Trump bombing Fordow Iran isn’t the only thing going on in Persia’s Crown Jewel. Now, the crypto and
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boom has turned into a national power crisis for the Middle Eastern country.
Officials estimate that 95% of the country’s 427,000 mining rigs now run off the books, sucking up subsidized electricity and pushing the grid to the brink.
Akbar Hasan Beklou, head of Tehran’s power distribution company, called the situation unsustainable and a “paradise for illegal miners” that’s burning through 1,400 megawatts of power nonstop, the same draw as several provincial cities combined.
“Unlicensed operators often disguise themselves as industrial facilities to exploit cheaper energy rates,” Beklou said Sunday.
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Will Bitcoin Be Banned In Iran? Tehran Launches Crackdown on Hidden BTC Farms
Authorities have intensified enforcement efforts, shutting down 104 illegal mining farms and seizing 1,465 machines in Tehran Province alone. That’s enough electricity to power 10,000 households!
Key hotspots include Pakdasht, Malard, and Shahre Qods, where inspectors uncovered rigs buried in tunnels and disguised inside factory warehouses.
According to CoinLaw, Iran’s estimated share of global Bitcoin hashrate stands at 4.2%, ranking just behind Canada and Russia.
Despite recurring blackouts and energy shortages since 2019, subsidized rates still make Iran one of the cheapest countries in the world to mine Bitcoin, costing miners as little as $0.01 per kilowatt-hour.
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Citizens Paid to Report Illegal Miners in Fordow Iran and Other Cities
For now, Iran’s energy police are outsourcing the crackdown. Citizens now get $1M tomans, roughly $24 USD – DAMN is that low! – for turning in illegal miners.
“Thousands of new machines appear every month,” said Tavanir CEO Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi.
The irony is grim for Iran, one of the US and Israel’s longest enemies: what began as a workaround to US sanctions has become an energy liability. As raids intensify, the fallout could reshape global Bitcoin mining and drain Iran’s underground operations while pushing hashrate back toward the West.
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Key Takeaways
- Trump bombing Fordow Iran isn’t the only thing going on in Persia’s Crown Jewel. Now, the crypto boom has turned into a national power crisis.
- What began as a workaround to US sanctions has become an energy liability.
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