Russia Wants Miners, Will Give Cheap Power

Russia Wants Miners, Will Give Cheap Power

Just when we thought that Russia and China had taken a back step from the mainstream bitcoin and cryptocurrency media, Russia has yet again surprised everyone with what is likely just the latest in a long line of twists and turns associated with acceptance and regulation in the space. Regular readers will know that, over the last few weeks, bitcoin, China and Russia have been at the forefront of the global regulatory discussion and, as a result, the latter two have been largely in control of the former.

The Chinese impact has eased off somewhat over the last few days. Russia, it seems, is still very much in the think of things.

The latest news from the Putin led nation is that Leningrad is now preparing to try and attract bitcoin miners to operate and build facilities in the region. At first glance, this seems a bit odd, but there’s a very valid reasoning behind the move and it’s called LNPP.

LNPP, or Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant is just about complete, having been originally commissioned back in 1974 and the region is setting up to build a second plant, the creatively named LNPP2, starting this year.

The plants are located on a large strip of land in the Leningrad region and, as per Alexander Drozdenko, Governor of Leningrad, heading up the project and the guy behind the push to bring miners into the region, it’s perfectly suited for bitcoin mining facilities.

And it’s not just the land that makes it attractive. There’s also another, very important factor in play here, power.

With any mining facilities set to be in extremely close to a brand new power plant, there’s an abundance of cheap and readily available power on offer for anyone looking to locate their efforts in the Leningrad region.

Whether there will be any takers remains to be seen. Russia seems to be happy to have a much looser grip on the cryptocurrency space than does China and this might be enough for some to take the plunge. For the more risk averse miners out there, however, even the lure of cheap electricity may not be enough.