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Iran’s power grid is under fresh strain as a large-scale boom in Bitcoin mining pushes regulators to hunt down illegal operations, according to statements from local energy officials and recent reports.
Cheap, subsidized electricity and covert hookups have turned parts of the country into a “paradise for illegal miners,” Akbar Hasan Beklou, CEO of the Tehran Province Electricity Distribution Company, said.
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Illegal Bitcoin Mines Multiply
According to Beklou, about 427,000 active mining devices are running across Iran, and more than 95% of them operate without proper licenses. That scale of activity is estimated to draw roughly 1,400 megawatts of power round the clock.
These numbers, the officials said, have forced energy
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