Manitoba worries about how the miner’s load will affect the local population
Several states have halted or delayed the approval of new bitcoin mining businesses out of concern that the load of the miners would negatively impact inhabitants. Because Manitoba has the second-lowest power pricing in Canada, only behind Quebec, it draws clients who need a lot of electricity, such as those involved in the electricity extraction of bitcoins.
The PCG’s concern that blockchain-based businesses might not be very effective at boosting the labor force was also brought up by the regional finance minister. He clarified that it is feasible to run a business using a little staff and use hundreds of megawatts of electricity.
Manitoba Hydro cannot make unilateral judgments regarding who to hook up, claims Friesen. According to reports, the government is evaluating the economic impact of cryptocurrencies and whether a regulatory framework is required to permit new grid connections.
Earlier this month, Hydro-Québec, a provincial utility, asked the province’s electrical distribution authority to impose a freeze on energy allocations connected to blockchain technology. After the American state of New York recently enacted a partial moratorium against PoW mining, Manitoba followed suit.
Manitoba Hydro Minister Cameron Friesen made the remarks on Monday. They can’t just say, Well, everybody can take whatever [electricity] they wish to take, and then they will build dams, he continued.
The government will forbid any new crypto-mining operations from connecting to the grid for the following 18 months. However, none of the 37 active mines will be impacted.
The fact that Manitoba has the second-lowest energy prices in Canada, only after Quebec, has drawn a lot of miners to the area. According to the Minister, a total of 17 miners have requested grid connections, requiring a combined 371 MW of energy. Since the beginning of the year, the Keeyask power plant has been operating at full capacity; 371 MW is almost half of its capacity.
The Bipole and Keeyask III transmission line’s construction has required Manitoba Hydro to take on a total of CAD 3.7 billion ($2.75 billion) in loans during the past 15 years, which is double the amount of debt the firm had at the time. More than 40% of customer utility payments, according to Manitoba Hydro, go toward debt servicing.
Debt repayment for Manitoba Hydro
Additionally, Manitoba Hydro is discharging debt from the most recent construction projects. Due to two megaprojects, the Keeyask generating station and the Bipole III transmission line, which went $3.7 billion over budget, the utility’s debt tripled in 15 years.
Working on the servers is a very lucrative job option, according to the vice chairman of the trade association Canadian Blockchain Alliance. “Somebody is going to have to maintain them, check on them, and make sure they’re running,” said Jade Alberts, a resident of Calgary.
