After this article was published, Bitfarms said through a spokesperson that it wasn’t planning to leave the Quebec province, but rather there is a physical limitation on how much energy it can use for mining due to a 2017-era regulation and so it has expansion plans beyond the province. The headline and subheading have been updated.
With abundant sources of clean, renewable energy, for years Quebec was an ideal place to mine bitcoin. But leading miners there don’t see it that way now.
With the Canadian province implementing stricter regulation out of concern for bitcoin’s energy impact, miners are getting ready to leave the country for other sources of power. Bitfarms, a Nasdaq and TSX-listed company, is one of Canada’s largest bitcoin miners. Currently, all its operations are in Quebec, but not for much longer.
“Because of the rules and the restrictions that they put in place, it’s very limited growth opportunities in Quebec, at least as the policies currently are,” said Bitfarms Chief Mining Officer Ben Gagnon.
