Bitcoin mining firm SBI Crypto (SBIC) is suing its Rockdale, Texas-based data center, Whinstone US, alleging it falsely declared its readiness for a large-scale mining operation and caused hundreds of thousands of deaths due to delays and substandard conditions. million dollars in losses. SBIC’s charges against the data center include “fraud, fraudulently induced contracts, non-disclosure fraud, negligent bail, and breach of hosting service agreements,” according to the lawsuit. Among numerous misrepresentations, SBIC argued that Whinstone did not meet industry standards and frequently informed that the facility did not require building permits, certifications, and electrical contracts to fulfill its responsibilities under managed services agreements. SBIC entered into an agreement with Whinstone US in late October 2019. Under the original agreement, Whinstone assured SBIC that it has "acquired commercial access to up to one (1) gigawatt of combined power, which may be delivered to data centers, a portion of which may be progressively provided to [SBIC]". Whinstone has yet to secure gigawatts of power for its Rockdale facility and has not begun signing power contracts "until the start of operations in summer 2020," the SBIC said. SBIC also claims that Whinstone never fulfilled its promise to deliver 20,000 mining machines to the site. Foresight News noted that Bitcoin mining company Riot Platforms (formerly Riot Blockchain) acquired Whinstone US in May 2021 for 11.8 million common shares and $80 million in cash.