Bitcoin Mining Shifts Towards Renewable Energy Amid Global Coal Surge

According to Cointelegraph, the use of hydrocarbon fuels in Bitcoin mining has significantly decreased over the past 13 years, with coal energy usage dropping from 63% in 2011 to 20% in 2024. This represents an average annual decrease of approximately 8%, as highlighted in a report by the MiCA Crypto Alliance released on March 31. Concurrently, the share of renewable energy in Bitcoin mining has been on the rise, increasing at an average rate of 5.8% per year. This data indicates a consistent shift towards cleaner and more sustainable energy solutions in Bitcoin mining, with expectations for further decarbonization and reduction of Bitcoin's environmental impact in the future. The transition in Bitcoin's energy profile occurs against the backdrop of rising global coal consumption. The International Energy Agency (IEA), a Paris-based intergovernmental policy organization, reported that global coal use reached a new record in 2024, estimated at 8.8 billion tonnes. The IEA anticipates that global demand for coal energy will remain near record levels through 2027, driven by increasing consumption in emerging economies such as India, Indonesia, and Vietnam. This contrast highlights Bitcoin's evolving energy dynamics amid broader global energy trends. The MiCA Crypto Alliance report outlines five potential scenarios for Bitcoin's carbon footprint, ranging from a bearish $10,000 BTC price to an ultra-bullish $1 million scenario. These scenarios include a low price of $10,000, a base price of $110,000, a medium price of $250,000, a high price of $500,000, and a very bullish price of $1 million per BTC. In a medium price scenario, renewable energy is projected to account for 59.3% to 74.3% of Bitcoin's total electricity usage, depending on the policy scenario, excluding nuclear energy use. The report also anticipates a peak in Bitcoin mining energy consumption around 2030, aligning with a similar forecast by the digital asset platform NYDIG in September 2021. NYDIG's estimations suggest that even in a high-price scenario, Bitcoin's electricity consumption would peak at 11 times its 2020 level, yet it would only represent 0.4% of global primary energy consumption and 2% of global electricity generation. This projection underscores the potential for Bitcoin mining to continue its shift towards more sustainable energy practices while maintaining a relatively small share of global energy consumption.