Marathon Digital says Montana storm knocked out most Bitcoin rigs
Marathon Digital, a major Bitcoin miner in the U.S., had to halt three-fourths of its mining operations in Montana due to power outages caused by a storm, reinforcing an earlier decision to move out of the region.
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Fast facts
The Nasdaq-listed company on Tuesday said that its rigs may only have sufficient power to come back online at a reduced capacity only as early as the first week of July.
Before the storm hit on June 11, Marathon had deployed 30,000 mining rigs in Montana, or a little over 75% of its active infrastructure.
The miner’s Bitcoin production is expected to be significantly hit as a result. Marathon produced 268 self-mined Bitcoin in May, increasing its holdings of the crypto to 9,941 as of June 1.
Marathon announced in April that it was getting ready to move its mining operations in the third-quarter from Montana to other regions that come with more sustainable sources of power.
U.S. power companies are facing supply crunches due to extreme weather events, while consumer power use is expected to hit a record high this summer, according to Reuters.
Marathon shares fell 9.8% to close at US$5.80 in overnight trading on Wednesday.
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