Abkhazia drafts bill on crypto mining

The Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Abkhazia has developed a draft law targeting cryptocurrency mining activities in the country, local news outlet Sputnik Abkhazia reported June 24.
The ministry’s press service told Sputnik that the bill was approved and sent to the Cabinet of Ministers of the republic. The proposed draft provides for the legal, economic, organizational and technical rules for cryptocurrency mining activities in Abkhazia.
To engage in crypto mining, one must register as a legal entity or entrepreneur and register with the tax authorities as a taxpayer and obtain a license for cryptocurrency mining activities.
The report states that the law would allow for temporary restrictions on the use of the power system within the country for crypto mining in the event of a crisis situation in the energy network, such as infrastructure limitations or power shortages.
In December 2018, the Abkhaz government began banning the use of the domestic electricity system for crypto mining.
In January, the Abkhaz government reportedly cut power to 15 facilities with a total capacity of 8,950 kilowatt-hours (kWh), which it said was equivalent to the consumption of 1,800 households. The power cuts were part of a series of "temporary measures to limit electricity consumption for certain categories of users."
In early June this year, Anatoly Aksakov, chairman of the Russian State Duma’s Financial Markets Committee, said that by the end of the month the government might require administrative responsibility for cryptocurrency mining.
Source: cointelegraph