Bitcoin mining project in Kenya helps power rural communities

by · December 9, 2022

A water-powered cryptomining project based in Africa released an update on its efforts to bring energy development to rural communities via Bitcoin (BTC).

On December 9, Gridless Compute tweeted photos and comments about how their hydro-powered BTC mining rigs are powering an entire rural settlement while lowering energy prices for 2,000 people, the equivalent of 500 families. According to the tweet, the cost is dropping from $10 per month to $4.

All this while securing BTC’s underlying blockchain network.

Earlier this week, the project also shared the results of a successful $2 million funding round led by VC Stillmark and Blocks, the parent company of CashApp and Square.

According to Gridless, the funds from this round will be used to promote the expansion of BTC mining across African markets, while also targeting rural communities for accessible energy.

Erik Hersman, CEO of Gridless, said that while BTC mining has been widespread throughout North America, Europe and Asia, Africa has great opportunities to diversify mining. He highlighted that renewable energy is abundant on the continent.

“This offers excellent potential for profit for both energy producers and miners, as well as the ability to deliver real positive impact on the communities where it is adopted.”

Miles Suter, an active personality in the BTC community and manager at CashApp, visited one of the sites in rural Kenya. Suter highlighted the renewable energy aspect of the project, as BTC mining has previously come under heavy scrutiny for its harsh environmental impact.

This comes as BTC’s hash rate has declined over the past month, allowing miners to recoup losses following mining’s lowest revenue reports in two years.

Related: The Middle East and North Africa are the fastest growing crypto markets: Data

Crypto activity on the African continent has soared over the past year as practical use cases for crypto and its technology continue to emerge.

This is so much the case that the International Monetary Fund recently called for tighter crypto regulation in Africa.

In addition, new partnerships have enabled cross-border payments between US citizens, sending funds to Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya via the BTC Lightning Network.