Mining: Economic Rebirth of the Abandoned Single-Industry Towns
TechnologyBit News Today2 min read
Closed facilities that retain substations and transmission lines are ideal for bitcoin mining firms. In Russia, cryptocurrency miners often operate in unused sections of large industrial complexes to take advantage of ready-made electrical infrastructure. Hansen noted that these sites typically possess built-in power capacity, making them well-suited for bitcoin miners to move in and operate.
Repurposing Legacy Industrial Sites
For more than a century, Alcoa has been making aluminium in Massena, a small town in upstate New York. However, Alcoa eliminated more than 300 jobs when it closed one of its plants in Massena. Bitcoin mining firm Coinmint leased the entire 1,300-acre site of the shuttered smelter to build what it claims could become one of the world's largest cryptocurrency facilities.
Rockdale, a community of about 5,600 people, has also attracted attention from cryptocurrency operations. Once a company town for 50 years, with jobs at Alcoa's nearby coal mine and aluminum smelter, Rockdale saw its economy hit hard in 2008 when Alcoa shut down the mine and smelter, followed by its power plant in 2018. In 2019, Whinstone moved to the outskirts of Rockdale from Louisiana, drawn by Alcoa's unused facilities and relaxed regulatory policies. After agreeing to a long-term lease with Alcoa, the company cleared overgrown land and constructed three buildings over an 18-month period.
Cryptocurrency Recycles Soviet Industrial Ghosts
Multiple large-scale mining operations have opened along the Angara River in Bratsk, benefiting from inexpensive hydropower and freezing temperatures that reduce cooling costs. As mining operations set up in former metal plants and decayed industrial buildings, local leadership sees this novel sector as a promising development for commerce.
Bratsk demonstrates how the remnants of the fallen Soviet empire have provided space for novel commercial ventures.
Coal-Backed Crypto
Blockware Solutions opened its primary mining facility on a coal site in Belfry, Kentucky, that had sat abandoned for decades. Kentucky State Representative Angie Hatton stated her hope that a region historically tied to coal mining would profit from this new form of mining. The Belfry bitcoin mine is powered by Kentucky's coal-heavy electrical grid and launches with 20 megawatts of capacity.
As the nation's coal regions shift away from fossil fuels, bitcoin miners are moving into the Appalachian Mountains, in a state where coal mining jobs dropped from a 1970s peak above 50,000 to fewer than 4,000. According to Rogers, the Belfry site needs only a small crew to secure and maintain equipment, offering full-time wages of $23 an hour, which is nearly three times the minimum wage.
