Bitcoin
This is how much Bitcoin (BTC) El Salvador mined using volcanic energy: report
Since 2021, when El Salvador began validating Bitcoin blocks with volcanic energy, the Central American country has mined 474 BTC worth approximately $29.6 million at current prices.
According to a Reuters reportEl Salvador mined the cryptocurrencies using a geothermal plant powered by the Tecapa volcano in the central-eastern region of the country.
El Salvador mines 474 BTC with volcano
The energy generated by the Tecapa volcano is relatively small, but it powers 300 mining processors installed by the Bitcoin-friendly president of El Salvador Nayib Bukele. The nation dedicated 1.5 megawatts (MW) of the 102 MW produced by the plant to crypto mining.
El Salvador’s volcano-powered mining plant presents a sustainable alternative to the electricity-consuming operations of other Bitcoin mining entities, which have been criticized for their negative impacts on power grids and carbon emissions.
Adding the 474 BTC extracted As of 2021, the number of bitcoins El Salvador has purchased, the country now holds 5,750 BTC worth about $354 million at current prices.
Interestingly, El Salvador’s Bitcoin Office revealed that several crypto mining entities, including Foundry USA, Ant pool, ViaBTC, F2Pool, and Binance Pool, pooled resources to earn a reward for creating a blockchain that verified Bitcoin transactions validated by the geothermal plant in the last three years.
El Salvador’s Bitcoin Bet Pays Off
El Salvador has come a long way since becoming the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021. By using renewable energy sources for mining launch Bitcoin securities and offer a Bitcoin citizenship investment program.
In mid-March, El Salvador’s Bitcoin HODL strategy paid off as BTC rose above $70,000. The country began accumulating the digital asset in 2021 and announced in November of the following year that he would buy one BTC per day. The value of Bitcoin was around US$16,000 at the time of the announcement; however, the asset was worth around $63,000 at the time of writing.
Cryptopotato reported that the country’s stock recorded a return on investment of 55%, recording unrealized gains of around 66 million dollars. Notably, the profits did not account for the country’s total Bitcoin holdings, as there were assets received through additional revenue sources unknown to the public.