Prosper, a decentralized protocol offering institutional-grade Bitcoin mining power on-chain, has announced that it is the official Hashrate Sponsor for Bitcoin MENA 2024. The highly anticipated conference will take place on December 9-10, 2024, at the iconic Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), bringing together industry experts and key players from the global Bitcoin ecosystem and the wider crypto industry.
As the official Hashrate Sponsor, Prosper will feature prominently at the event and host an interactive booth where attendees can engage directly with its team and explore how Prosper is setting the standard for institutional-grade Bitcoin mining power on-chain, further unlocking Bitcoin’s full potential as the most decentralized cryptocurrency.
“As one of the most innovative community-focused projects under Animoca Brands, we are excited to showcase our unique offering at this year’s Bitcoin MENA event which aligns perfectly with our mission to democratize access to Bitcoin and its mining power,” said Milton Lam, Advisory Council Member & Launch Partner, Prosper. “Our participation underscores our leadership in institutional-grade Bitcoin mining innovation, advancing the possibilities of the world’s original and most decentralized cryptocurrency.”
Bitcoin MENA 2024 will bring together global leaders and influential voices, including Eric Trump, Prince Filip of Serbia and Saifedean Ammous, to shape the conversation on Bitcoin’s future.
Eric Trump, Executive Vice President of the Trump Organization, will deliver a keynote address at Bitcoin MENA 2024, marking a significant milestone for the event. His participation brings a wealth of business acumen and leadership experience to discussions on Bitcoin’s growing adoption in the Middle East. Following Donald J. Trump’s appearance at Bitcoin 2024 in Nashville this July, the Trump family’s growing support for Bitcoin as a solution to combat inflation in the U.S. underscores the event’s importance.
Other notable attendees include Prince Filip of Serbia, Saifedean Ammous, author of The Bitcoin Standard and Abdulla Al Dhaheri of the Blockchain Centre Abu Dhabi. Their involvement highlights Bitcoin MENA’s influence and Abu Dhabi’s emerging role as a central hub in the global Bitcoin economy.
Ethiopia Electric Power (EEP), a state-owned utility, has signed power purchase agreements with 25 bitcoin mining companies. These bitcoin companies are using Ethiopia’s surplus renewable energy from The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), a 6,450 MW hydropower project nearing completion on the Blue Nile in Ethiopia, located about 30 km upstream of the border with Sudan.
The GERD is generating $55 million over the past 10 months. As per the announcement, the collaboration with mining companies will allow Ethiopia to efficiently use its energy grid and attract foreign investments. These agreements are expected to help modernize the country’s energy infrastructure.
EEP officials noted that cryptocurrency mining could become a key factor in developing Ethiopia’s energy sector and digital economy.
Ethiopia Electric Power (EEP) has already made $55m in less than a year from power-purchase agreements with bitcoin miners. It expects to earn at least $123m in 12 months from September 2024 as more bitcoin miners come online.
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) will be the largest hydropower project in Africa. Owned and operated by the Ethiopian Electric Power company, the 145-m-tall roller-compacted concrete gravity dam will flood 1,874 km2 at a normal pool elevation of 640 m, and will have a tributary catchment of 172,250 km2. With a volume of 74 km3 (of which 14.8 km3 is dead storage), the reservoir can hold about 1.6 years’ worth of average flow of the Blue Nile – 48.5 km3/yr – at the El Diem gage station, just below the border in Sudan (Conway 1997).
In addition Matthew Sigel, Head of Digital Assets Research at VanEck Investment firm speaking on CNBC SquakBox noted that three new BRIC members, Argentina, UAE, and Ethiopia have begun mining Bitcoin using government resources
According to him this is a trend among BRICS nations toward exploring digital assets for economic resilience and financial independence.
Tremendous urgency to circumvent the fiscal policy in USA.
He also noted in the interview that Russia’s Sovereign Wealth Fund is investing in Bitcoin mining throughout BRICS countries with the goal of settling global trade in Bitcoin.
Earlier this year, the government’s investment branch, Ethiopian Investment Holdings, announced a preliminary agreement with Hong Kong-based West Data Group for a $250 million project to enhance the nation’s digital infrastructure to support BTC mining activity.
However, challenges remain. Despite an installed capacity of 5,200 MW, over 40% of Ethiopia’s 130 million citizens still lack access to electricity. The country aims to generate 25 GW of renewable energy by 2030, but access to power remains a significant hurdle for Bitcoin mining expansion.
Luxor Technology in an X post stated, ” We participated in the second GAMA_alliance conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Ethiopia leads Africa for deployed hashrate at 600MW with much more hashrate to come. Luxor is looking forward to continuing to support miners in Africa with machine importation, & custom firmware.”
This is announced as UAE Hodler Investments, a UAE based investment company headquartered in the Dubai, which includes in its portfolio energy, AI, and digital asset mining startups such as PermianChain, Brox Equity, NEXGEN, and others; and GCL Energy Investment, subsidiary of GCL Group (Golden Concord Group), a leading Chinese integrated energy service provider that specializes in clean energy and new energy, with diversified development of related industries, have partnered to develop a distributed energy infrastructure project to power next generation distributed compute cluster data centers that are hosting AI, Blockchain and other applications.
In April 2024, Golden Concord Group signed two PPSA agreements with the Ethiopian government to explore and develop gas in the Ogaden Basin. Relevant GCL development blocks have 2P reserves of nearly 200 BCM of natural gas and 46 million tonnes of oil reserves.
As per the Memorandum of Understanding, both Hodler Investments and Golden Concord Group will co-invest in feasible and suitable energy projects applying energy optimization and sustainable energy efficient technologies. Golden Concord Group will supply critical energy infrastructure that will monetize under-utilized energy in Ethiopia, with the aim of hosting global data center operators, while reducing carbon emissions.
UAE’s multi-billion dollar tech conglomerate, Phoenix Group PLC, listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX: PHX) has announced its Q3 2024 results, reporting core revenue of $35.9M and investment income of $68.5M. Core revenue is primarily generated from self-mining, with additional contributions from trading and hosting services. The investment income, drawn from digital assets and other diversified Web3 investments, reflects the company’s active capital deployment strategy.
As per the press release, total assets saw a 148% year-over-year increase in the first nine months of 2024, rising to $977.6 million from $394.1 million, with a 6% quarter over quarter increase.
The self-mining segment achieved significant growth, surging 285% year-over-year to $26.6 million in Q3 2024, up from $6.9 million in Q3 2023. Earnings per share for Q3 2024 were reported at $0.008.
Q3 2024 revenue came in at $35.9M, with a decline in trading and hosting revenue due to the company’s strategic shift towards deploying more inventory into self-mining. Self-mining revenue has shown resilience, with only a 7% quarter-over-quarter decrease despite the full impact of the halving, increased mining difficulty, and lower BTC prices. Phoenix Group anticipates improvements in mining economics as early indicators of a new bull market begin to emerge.
The company achieved robust returns from investments, marking a 16% quarter-over-quarter growth driven primarily by gains from new digital asset investments.
As per the release, Phoenix Group demonstrated a strong ability to generate value across diverse Web3 investments, with some assets, such as Solana tokens, achieving over 4x returns. The company is actively pursuing a strategy to increase capital deployment into foundational deals and incubation projects. Despite a challenging quarter for the industry, Phoenix Group has shown notable resilience and a strong bottom line, outperforming many peer mining companies.
“Our Q3 results reflect the effectiveness of our adaptive investment strategy, particularly within the self-mining sector and across digital assets. Phoenix Group remains committed to capitalizing on emerging opportunities within Web3 and digital assets, ensuring we continue to lead with innovation and resilience. As we expand into foundational projects and incubation deals, we are well-positioned to provide significant value to our shareholders and support growth in the region’s tech landscape.” said Seyed Mohammad Alizadehfard (Bijan), Co-Founder and Group CEO of Phoenix Group.
“Our Q3 achievements underscore Phoenix Group’s dedication to proactive and sustainable growth, especially within the self-mining and digital asset sectors. By leveraging market dynamics and focusing on foundational investments, we continue to unlock new value streams that fortify our resilience and enhance our market leadership. We remain committed to aligning our strategies with shareholder interests, building a robust platform that stands resilient against market volatility while advancing the UAE’s tech landscape.” said Munaf Ali, Co-Founder and Group Managing Director of Phoenix Group.
In May 2024, Phoenix Group announced its Q1 results, showcasing a net income of $66.2 million which it noted was representing a growth of 166% year-on-year. As per the press release, total assets surged by 237% year-over-year, soaring to $879.3 million from $261 million.
At the time Phoenix Group noted that quarter-over-quarter growth in total assets stood at 5%, while revenue experienced an 18% quarter-on-quarter increase, reaching $68.9 million. In addition gross profit saw a robust 82.8% quarter-on-quarter rise, amounting to $23.28 million, while total comprehensive income expanded by 312% year-on-year to $102.28 million and by 33.7% quarter-on-quarter. As such the earnings per share for Q1 2024 amounted to $0.011.
It would seem that earnings per share has decreased in Q3 to $0.008 from $0.011 in Q1.
Matthew Sigel, Head of Digital Assets Research at VanEck Investment firm speaking on CNBC SquakBox noted that three new BRIC members, Argentina, UAE, and Ethiopia have begun mining Bitcoin using government resources
According to him this is a trend among BRICS nations toward exploring digital assets for economic resilience and financial independence.
Tremendous urgency to circumvent the fiscal policy in USA.
He also noted in the interview that Russia’s Sovereign Wealth Fund is investing in Bitcoin mining throughout BRICS countries with the goal of settling global trade in Bitcoin.
This comes months after a Bloomberg story about Chinese bitcoin miners in Ethiopia and Ethiopia plans of its government-funded $250M Bitcoin mining JV.
At the time Sigel tweeted, “Despite the ban on crypto trading in the country, 2022 saw the ratification of favorable data mining laws that permit “high-performance computing” and “data mining,” which is where bitcoin mining falls under. In the last two years, this has opened the floodgates to miners seeking its comparatively positive reception to bitcoin mining, coupled with its abundance of energy sources—chiefly hydro—to its optimal weather and cheap energy costs.”
UAE was one of the first to have a sovereign wealth backed crypto mining entity listed on the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange. Phoenix Group currently holds 4% of Bitcoin mining globally.
In Oman as well, Chinese backed and UAE backed Phoenix Group have invested in Bitcoin mining projects in the country.
Mining Grid, a blockchain and Bitcoin mining solutions provider has announced the opening of its showroom in Al Quoz Dubai UAE, and its “Mining Race”. The Mining Race is a global program designed to empower the community to actively participate in the primary mining market, contributing to the decentralized blockchain network.
The platform not only offers access to mining opportunities but also fosters awareness and education about Bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrency adoption. The Mining Race awarded the highest achievers within its community, celebrating innovation, success, and teamwork.
Additionally, Mining Grid’s newly launched showroom in Dubai will serve as a hub for crypto enthusiasts to explore the latest technologies providing hands-on demonstrations of advanced mining equipment.
Solaiman Al-Rifai, Founder and Board Member, Mining Grid said, “Mining Grid’s initiatives, such as the Mining Race and the new showroom, are aligned with the growing movement toward widespread Bitcoin adoption and the blockchain’s potential to reshape industries. As more businesses and individuals embrace the power of decentralization, the future of finance is poised for a digital transformation.”
Rami Alsridi, Founder and CEO, Mining Grid said, “Bitcoin has grown from just a few cents to a market cap of $1.3 trillion, connecting communities worldwide. Through the Mining Race, we aim to unite the crypto community and build a stronger, decentralized future.”
This comes as other entities such as Phoenix Group, the Blockchain and bitcoin mining entity launched from the UAE.
Recently the UAE Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA) issued an advisory to UAE farmers stating that crypto mining on farms could cause a sharp spike in electricity bills and cannot be carried out on UAE farm lands. For some this is confusing given that in many countries it is encouraged to utilize bitcoin mining for farming and agriculture.
As per the announcement published in Khaleej Times, “This activity is considered a misuse of the farm for purposes other than its intended use.” Those caught mining crypto on farms shall face fines of up to Dh10,000, it added.
Bitcoin Mining and High energy, water costs
This is not the first time Bitcoin or crypto mining is associated with high energy usage and costs. In a research paper entitled,” The Environmental Footprint of Bitcoin Mining Across the Globe: Call for Urgent Action. Earth’s Future, 2023” the authors used energy, carbon, water and land use data from 2020 to 2021 to calculate country-specific environmental impacts for 76 countries known to mine bitcoin. They focused on bitcoin because it’s older, popular and more well-established/widely used than other cryptocurrencies.
As per the research if bitcoin mining were a country, it would be ranked 27th in energy use globally. Overall, bitcoin mining consumed about 173 terawatt hours of electricity in the two years from January 2020 to December 2021, about 60% more than the energy used for bitcoin mining in 2018-2019, the study found. Bitcoin mining emitted about 86 megatons of carbon, largely because of the dominance of fossil fuel-based energy in bitcoin-mining countries.
In terms of water, global Bitcoin mining used 1.65 million liters (about 426,000 gallons) of water in 2020-2021, enough to fill more than 660,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools. China, the U.S. and Canada had the largest water footprints. Kazakhstan and Iran, which along with the U.S. and China have suffered from water shortages, were also in the top-10 list for water footprint.
“These are very, very worrying numbers,” Madani said. “Even hydropower, which some countries consider a clean source of renewable energy, has a huge footprint.”
Yet in terms of land use, the study analysed land use by considering the area of land affected to produce energy for mining. The land footprint of server farms is negligible, Kaveh said. The global land use footprint of bitcoin mining is 1,870 square kilometres (722 square miles), with China’s footprint alone taking up 913 square kilometres (353 square miles). The U.S.’ land footprint is 303 square kilometres (117 square miles), and likely growing while China’s is shrinking.
ADAFSA Justified in its decision
Mohamed El Masri, Founder and CEO of Permianchain, a blockchain start-up based in Toronto, Canada, that operates a permissioned blockchain platform to unlock liquidity from unused or underutilized natural resources reserves offering a mechanism for funding and energy creation for bitcoin mining and other sectors, explains, “I believe the recent warning by ADAFSA is justifiable and should have come way sooner. In my opinion, the AED 10,000 fine is a good warning fine, but if those miners do not comply, they should be fined a full year of bitcoin production (revenue) and be banned from ever conducting bitcoin mining business in the country.”
According to El Masri it is necessary to impose good practice and a sound regulatory compliant environment to maintain the UAE’s leading crypto stance. He notes, “Bitcoin mining is meant to be a social and economic practice that improves the livelihood of communities where energy and natural resources are underutilized, wasted or require commercial viability to bring to market. By hoarding power on agriculture land where it’s intended purpose is to bring much needed food security to the nation, I find that quite a waste of much needed resources.”
He explains that mining on agricultural land is not scalable anyway, and will not last. He states, “It was always a temporary fix for small-time retail mining managers to make a quick buck… the intention of these operators is money and not community or to build a circular economy for new wealth.”
He offers a solution which entails utilizing bitcoin mining in greenhouses and agribusiness to make use of the heat by-product for water heating, greenhouse crop production and other innovations are already being put to practice in various parts of the world.
Utilizing Bitcoin mining for sustainable Farming
This is true, other countries have opted for using excess energy, such as the methane waste on farms to use for Bitcoin mining. The mining of Bitcoin, requiring substantial energy input for the computational processes, can effectively harness this surplus methane, mitigating its impact as a potent greenhouse gas while simultaneously transforming waste into wealth.
The AmityAge Mining Farm in Slovakia exemplifies this fusion, transforming human and animal waste into biogas, consequently powering their Bitcoin mining rigs. This dual benefit fosters sustainability while offering a robust business model that mitigates greenhouse gas emissions.
In Canada a Manitoba company is using waste heat from bitcoin miners to heat their Greenhouse and fish farm business. In addition Myera Group in Canada is merging the worlds of Bitcoin mining and sustainable agriculture. Within the walls of a former car museum, Bruce Hardy, president of Myera Group, orchestrates a unique operation where more than 30 miners hash away on the second floor, quietly mining bitcoin while generating heat that serves a dual purpose, powering the ASIC miners and nurturing nearby plants in a greenhouse.
Even Iceland which boasts of an abundant supply of renewable energy, making it attractive hub for bitcoin miners, but is plagued with a large gap in food trade balance, depending on imports for basic necessities, is considering utilizing the synergy between bitcoin mining and use of renewable energy to offer a heating solution for businesses and greenhouses.
UAE Bitcoin Mining
In Conclusion the issue might not be Bitcoin mining on farms per say, but on what energy resources are used for Bitcoin mining, and how the excess heat from Bitcoin mining can be used for something useful allowing for a sustainable process, with less effect on the environment while enabling food sustainability.
This is especially important given that Abu Dhabi in particular has become of a hub for Bitcoin mining in the MENA region. In 2023 Zero Two, and Marathon Digital Holdings, Joint entity based out of ADGM for crypto mining inaugurated a 200 MW Bitcoin mining facility at Masdar Abu Dhabi.
As per Marathon digital website, Marathon digital is currently using UAE electricity grid to power the Bitcoin mining farm in Abu Dhabi, with 8,500 operational miners with a hashrate of 1.2 EH/s. ( They note on their website that *Data only represents Marathon’s share of the joint venture and not the total scope of operations). Marathon Digital own 20% of the joint venture.
Many in the ecosystem have noted that in the future, the UAE plans to use solar energy and nuclear energy as sustainable resources for energy production, until then whether Bitcoin is being mined on farms or elsewhere, the energy cost remains high.
Genesis Digital Assets Limited (GDA),a Bitcoin mining company with a presence in the UAE, is opening a new data center in Argentina powered by YPF Luz, a leading company in electric power generation.
The announcement comes during a period of expansion by GDA, which now operates 20 industrial-scale data centers across North America, South America, Europe, and Central Asia. The company’s first facility in South America is located in Rincón de Los Sauces, in the Neuquén Province and has a total capacity of 7 MW and 1 MW of backup.
The Bajo del Toro Thermal Power Plant, composed of YPF, Equinor and YPF Luz, will power 1,200 bitcoin mining machines, and efficiently monetize stranded gas, which would otherwise be flared into the atmosphere.
Speaking from the company’s Dubai office today, Abdumalik Mirakhmedov, Executive President of GDA, said: “We believe that Argentina is an important country for Bitcoin mining, given its abundance of energy sources and business-friendly environment.
“The opening of our first data center in South America is an important step in our geographic diversification efforts. And this will be yet another opportunity to show the world that Bitcoin mining can have a positive effect on the environment and can be fully integrated into local communities.”
With an abundance of energy, a favorable political climate, and a strong crypto ethos, Argentina is becoming increasingly important for Bitcoin mining and the broader industry.
For the new data center, GDA will use the electricity generated from stranded gas provided YPF Luz, an electric power generation company that has been leading the energy transition since 2013.
As stated by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, methane gas adversely impacts the environment as it is responsible for approximately a third of the warming the world is experiencing. Methane mitigation techniques, such as the utilization of stranded gas, are important to reduce emissions and combat global warming.
“In 2022, we were the first Argentine company to generate electrical energy for cryptocurrency mining from flare gas, an innovative solution in line with YPF’s energy transition needs,” said Martín Mandarano, CEO of YPF Luz. “This project with GDA allows us to bring YPF and Equinor, two companies committed to reducing the carbon footprint of their exploration activities, an adaptable and sustainable flare gas use solution.”
Max Keisser the Bitcoin activist is at it again. Over the past months Max continues to make claims that a nation state is purchasing large amounts of Bitcoin. First, he pointed the finger at Qatar, claiming it would purchase $500 billion worth of Bitcoin.
Qatar obviously did not confirm or negate these claims; however, its central bank and government continue to prohibit the trading of cryptocurrencies noting the risky nature of these virtual assets. This has not stopped Qatar from embracing digital assets, and developing a regulatory framework as well as the digital assets Lab.
However, this has not discerned Keisser, he commented on an X (formerly twitter) post by Vivek4real that notes that an “undisclosed nation-state just bought another 100 Bitcoin. They now own 59K Bitcoin.”
Keisser comments on X that his new intelligence points to Abu Dhabi being the purchaser of Bitcoin. He states, “Just got some new intel . . . Abu Dhabi is now the top contender.”
So now it is not Qatar but its Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE.
This while still seeming farfetched, could be closer to the truth than assuming that Qatar is purchasing Bitcoin. First Abu Dhabi and the UAE in particular have been positively approaching virtual assets. Both Abu Dhabi’s ADGM (Abu Dhabi Global Market) regulatory arm the FSRA as well as Dubai’s virtual asset regulatory authority (VARA) have come out with crypto regulations and have licensed crypto exchanges, and custodians.
Moreover Abu Dhabi is home to a Bitcoin mining farm co-owned and managed by Marathon Digital so it could be plausible that they are accumulating Bitcoin from revenues of the crypto mining farm. It is also the base of Phoenix Group another huge bitcoin mining investor.
So while Keisser continuously tries to allude to the fact that an rich oil country, or a country in the MENA region is buying up Bitcoin, the biggest governmental owners of Bitcoin are the United States, Britain, and Germany. They own the most Bitcoin according to Arkham Intelligence. The crypto analytics firm noted that the United States owns 212,847 Bitcoins.
What one can say for sure, is that the ownership of Bitcoin is falling more into the hands of institutional investors, and governments whether with Bitcoin ETFs or confiscated crypto.
U.S. based Sustainable Bitcoin Protocol (SBP), which aims to unlock Bitcoin’s potential to become the most transparent and sustainable asset has appointed UAE national, an entrepreneur and pioneer in nuclear energy technology, space industry and digital assets Ali AlNuaimi.
Ali Alnuaimi, will hold the position of advisor at Sustainable Bitcoin Protocol. As per the Xpost of SBP, “Ali brings a wealth of experience to Sustainable Bitcoin Protocol. His visionary leadership in launching the UAE’s 1st nuclear reactor & integrating blockchain technology into the energy & financial sectors is a testament to his expertise in sustainable #energy & technological innovation.”
The post adds, “Ali’s pioneering work in leveraging blockchain for energy sustainability aligns perfectly with the company’s objectives, promising to accelerate the adoption of #cleanenergy solutions in bitcoin mining.”
AlNuaimi holds other advisory roles in well renowned entities in the digital asset, AI and Blockchain fields. He is an advisor at Buildr.ai, Marathon Digital, Gigaenergy, and Mysten Labs, the creators of Sui Blockchain.
He is also the Founder and Managing Director of AI firm Shafra.
SBP enables investors to hold verifiably sustainable BTC through the introduction of a new environmental commodity derived from clean energy bitcoin mining, called the Sustainable Bitcoin Certificate (SBC). SBC are paired with BTC 1 for 1 by investors. SBC financially incentivizes Bitcoin miners to use verified clean energy sources.
Finally, SBP’s certificate allows Bitcoin to become fully sustainable with transparent clean energy use without disrupting the fungibility of BTC.
Sustainable Bitcoin Protocol is turning environmental sustainability into an appreciating commodity, in turn supporting clean energy bitcoin miners and helping investors reach their ESG goals.
SBC are a new environmental commodity specifically designed to align Bitcoin mining with climate action. SBC incentivize verified clean energy use and waste methane mitigation, as well as mobilize capital from investors toward the energy transition.
The SBP aims to bring in new revenue and energy transparency by mining Bitcoin with clean energy.
UAE has become a hub for Bitcoin mining, whether with Marathon Digital in Abu Dhabi, or Phoenix Technology, could this be the starting point for digital assets mining, using nuclear energy available in Abu Dhabi?
In a recent press release published by Marathon Digital Holdings, Bitcoin mining entity, the company showcased its unaudited Bitcoin production stating that in January 2024 their Abu Dhabi facilities will have a total of 7.1 exahashes online.
According to the CEO of Marathon Digital Fred Thiel, the operations in Abu Dhabi UAE currently has 2.7 exahashes online and includes over 13,000 rigs energized at their second larger facility in Masdar City. As he stated, “the remaining 4.4 exahashes are still expected to be online in January 2024.”
In November Marathon Digital had reported that 7.5 exahashes would be online by the end of 2023.
Marathon Digital by December had increased their energized hash rate 4% to 24.7 exahashes and extended their lead as the largest publicly traded Bitcoin miner in North America. As per Thiel, “We continue to target 30% growth in energized hash rate in 2024 and with the recently announced acquisition of the two sites from Generate Capital, which is expected to close in January 2024, we expect to reach 50 exahashes in the next 18 to 24 months.”
In addition their new joint venture in Paraguay also continued to energize, reaching 0.3 exahashes with 2,110 miners now online and the company expect the total 1.1 exahashes to be online by early Q2 2024.
Bitcoin production grew, as Marathon mined 1,853 BTC in December, up 56% from November, and 290% year-over-year.
Thiel explained, “Significantly higher transaction fees helped December’s Bitcoin production grow much faster than average operational hash rate. For the month, MaraPool collected more than 380 BTC in transaction fees or 22% of BTC production, up from 12% of production last month. Our success in capturing the sizable transaction fees currently available to miners is directly related to owning and operating our own pool and represents a key competitive advantage of our vertically integrated tech stack.”
As of December 31, the Company holds a total of 15,174 unrestricted BTC. Marathon opted to sell 704 BTC or 38% of monthly production to cover operating expenses. The Company intends to sell a portion of its bitcoin holdings in future periods to support monthly operations, manage its treasury, and for general corporate purposes.
Marathon held $356.8 million in cash and cash equivalents on its balance sheet at month end, all of which was unrestricted. During December, the combined balance of unrestricted cash and cash equivalents and bitcoin increased from $802.3 million to $998.5 million at December 31, 2023. In anticipation of the next Bitcoin network halving, the Company continues to build liquidity on the balance sheet to capitalize on strategic opportunities, including industry consolidation. The transaction to acquire two operating sites from Generate Capital is expected to close in January 2024 for approximately $178.6 million in cash to be paid from the Company’s balance sheet.
