Bitfury Launches New Bitcoin Mining Facility in Ontario
On Tuesday, the Bitfury Group - one of the world’s leading Bitcoin mining technology companies - announced that they were launching a new mining center in Sarnia, Ontario. The facility is already operational and is expected to reach a capacity of 16MW by the end of February and 28MW by the end of May of this year. The project has a total expansion potential of up to 200MW.
On top of operating Bitcoin mining centers, Bitfury has a strong reputation for in-house technology development. According to their website, Bitfury’s in-house semiconductor and R&D experts have designed 7 generations of their own specialized micro-chips. Additionally, their hardware innovation division, in collaboration with LiquidStack, are developing and deploying scalable immersion-cooling technologies. Combined, these developments help Bitfury “secure the highest-performing digital asset equipment, with efficiencies of 38 J/TH and better.”
The new facility in Sarnia is equipped with Bitfury’s cutting-edge software and hardware solutions, including their specialized micro-chips and other high-performance mining equipment. The new facility expands Bitfury’s hosting capacity and adds to their global mining footprint. Bitfury has now deployed and operates data centers in 6 countries, including Canada, Norway, Iceland, and Central Asia.
Brain Brooks, CEO Bitfury, recognizes the demand for exposure to digital assets is exceptionally high, which is why the mining company is happy to expand their operations to Sarnia. He states that with "…the combination of Bitfury’s best-in-class infrastructure and proven operational expertise (Sarnia) uniquely positions us to serve as a partner of choice to customers and investors globally.”
When expanding mining operations, a primary concern is energy availability and cost. According to Bitfury’s website, their existing operation locations “provide energy at a cost lower than most other sites in the world ($0.03 per kWh and lower).” In announcing their expansion into Sarnia, Bitfury’s Head of Data Center Development and Operations, Oleg Blinkov, said that “North America continues to represent an attractive, strategic market for Bitfury and digital asset mining at large,” in part due to optimal energy.
In addition to energy-related concerns, regulatory stances on Bitcoin mining have also made North America an attractive market. For example, following China’s crackdown on the mining industry last summer, both the United States and Canada saw an increase in global share of hashrate on the Bitcoin network. According to data from the Cambridge Center for Alternative Finance, from April to July of 2021, global share of hasrate jumped from 17.7% to 35.4% in the U.S. and from 4.7% to 9.6% in Canada.