TechFlow news: On January 23, according to a Cointelegraph report, a winter storm threatening much of the southern United States could force Bitcoin miners to suspend operations. AccuWeather, a U.S. weather forecasting company, stated on Thursday that this “major winter storm” may stretch across 1,800 miles—from far-western Texas to the Mid-Atlantic coast—and affect over 60 million people.
Historically, when major storms disrupt the power grid, Bitcoin miners have proactively reduced their activity to alleviate strain on the grid. During Texas’s severe winter storm in 2022, cryptocurrency miners in the state voluntarily scaled back operations.
Daniel Batten, a Bitcoin environmental, social, and governance (ESG) researcher, noted that as extreme weather events become increasingly common worldwide, demand for load balancing in Bitcoin mining will rise—especially as more solar and wind energy is integrated into the grid.
