Cryptocurrency and its Effect on the Electric Grid

Abstract

Since the anonymous person or group known as Satoshi Nakamoto created Bitcoin in 2008, interest in the cryptocurrency has grown exponentially. In the past 14 years, thousands of additional cryptocurrencies have been created, some still active while others have faded into obscurity. Investors have flocked to cryptocurrencies for a variety of reasons from technology to decentralization to a hedge against inflation to simply chasing profits. For all the proponents that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have, they also have their share of critics. Recently, many people around the world have criticized cryptocurrencies for the amount of energy that they consume for new coins to be mined. This article aims to assess current data regarding energy usage for mining cryptocurrencies as well as, understand what actions are being taken to reduce the carbon footprint of these cryptocurrency mining activities around the world.