The local authorities of the Chinese province of Sichuan are clamping down on Bitcoin mining operations in the region amid a power shortage.
Reported by the Asia Times, the authorities are not only going after the mining operators but also after the power stations for supplying electricity to these businesses.
This month, authorities slapped a total fine of $140,000 on two power plants in Sichuan as they were supplying electricity to unlicensed mining businesses.
The hub of crypto mining
Sichuan is a province in the southwestern part of China, which receives excessive rain in the wet season, which runs from May to September. This also results in the generation of excessive hydro-based electricity, which is distributed at cheap rates.
Because of the cheap electricity rates, many mining firms flocked to the area and set up operations. However, in the dry season, Sichuan power plants fail to generate enough power required for the entities in the region, creating a power shortage.
Despite having no clear laws in favor of crypto mining, China is still dominating in Bitcoin mining hash rate with two-thirds of the total share, while Sichuan alone contributes over 50 percent. Though the government did not impose any ban on crypto mining, it is in the unwanted industries list.
Building intolerance?
Apart from the local authorities in Sichuan, the regulators in the country’s autonomous region of Inner Mongolia also started a crackdown on the crypto mining industry from last month.
Meanwhile, earlier this month, the Chinese authorities seized 7,000 illegal crypto mining devices from merchants, communities, and other entities within the Kaiping District, part of Tangshan.
Chinese crypto businesses were relieved recently as the government started to embrace blockchain technology. However, authorities soon came out to clarify the difference between blockchain and crypto, continuing its crackdown against the latter.
(Photo: FortuneZ)
