Block and venture capitalist Stillmark have led a $2 million seed investment in Gridless, a miner that leverages small-scale renewable energy systems in rural Africa, according to a December 6 announcement from Block.
Bitcoin mining is an energy-intensive process in which power-hungry computers safeguard the blockchain of a digital asset by confirming transaction data and unlocking tokens as a reward. According to some studies, the annual energy consumption involved exceeds that of entire countries such as Belgium.
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Block’s latest initiative to promote sustainable and decentralised mining operations is this investment. It has hired professional crypto-mining engineers and managers to expand its mining operation and create programmes that would inspire people to mine Bitcoin. The majority of Bitcoin mining computer power is now provided by industrial-scale data centres.
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According to the statement, Gridless aims to capture excess energy from small-scale renewable power sites in rural Africa. It has contracted with HydroBox, an African hydroelectric energy company, for five project pilots in rural Kenya, three of which are currently operational. Gridless plans to expand into other parts of East Africa in the near future, according to the company.
Energy costs have a significant impact on mining profitability. The sector has been hammered by rising electricity prices, a 66% drop in Bitcoin over the last year, and strong competition.
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert.
As an award-winning writer and researcher, he is passionate about telling the African startup story, and is one of the continent’s pioneers in this regard. You can book a session and speak with him using the link: https://insightsbyexperts.com/view_expert/charles-rapulu-udoh