Norway to impose temporary restrictions on Bitcoin mining to save electricity

The Norwegian government said on Friday that it intends to prevent the creation of new data centers, which are involved in heavy coding mining. The plan was first reported by Reuters.

According to Kararian Tong, Minister of Digitability and Public Administration, encryption mining is “very dense to power” and provides only minimal returns in local economic jobs or benefits, and the government wants to give priority to electricity to other sectors.

The proposed restrictions can become valid in the fall of 2025, targeting facilities that use the most intensity mining techniques in energy.

Norway was a famous destination for the coding miners due to access to abundant hydroelectric energy. according to Data From Webopedia, the country stands in the top ten global positions for encryption mining activity.

However, this popularity has caused public concern about the use of energy, especially amid the increasing demand for electricity and the targets of green energy.

Bitcoin mining operations in Norway were also exposed to an increase in general scrutiny due to noise pollution. In late 2024, residents of HadSEL municipality successfully pushed to close a local mining facility due to excessive noise.

However, the closure raised electricity bills to residents, as the facility constituted nearly 20 % of the local energy company’s revenues.

High energy consumption is one of the biggest concerns when it comes to encryption mining.

Russia has imposed a ban on encryption mining in 10 regions, including the North Caucasus Republics and the occupied territories in Ukraine, as of January 1, 2025, that lasts until March 15, 2031.

Seasonal restrictions also apply in some Siberian areas during peak energy consumption periods to prevent energy lack.

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