Data after halving: Bitcoin mining energy consumption drops sharply and then steadily recovers

Despite Bitcoin’s ingenuity, the process of mining Bitcoin networks is very expensive and power-hungry. The energy consumption of Bitcoin mining has a huge impact on the environment, and it has dropped after the Bitcoin halving, but is now starting to rise again.

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After the Bitcoin halving in May this year, the Bitcoin mining reward dropped from 12.5 BTC to 6.25 BTC, and many unprofitable and inefficient miners shut down their machines.

According to Digiconomist, as the Bitcoin network's hash rate fell 38% in the two weeks following the May 11 halving, Bitcoin's energy consumption fell 24%. But according to Digiconomist and the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index, Bitcoin's energy consumption is starting to grow again.

Data from Digiconomist shows that as of July 11, Bitcoin mining requires 61.256 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity per year, the highest number reported since May 11.

The site’s daily estimate hit 60 TWh in June before falling back below that level, but as of this writing has been at or above 60 TWh for more than a week.

Meanwhile, data from the Digiconomist website shows that as of July 11, Bitcoin’s minimum energy consumption was about 51.214 TWh, which is the highest minimum energy consumption for Bitcoin mining since March 14 (long before the halving).

According to Digiconomist estimates, Bitcoin’s current total energy consumption exceeds the electricity consumption of the entire Algeria region and is very close to the energy consumption of Kuwait.

The site states that Bitcoin currently produces as much carbon as Myanmar and as much electronic waste as Luxembourg. The site also states that one Bitcoin transaction produces as much carbon as 626,300 Visa transactions or 41,757 hours of YouTube videos. That’s a lot of traffic, and the trend shows that Bitcoin’s environmental problems haven’t improved at all.

The University of Cambridge’s estimate is different from the above figures, but still shows that global energy consumption for Bitcoin mining is on the rise.

Data from the site shows that the recent average peak for Bitcoin mining was 59.19 TWh on Tuesday, July 6, and has since hovered in the mid-58 TWh range. This is the highest peak the site has recorded since May 21.

Bitcoin hashrate is also growing, as hashrate and energy consumption are closely related. BitInfoCharts shows that the recent peak of Bitcoin hashrate was 131.5115E on Wednesday, July 7, which is the highest peak since May 11.

While this is still a far cry from the peak of 77.782 TWh per year reported by Digiconomist in early May before the halving, the trend suggests that despite the decline in Bitcoin mining energy consumption after the halving, the figure is now steadily increasing.

This article is translated with permission from decrypt.co.

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