Norway's Bold Move: Shutting Down the Crypto Mining Boom

Norway is slamming the brakes on the crypto mining frenzy with a bold new ban!

Hold onto your hats, crypto miners! On Friday, June 20, Norway dropped the hammer with a temporary ban on new data centers that mine crypto. This game-changer is set to kick in come August, and it's all about tackling the monster energy consumption tied to these operations. The country's not messing around anymore.

Minister for Digitalization and Public Administration Karianne Tung laid it out straight: "The Labour Party government has a clear intention to limit the mining of cryptocurrency in Norway as much as possible."

This is just the latest punch in Norway's ongoing battle against crypto mining. Back in April, they threw down a bill to wrangle its data centers, including those pesky crypto miners. Under this proposed law, data centers gotta register and spill the beans on ownership. Minister Tung didn't mince words: the goal is to "close the door on the projects we do not want."

Norway: Crypto Mining's Former Playground

Norway had turned into a crypto mining playground, thanks to its dirt-cheap and endless electricity. Especially up north, where energy and real estate costs are laughably low. Norway was even throwing around a 2% share of the global Bitcoin mining hash rate!

But here's the kicker: these mining operations suck up a ton of electricity, and the government's not convinced they're doing squat for the local economy or jobs. So, they're calling it—prioritizing that sweet electricity for other parts of the economy that actually matter.

And let's not forget, Norway's not just about oil in the North Sea. They've got this massive hydropower game going, thanks to their geography. It's a renewable energy goldmine that doesn't burn fossil fuels, making it the sustainable choice for a carbon-neutral future.