Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), which is Japan’s biggest energy company, has said that its unit Agile Energy X will start mining Bitcoin. The company wants to power Bitcoin mining rigs with extra clean energy, mostly from solar farms. The goal of this project is to cut down on wasted energy and give the energy field another way to make money.
Agile Energy X has set up mines near solar farms in the prefectures of Gunma and Tochigi. These mines use energy that would otherwise be wasted because of too much production. TEPCO thinks that this method will not only keep renewable energy from going to waste, but it will also get more people across the country to use it. Kenji Tateiwa, president of Agile Energy X, says that if this project goes well, it could lead to more investments in clean energy.
Japan’s energy sector is often affected by curtailment, a process that keeps the grid from overloading by not using extra energy from green sources. Only in 2023, 1,920 gigawatt-hours of power were cut off, which is the same amount of power that 450,000 homes use in a year. Agile Energy X says that Japan could lose up to 240,000 gigawatt-hours of energy every year if it uses only green energy for half of its energy needs. Even if TEPCO only used 10% of this extra energy to mine Bitcoin, it could make about $2.5 billion a year.
Tateiwa thinks that integrating Bitcoin mining with renewable energy could improve earnings for power companies, encouraging further investment in green energy. TEPCO’s main goal is to support long-term energy solutions and look for new business opportunities after the Fukushima accident in 2011. This project fits with that goal.
TEPCO’s move into Bitcoin mining is similar to what other countries, like the US, are doing. Crypto mining companies are using green energy to keep the power grid stable. If more people think that Bitcoin mining is bad for the environment, it could help more people use green energy, especially when it uses renewable resources that would otherwise be wasted.
TEPCO’s move into “green” Bitcoin mining shows how the energy and bitcoin industries are changing together. By using extra green energy, the company is setting the standard for environmentally friendly crypto mining and becoming a leader in the field when it comes to making money while also caring for the environment. If this project succeeds, it could be a model for other energy companies around the world to follow.
