Bitcoin (BTC) mining is an energy-intensive industry. One of the major by-products of mining – excess heat created by computational efforts – has mostly just gone to waste. Recently, many have been asking if there is a way to put that heat to better use and turn it into sustainable energy for others.
As a result, mining companies are exploring various ways to recover and repurpose waste heat.
The City of North Vancouver is on a mission to become the first to use bitcoin mining to heat buildings. Canada-based cleantech cryptocurrency miner MintGreen will partner with the Lonsdale Energy Corporation (LEC). The result of this initiative is to supply heat to residents of North Vancouver starting in 2022.
MintGreen announced the partnership with LEC on Thursday, October 14.
Colin Sullivan, the CEO of MintGreen, said the aim of the partnership is tackling issues related to climate change.
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According to MintGreen, its Digital Boilers recover more than 96% of the electricity used for bitcoin mining in the form of heat energy. And this energy can subsequently be used to sustainably heat communities and service industrial processes. During the period of its arrangement with North Vancouver, it will prevent 20,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases per megawatt from entering the atmosphere. It will use the recovered energy to heat 100 residential and commercial buildings with a population of roughly 155,000.
Bitcoin miners run at full capacity 365 days a year. Therefore, this creates the unique opportunity to provide a reliable and clean heating baseload for North Vancouver’s district energy system.
Lonsdale Energy Corporation CEO, Karsten Veng, commented on the partnership. “Being partners with MintGreen on this project is very exciting for LEC, in that it’s an innovative and cost-competitive project, and it reinforces the journey LEC is on to support the city’s ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets.”
Veng believes that the pilot could be the launchpad for future expansion opportunities as the city continues to grow.
MintGreen said it plans to introduce the novel heat source to the city’s district energy system in 2022.
MintGreen is using the next generation of green mining technology. The company’s sustainable mining model is to use energy twice. First, to mine Bitcoin and then to provide zero-carbon industrial heating.
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The initiative with LEC is its most recent attempt at sustainable mining. MintGreen is using Bitcoin mining to boil the ocean in an innovative heat recovery application. The company sells heat waste generated from Bitcoin mining to the Vancouver Island Sea Salt facility. Subsequently, the heat is used to boil water and distill salt flakes.
Their second site at the Shelter Point Distillery uses heat from mining in the mash process to make whisky.
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