Kazakhstan Bans Crypto Mining Until February Due To Blackouts

The government of Kazakhstan has issued a temporary ban on crypto mining for the remaining of January. Yesterday’s mining ban is due to major blackouts that regions of central Asia have suffered.

Last year the Central Asian country welcomed the relocation of cryptocurrency miners, following China’s mining ban. However, the recent ban cuts off crypto miners from Kazakhstan’s electricity grid, temporarily. 

The Kazakh government reportedly has blocked crypto miners from using the nation’s energy from January 24-31. The state-run power grid operator, Kegoc, confirmed that companies that mine cryptocurrencies would no longer be allowed to do so until Feb. 1.

After the move blackouts hit the region, affecting Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. They were mainly caused by the disconnection of one of Kazakhstan’s major power lines. The country’s power grid is interconnected, and millions have lost electricity or water. 

Kazakhstan’s power infrastructure has been under stress for a while now, facing rolling blackouts this winter – a problem that Bitcoin mining’s substantial energy requirements have made worse.

Kazakhstan became the second largest crypto mining nation after China’s mining ban resulted a wide scale immigration of mining companies to find new home in the country. Many Bitcoin miners, however, are still unregistered with the Kazakh government.