and promote a healthy overbuilding of renewable energy. This addresses the commercial viability of the UK's strategic energy security objectives, as renewable energy suppliers can ensure there is a buyer for all the energy they produce and that their projects are not compromised by under-utilization, the report adds.
In addition, this move could also reduce the cost of energy consumption and allow the UK government to receive more revenue from miners' energy use.
