How Bitcoin Can Boost Interest in Solar Energy
Even though the cost of solar energy is falling, it is still not as widespread as environmentalists and solar advocates would like since it is intermittent, making it difficult to balance the supply of solar energy with electrical demand.
Furthermore, compared to other energy generation methods, solar panels need a lot more area. Therefore, due to unfavorable geography, it is now unfeasible to construct solar infrastructure close to those population centers.
Last but not least, even if the cost of solar has decreased by a factor of five over the past ten years, a sizable upfront investment is still necessary. In spite of the potential long-term return on investment, this makes it impossible for disadvantaged areas to ever start using solar energy.
Fortunately, cutting-edge technology that can significantly accelerate the adoption of solar energy has evolved in recent years. The location of a bitcoin miner's office is irrelevant, and they have complete control over when and how to shut down their equipment. The suitable buyer of last resort for the intermittent energy source is a miner, who also acts as a buffer for the energy source.
Bitcoin mining could boost the solar sector.
If we want to keep global warming from rising above the crucial 1.5 or two degrees Celsius, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has suggested several energy mix profiles that the global economy must adopt.
Adding the wind and solar equivalent of 1.4% of the world's annual electricity supply is necessary for some of their suggested courses, and even more aggressive paths call for adding the solar equivalent of 3% of the world's annual electricity supply.
The paths suggested by the IPCC toward a future powered by renewable energy are only practical for a small number of nations, according to recent calculations by Jessica Jewell, associate professor in energy transitions at Chalmers University of Technology. It would appear that the IPCC's objectives are impossible to achieve without a paradigm leap in technology.
Bitcoin miners don't give a damn about the energy source they use, but they do worry a lot about how much each potential energy source costs. Solar panels offer Bitcoin miners a very cost-effective way to power their equipment for extended periods of time because the majority of the expense of solar is in the initial expenditure.
The unsubsidized cost of solar energy is between three and four cents per kilowatt-hour, which is around 2.5 cents per kilowatt-hour less expensive than coal or natural gas, according to the whitepaper of the Bitcoin Clean Energy Initiative. Solar energy is a simple option for miners who are agnostic about energy sources.
Bitcoin miners have at least two options for addressing the solar's debilitating intermittency issue. One way to guarantee that miners won't compete with locals for power when solar supply is low is for them to contractually promise to only consume electricity that isn't needed by others. And two, miners might provide their extra energy to the grid when demand surges unexpectedly, like during severe weather occurrences.
According to calculations made by Ark Invest, a U.S. investment management company, solar power could only supply 40% of the grid's energy without considerably raising the cost of electricity. This is because solar power is intermittent.
However, the combination of solar with bitcoin mining enables energy providers to not only profit from the price differential between the cost of electricity and the cost of bitcoin, but also to continue meeting grid demands while maintaining profitability.
Bitcoin mining actually helps the solar business, beyond just theory.
Bitcoin mining and solar energy working together is a real possibility. In spite of the present bear market, a new Bitcoin mining operation has started up in Colorado using solar energy.
The company made the decision to use solar power at a time when many Bitcoin miners are being driven out of business by rising energy prices and declining profits (i.e., the sharp decrease in the price of Bitcoin).
The transition of Bitcoin mining to renewable energy is not surprising given how affordable solar is.
The bitcoin mining business intends to expand its network of solar-powered bitcoin mining facilities. Its second and third facilities will be powered by solar farms of 87 and 200 megawatts, respectively.
Three large corporations are working together to construct a Bitcoin mining plant in Texas that will be powered by solar and battery storage technology. This effort will serve as a proof of concept for entirely clean Bitcoin mining at scale, said the CEO of one of these businesses.
Bitcoin miners can support renewable energy projects that are constructed far from populated areas because they can work from anyplace. As was already indicated, one of the problems with the solar sector is that because it needs so much land, it cannot be built in congested areas on the cheap.
Bitcoin miners are more than glad to set up shop next to solar equipment in isolated areas and pay for the cost that solar energy producers incur while transferring their energy to distant energy users. It is true that bitcoin mining can make remote, renewable energy sources economically viable.
Article Credit: DailyHodl
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