Cryptocurrency miner buys wind farm from National Grid in 'future blueprint' deal
Company plans to run Bitcoin mining centre only when wind is blowing, cutting its reliance on the grid entirely to secure 'near zero' power prices
A leading cryptocurrency company has bought a US wind farm owned by National Grid to power its operations, hailing the deal as a “blueprint” for how Bitcoin mining can help support the renewable energy sector.
Mara Holdings announced it has entered a definitive agreement to acquire a 114MW wind farm in Hansford County, Texas, which will be the sole source of power for its behind the meter data centre.
It said the deal is a major step in its aim to “convert under-utilised sustainable resources into economic value, achieve near-zero energy cost, and enable broader renewable energy deployment.”
Mara did not name the wind farm in question, but US regulatory documents previously revealed that Marathon Digital Holdings, as Mara was then known, was in advanced talks to buy the Great Plains Wind Farm in Hansford County.
The wind farm was commissioned in 2009 and features 76 GE Renewable Energy (now GE Vernova) turbines, each with 1.5MW capacity.
The wind farm, which until now powered the Texas grid, was 51% owned by National Grid, the UK’s main transmission operator and also owns transmission and generation assets in the US. The Washington State Investment Board held the remaining 49% stake.
Nevada-based Mara is a digital asset technology company, which mines cryptocurrencies with a focus on Bitcoin. It counts investment giants BlackRock and The Vanguard Group as minority shareholders,
“This acquisition serves as a blueprint for how the energy and data centre sectors can collaborate to create long-term value while advancing sustainability initiatives,” said Mara CEO Fred Thiel.
“By repurposing machines and energising them with 100% renewable, zero-marginal energy cost, we’re leveraging renewable resources that would have otherwise been curtailed."
Cryptocurrency mining, of which Bitcoin represents the vast majority, used a fifth as much electricity in 2022 as global centralised data computing and data transmission combined. One of the most recent estimates is that Bitcoin mining uses around 127TWh of electricity annually – around the same as Norway.