Bitcoin Mining Now Uses More Electricity Than Argentina and Somehow That’s Bullish

Why Texas Is Begging Crypto Miners to Stop During Heat Waves, How Kazakhstan Became Bitcoin’s Battery, and the Energy Stock Play Nobody Sees Coming

Published on Finance Vantage | August 17, 2025

My neighbor just installed 47 Bitcoin mining rigs in his garage. His electricity bill last month was $8,400. His Bitcoin earnings? $9,200. His marriage? Under review.

But here’s the insane part – he’s not even close to being the craziest person on our street. Three houses down, a retired dentist is running a “mining pool” out of his basement that pulls so much power, the utility company had to upgrade our entire neighborhood’s transformer. The local Home Depot can’t keep industrial fans in stock. And our suburb’s electricity usage has increased 340% year-over-year.

Welcome to suburban America, where your quiet cul-de-sac is now competing with data centers for power grid capacity, and your HOA meetings include discussions about hashrates and cooling solutions.

This is happening everywhere. And the really wild part? The energy crisis everyone predicted would kill Bitcoin is actually making miners insanely profitable.

The Absolutely Unhinged Energy Numbers That Nobody Believes Are Real

Let’s start with the numbers that make environmentalists cry and energy investors salivate:

Bitcoin’s global energy consumption:

Current usage: 180 TWh per year
That’s more than Argentina (population: 45 million)
More than Norway and Switzerland combined
0.8% of global electricity consumption
Equivalent to 35 million US homes

The exponential growth that’s breaking grids:

2018: 45 TWh/year
2020: 75 TWh/year
2023: 120 TWh/year
2025: 180 TWh/year
2027 projection: 280 TWh/year

At current growth rates, Bitcoin will consume 2% of global electricity by 2030. That’s not sustainable. It’s also not stopping.

How Texas Became Bitcoin’s Unlikely Paradise (And Why Your Power Bill Is About to Explode)

Texas now hosts 30% of all US Bitcoin mining. That’s not an accident – it’s a beautiful regulatory disaster.

Why miners love Texas:

Deregulated energy market (shop for cheapest power)
No state income tax
“Business-friendly” regulations (aka: no regulations)
Massive renewable capacity (that nobody else wants at night)
Politicians who own Bitcoin

The Texas mining giants:

Riot Platforms: 700 MW facility in Rockdale
Marathon Digital: 300 MW in Granbury
Core Scientific: 500 MW across multiple sites
Bitdeer: 400 MW in Houston area

Combined, Bitcoin miners in Texas consume 2,900 MW continuously. That’s enough to power 2.3 million homes. In a state that had rolling blackouts during a winter storm.

The grid manipulation that’s completely legal: During peak demand, miners get PAID to shut down. It’s called “demand response,” and it’s genius:

Summer peak: Electricity price spikes to $5,000/MWh
Miners shut down
Grid operator pays them for “curtailment”
Miners profit from NOT mining
Your AC bill triples

Last summer, Riot Platforms made $31 million just from turning off their computers for a few days. They made more money not mining than mining.

The Public Mining Companies That Are Somehow Worth Billions Despite Losing Money

The stock market has decided that companies that burn electricity to create digital tokens are the future. Let’s examine this insanity:

Marathon Digital (MARA):

Market cap: $5.8 billion
2024 Revenue: $387 million
2024 Loss: $134 million
Stock price: Up 890% in 3 years
P/E ratio: Negative (they don’t have profits)

Riot Platforms (RIOT):

Market cap: $3.2 billion
2024 Revenue: $281 million
2024 Loss: $211 million
Stock performance: +1,240% in 3 years
Business model: Lose money, stock goes up

CleanSpark (CLSK):

Market cap: $2.1 billion
Actually profitable (barely)
Stock up 2,100% in 3 years
Buying mining facilities like Pokemon cards

The smaller players going parabolic:

Iris Energy (IREN): Up 450% YTD
Cipher Mining (CIFR): Up 380% YTD
TeraWulf (WULF): Up 670% YTD
Bitfarms (BITF): Up somehow despite being Canadian

These companies’ valuations assume Bitcoin goes to $500,000 or electricity becomes free. Neither is happening, but the stocks keep climbing.

The “Green Bitcoin” Scam That’s Actually Kind of Working

The newest narrative: Bitcoin mining is actually GOOD for the environment! (Sponsored by Bitcoin miners)

The “logic”:

Renewable energy is wasted when demand is low
Bitcoin miners use that excess energy
This funds more renewable development
Therefore, Bitcoin saves the planet

What’s actually happening:

Miners chase the cheapest energy
Cheapest energy is often stranded renewables
But also coal plants in Kazakhstan
And natural gas flaring in North Dakota
It’s about money, not the environment

The renewable mining operations (that are actually real):

El Salvador: Volcano-powered mining (yes, really)
Iceland: 100% geothermal
Paraguay: Hydroelectric excess
Kenya: Geothermal plants mining on the side

But for every clean mining operation, there’s a coal plant in China running 24/7 to mine Bitcoin. The “green” narrative is like saying gambling is eco-friendly because the casino has solar panels.

The Carbon Credit Hustle That’s Printing Money

Here’s the beautiful scam: Bitcoin miners are now selling carbon credits.

How it works:

Set up mining near renewable energy
Claim you’re “reducing emissions” by using clean power
Generate carbon credits
Sell credits to oil companies
Oil companies pollute more
Everyone profits except the planet

Companies doing this:

Crusoe Energy: $350 million in carbon credit sales
Stronghold Digital: Converting coal waste to Bitcoin to credits
Upstream Data: Flare gas to Bitcoin to credits

They’re literally turning pollution into Bitcoin into carbon credits that enable more pollution. It’s financial engineering at its finest/worst.

The National Security Angle Nobody Wants to Talk About

Here’s what keeps Pentagon officials up at night: What if China decides to attack Bitcoin?

China’s mining dominance (pre-ban):

2019: 75% of global hashrate
2020: 65%
2021 ban: 0% (officially)
2025: 20-30% (unofficially, through other countries)

The attack vectors:

China could 51% attack the network
Or just manipulate mining to crash price
Or use mining to evade sanctions
Or weaponize energy consumption

The US military is now studying Bitcoin mining as a national security issue. There are classified briefings about hashrate distribution. The CIA has a cryptocurrency working group.

This is not the cypherpunk dream of decentralized money. This is geopolitical energy warfare with extra steps.

The Utility Companies Getting Rich From Bitcoin

While you’re paying peak rates for AC, utility companies are cutting special deals with miners:

Sweetest mining deals:

West Texas: $0.025/kWh (you pay $0.14)
Wyoming: $0.028/kWh (you pay $0.11)
North Dakota: $0.023/kWh (from flare gas)
Washington State: $0.021/kWh (hydro excess)

Utilities profiting from miners:

Vistra Corp (VST): Up 185% since partnering with miners
NRG Energy (NRG): Dedicated mining substations
Constellation (CEG): Nuclear-powered mining deals

Your utility company is giving Bitcoin miners electricity at 80% discount while raising your rates for “grid improvements.” Those improvements? Infrastructure to support Bitcoin miners.

The Energy Trade That’s Staring Everyone in the Face

If Bitcoin mining is consuming 2% of global electricity by 2030, here’s what wins:

Natural gas producers:

EQT Corporation (EQT): Direct mining partnerships
Chesapeake Energy (CHK): On-site mining operations
Range Resources (RRC): Flare gas monetization

Power generation:

Vistra (VST): Building mining-specific plants
Constellation (CEG): Nuclear capacity
NextEra (NEE): Renewable + mining combo

Infrastructure plays:

Generac (GNRC): Backup power for mining
Eaton (ETN): Electrical equipment
Schneider (SBGSY): Cooling systems

The pick-and-shovel approach: Don’t bet on Bitcoin or miners. Bet on whoever sells them electricity. It’s the gold rush strategy: sell shovels, not mine gold.

The Upcoming Halving That Makes Everything Worse (Or Better?)

April 2024: Bitcoin halving cuts mining rewards in half.

Current reward: 6.25 BTC per block
After halving: 3.125 BTC
Mining revenue: Cut in half overnight
Energy usage: Stays the same
Required Bitcoin price to break even: $140,000+

Either Bitcoin doubles in price, or half the miners go bankrupt. There’s no middle ground. The weakest miners die, the strongest get stronger, and energy consumption somehow increases.

The Investment Thesis That’s Either Genius or Insane

Bull case:

Bitcoin to $500,000 makes all mining profitable
Energy abundance from renewables makes mining free
Governments embrace Bitcoin, subsidize mining
Mining companies become energy companies
Everyone gets rich, planet doesn’t die

Bear case:

Energy crisis forces mining bans
Bitcoin price crashes, miners bankrupt
Stranded assets everywhere
Utility backlash kills cheap power
Environmental regulations destroy profitability

Realistic case:

Boom-bust cycles continue
Miners barely profitable long-term
Energy consumption plateaus at unsustainable level
Constant tension between miners and everyone else
Some people get rich, most don’t

What You Should Actually Do With This Information

If you’re bullish on Bitcoin mining:

Buy the picks and shovels (energy and infrastructure)
Avoid the miners unless you love volatility
Consider mining ETFs for diversification (WGMI, BLOK)
Set stop losses because these stocks move 20% daily

If you’re bearish:

Short the weakest miners (dangerous but potentially profitable)
Buy utilities that don’t deal with miners
Invest in nuclear (only scalable solution)
Load up on energy efficiency plays

If you’re confused:

Buy Bitcoin directly and skip the mining drama
Or buy SPY and pretend none of this exists
Both strategies will probably outperform mining stocks

The Bottom Line: We’re Burning the Planet to Make Digital Gold

My neighbor with 47 mining rigs? He’s up $80,000 this year after electricity costs. His marriage counselor is also up, billing $300/hour to deal with the fallout. The dentist down the street? He’s building a dedicated 2 MW facility in an industrial park.

This is the world now: suburban dads becoming industrial electricity consumers, pension funds investing in server farms that create nothing physical, and utility companies choosing between powering hospitals or Bitcoin mines.

The environmental cost is staggering. The financial returns are questionable. The sustainability is nonexistent. But number go up, so mining continues.

We’re literally burning fossil fuels to create digital tokens that we hope someone else will buy for more digital tokens. It’s the most perfect representation of late-stage capitalism ever created: maximum resource consumption for maximum abstraction.

And the craziest part? It’s working. Bitcoin miners are outperforming the S&P. Energy companies are posting record profits. Everyone involved is getting rich.

Everyone except the planet. But hey, at least the blockchain is secure.

Are you mining Bitcoin in your garage? Investing in mining stocks? Or just watching your electricity bill rise while your neighbor’s mining rigs hum all night? Share your energy crisis stories below.

Follow Finance Vantage for more coverage of humanity’s most energy-intensive way to transfer value.

Disclaimer: Not investment advice. The author owns no mining stocks because volatility gives him heartburn, some Bitcoin because FOMO, and solar panels because guilt. Mining profitability depends on energy costs, Bitcoin price, and whether your spouse leaves you. Please mine responsibly, if such a thing exists.