Kremlin advisors have suggested that domestic cryptocurrency mining should be banned in Russia or some of its regions. The stated reason for the proposal is to prevent fires in residential buildings. Amateur miners have been blamed for high loads on the network causing breakdowns and blackouts.
The Energy Committee of the State Council, an advisory body to the Russian president, has recommended imposing a ban on minting digital coins in residential areas. Its members believe the measure will reduce fire risks, local media reported.
The idea is to completely ban the production of cryptocurrencies in apartment buildings and homes across the country, or at least in parts of Russia experiencing energy shortfalls. Among them are Moscow and Moscow Oblast, the region adjacent to the Russian capital.
Cryptocurrency-related business, which is a source of additional income for many ordinary Russians, especially in places with access to cheap electricity, is still unregulated. A bill tailored to do so is currently under consideration in the State Duma, the lower house of Russia’s parliament.
Energy experts have also suggested that the federal government should grant regional authorities the power to impose additional taxes on cryptocurrency mining, the Izvestia newspaper revealed in a report, citing minutes of a committee meeting held in mid-December.
Anton Tkachev, a member of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technologies and Communications, believes the push to ban mining in residential areas and energy-deficient regions is a logical move since industrial mines already consume critical amounts of energy.
He also pointed out that energy security is an acute problem, especially for small cities with insufficient budgets to finance the proper repair and maintenance of energy systems and structures. As for private homes, there is also a risk of mining equipment causing fires, the lawmaker added.
Russia’s Energy Ministry, which supports legislative regulation of crypto mining, noted that distribution networks in residential areas are not designed to handle coin-minting overloads in households, as pointed out by Russian energy companies.
Irkutsk Oblast has become Russia’s hotspot for home mining as residents take advantage of some of the country’s lowest electricity rates, subsidized for the population, and create cryptocurrencies in basements and garages. According to media reports, mining hardware was found at the sites of 23 fires in the region in the first half of 2022 alone.
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