Luxor Technologies Chief Operating Officer Ethan Vera said that Russia is now receiving more mining equipment than any other country in the world.
Cryptocurrency Mining Group (CMG) said Western sanctions have boosted the mining industry in Russia. Cryptocurrency mining has become an alternative source of income for power producers. In addition, the process makes it easier to convert Russian rubles to bitcoins.
“No package of sanctions targeting Russia completely prohibits participation in the mining sector,” argues David Carlisle, vice president of policy and regulation at analyst firm Elliptic.
Still, there are “significant risks” for firms operating in the sector: they can’t do business with sanctioned entities, including mining company BitRiver, or make payments to state-owned banks and companies, Carlisle added.
Earlier, Vedomosti, citing the Analytical Center (AC) of the Fuel and Energy Complex, reported that Russian miners have reduced their electricity consumption by 47% in 2022.
Recently, experts from analytical company BitRiver calculated that by the end of the first half of 2023, Russia shows almost the same growth rate of cryptocurrency mining as the United States. There is also growing demand for mining services in Russia from China from 2023, the company said.