Ethereum After the Merge – A Change in Power

Abstract

This report presents an updated assessment of the environmental footprint of Ethereum several years after the network transitioned from Proof-of-Work to Proof-of-Stake. Produced by the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) at Cambridge Judge Business School, the research advances earlier analyses by executing a bottom-up infrastructural audit. Rather than relying on theoretical assumptions, it maps the physical infrastructure of the network: where the nodes sit, the exact hardware configurations they run on, and the specific carbon intensity of the grids that power them. The result is a highly granular, empirical estimate of the electricity consumption and greenhouse gas emissions of Ethereum. By establishing this definitive baseline, the report provides a transparent foundation for understanding the contemporary environmental profile of the network and how it may evolve.