Power Consumption Plummets
The Bitcoin network recently saw a significant dip in its power consumption, tracing the two-week decline in mining hash rate. This shift meant that the total power needed for mining BTC blocks sank to a mere 199.225 exahash per second (EH/s). Now, if only my energy bill would drop as dramatically!
Historical Energy Needs
According to insights from the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, the network hit its lowest power usage in 2022, reaching only 10.65 gigawatts (GW). For context: at its zenith, this energy hog was demanding a whopping 16.09 GW! That’s enough power to make a small country envious.
A Comparison with Traditional Banking
In a rather illuminating report from Cointelegraph on June 16, it came to light that the banking sector devours 56 times more power than Bitcoin. And folks like Michel Khazzaka, an IT guru, cryptographer, and consultant, argue passionately for Bitcoin’s innovative potential:
“Bitcoin Lightning and Bitcoin, in general, are really great and very efficient technological solutions that deserve to be adopted on a large scale.”
Who knew a currency could spark such enthusiasm?
Hash Rate Chronicles
The cause of this newfound energy efficiency? The falling mining hash rate, which is crucial for the network’s security and the computational prowess required to mine blocks. As of June 13, Bitcoin’s mining difficulty skyrocketed to an all-time high of 231.428 EH/s, but this led to a relationship where more difficulty equals a drop in active miners. Over two weeks, the hash rate fell by over 13.9%—an economic roller coaster that only cryptocurrency can provide.
The Leading Miners
Interestingly, data broke down the hash rate distribution, revealing that F2Pool and AntPool were the giants in the mining game, producing 81 and 80 blocks in the four days preceding this report. Makes you wonder if they have a buffet going on over there with all that energy they’re pulling in!
Innovations in Cryptocurrencies
In a surge of creativity, researchers, buoyed by federal funding, have conceptualized an E-Stablecoin, a cryptocurrency that uses electricity as its backbone. Unlike traditional stablecoins, this innovative asset would be minted using one kilowatt-hour of electricity—plus a little extra for good measure. This could ultimately revolutionize how we perceive energy and transactions.
