Venezuelan authorities seized more than 11,000 Bitcoin mining machines and cut off power connections to many mining farms

Venezuela’s national electricity ministry has revealed an operation to monitor the activities of high-power customers connected to the national grid, including bitcoin miners. The ministry said on social media that the plan aims to “disconnect all cryptocurrency mining farms in the country from the electricity system to avoid a severe impact on demand from these activities.” Rafael Lacava, governor of Carabobo state, where most of the country’s industrial parks are located, led a series of operations that culminated in the seizure of more than 11,000 ASIC miners and the disconnection of electricity to an unknown number of cryptocurrency mining farms. Carabobo state is home to most of the country’s industrial parks. The operations focused on reducing the energy used for these activities. The country faces ongoing blackouts due to insufficient power generation due to a number of climate and sanctions-related challenges. Lacava said miners cannot continue to operate when ordinary people face ongoing energy outages. However, authorities did not clarify whether these actions were definitive or whether they would be implemented when the national electricity system is adjusted to produce more energy. Governor Lacava announced that more bitcoin mining farms will be closed and other measures will be announced in the coming days, including a national executive order to reduce energy consumption by state institutions. (Bitcoin.com) Yesterday, the Venezuelan government claimed that they plan to cut off all Bitcoin mines from the National Electricity System (SEN) because of their high electricity consumption, which leads to frequent power outages in surrounding areas. The Ministry of Electricity and Energy said that this action will prevent power supply interruptions and ensure reliable service for all Venezuelans.