Sandersville becoming hotbed for cryptocurrency mining
There's a new type of mining in the Kaolin Capital, one the doesn't involve mining at all.
A "win-win-win"
What do you think of Bitcoin?
Is it good, is it bad, or are you undecided? Whatever you think, it's a growing industry. One of the Bitcoin hotspots is right here in Central Georgia. According to a Cambridge University study, Georgia was the most productive state for Bitcoin in November 2021, averaging almost 31% of the nation's Bitcoin production. To understand why, you need to know a bit more about Bitcoin.
What is Bitcoin?
It's a type of digital currency, also known as 'cryptocurrency.' Think of it like online cash, except it doesn't rely on a bank. Instead, it relies on computers. It's the original form of cryptocurrency, and it's also the most expensive.
In April 2021, just one Bitcoin was worth over $63,500. Those prices tend to change a lot, and creating more coins, or 'mining' them, takes a lot of energy. There's a lot of clean energy up for grabs in Georgia. That helps keep the bills down, and helps the environment.
There can only be about 21 million Bitcoin ever created. Currently, there are around 19 million out there. Experts think they'll mine the last one a little more than 100 years from now. Once that happens, all the mining computers will focus solely on processing transactions.
The Mine in Action
When you say 'mine' in Sandersville, odds are, you think of kaolin; but there's a new type of mining in the kaolin capital. It's mining that doesn't involve mining at all. Enter: Bitcoin.
"You've got to find the right partner," explained Sandersville City Administrator Judy McCorkle.
She's sure that right partner is Bitcoin. More specifically, she's sure the right partner is Cleanspark, who runs the 16-acre Sandersville mine.
"We're in College Park, Norcross, Sandersville and Washington," said Matthew Schultz, Cleanspark's executive chairman.
The Sandersville site is one of their newest, but the city isn't new to Bitcoin. In 2021, Mawson Infrastructure went online with an acre of shipping containers filled with computers. They call them pods.
"They set up operations, and everything's been going good. They were expanding so fast out off of the Fall Line, we had some city property we had to let them use for a few months," said Sandersville Mayor Jimmy Andrews.
Mawson eventually expanded to 41 pods, and sold to Cleanspark. Just 12 of them can power all of Sandersville. Electrical power is part of the reason they say it's such a great partnership. Sandersville has its own electrical grid, and Cleanspark is their biggest customer.
How it got Sandersville Booming
"Our city operates off about 25 megawatts a day. They were up to about 80 megawatts a day," McCorkle said of Cleanspark.
She says the city's made over $2 million in power bills alone since the site opened.
"More power we can sell, the better off we are. The more projects and all that," Mayor Andrews said.
They're using the windfall to fix up some of the city's main roads. The money also helped them create new jobs in city government. It saves people money too.
"Big power user like that, it helps you keep the rates low for everyone else," McCorkle explained.
It's also a winning deal for Cleanspark.
"We as an electricity can design our own rates," McCorkle said, "So we can sit down and work with them, and see what rate is going to make it beneficial for them."
In exchange, Cleanspark is willing to help whenever needed.
"When the energy markets are constrained, or there's more demand, we can immediately curtail our use to reallocate those energy resources to places that are more needed," Schultz said.
Sandersville's 'Bitcoin Boom' success story
That means if there's concern of a blackout, they can shut down pods to send power to the grid, and keep the city's lights on. They're even hoping to expand the facility to handle 230 megawatts a day. That's 10 times what it takes to power Sandersville.
To the city administration, it's a "win-win-win." They hope to keep it going, and put Sandersville on the map in a new type of mining.
Not Everyone is Convinced
Not everyone in Central Georgia is convinced Bitcoin is the answer for their community. In April, Forsyth leaders voted against a Bitcoin mine from another company, called Wattum.
That mine would have opened just across the street from someone's front door, in the middle of a neighborhood. Afraid of noise pollution, some neighbors came to a city council meeting to protest. Some even posted signs in their yards saying, 'We want to hear the birds, not Bitcoin.'
Matthew Schultz with Cleanspark says he can't speak for other companies, but that his wouldn't do something like that. He says they work with each community they have a mine in to find the best location.
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