U.S. Energy Information Administration requests “urgent data collection” from virtual currency mining companies

Mining power data collection

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced on January 31 that it will begin collecting power consumption data for crypto asset (virtual currency) mining companies in the United States.

EIA is the statistical and analytical agency of the U.S. Department of Energy. The six-month investigation, which began on February 5, will require identified mining companies to provide details about their electricity use.

EIA Administrator Joe DeCarolis said that through the study, he will specifically focus on the evolution of mining’s energy demands, identify regions experiencing high growth, and quantify the power sources used to meet that demand. Stated.

The study will be conducted over the next six months, and the EIA will also seek public comment on this data collection effort.

Urgent data collection request

EIA’s survey of mining companies was approved by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on January 26 as an emergency data collection request.

EIA developed the following arguments as the basis for the emergency request.

1. Bitcoin prices have risen by about 50% in the past three months, boosting mining activity and increasing power consumption.
2. Many areas in the central United States are hit by a severe cold wave, increasing demand for electricity.
3. The combined impact of increased mining and load on power systems increases uncertainty in power markets
4. May cause peaks in demand that impact system operations and consumer prices

The EIA is concerned that such a “potential for public harm” cannot be quantitatively assessed and feels “an urgency to produce reliable data that provides insight into this issue. ‘ he claimed.

There is no urgency

The mining industry has objected to the EIA’s argument for urgency as a basis for data collection.

Pierre Rochard, head of research at Bitcoin mining company Riot Platforms:

Charlie Schumacher, head of corporate communications at US mining company Marathon:

civil resistance

Marty Bent, director of the US mining company Cathedra Bitcoin, expressed his sense of crisis regarding the actual EIA study after examining it in detail.

If you are an operator in the bitcoin mining industry in the US it is imperative that you ignore this survey and tell the EIA, the Department of Energy, and the current administration to fuck off.

Here’s what they have in store for you.https://t.co/9hoEhE3vmL

— Marty Bent (@MartyBent) February 1, 2024

The EIA study requires mining companies to collectively disclose the number of facilities they operate, the location of each facility, including its geographic coordinates, and the electricity consumed by those facilities. Additionally, the percentage of power used for mining among the power consumption must be shown.

Additionally, mining companies are required to provide detailed information regarding their mining fleets, including:

• Number of ASICs in each facility
• mining equipment model
• Amount of electricity required by mining equipment
• Maximum amount of hashrate generated during the study period

Bent called the study “the most Orwellian” and “one of the most egregious violations of privacy and free markets” he had ever seen. A US mining business owner emphasized, “It is essential that we ignore this investigation and tell the EIA, the Department of Energy, and the current administration, ‘Stop it.”’

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