If we had atmospheric carbon removing machines, the extra energy would be a great fit but there are no such machines.
For now, bitcoin mining is a good use of the surplus energy. Nuclear plants run 24 hrs a day and the operators have a hard time figuring out what to do with the extra energy during periods of low demand. There's no economical way to store it. Bitcoin mining is a good way to use the extra energy until there's a cheap way to save it.
The plants could run at a constant rate and be able to shift to bitcoin mining during the slow periods. It would add to the overall resiliency of the electrical grid while paradoxically reducing the cost of running a nuclear plant. It's a very smart move.
This is another sign that bitcoin is here to stay.
Bitcoin is only getting more resilient because of it's decentralization and the infrastructure that's being built around it. It will eventually get to a point where it can't be stopped. We might be there already. It took a huge hit from China's banning but it's still functioning.
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[ 3.7 ms ] story [ 23.5 ms ] threadFor now, bitcoin mining is a good use of the surplus energy. Nuclear plants run 24 hrs a day and the operators have a hard time figuring out what to do with the extra energy during periods of low demand. There's no economical way to store it. Bitcoin mining is a good way to use the extra energy until there's a cheap way to save it.
The plants could run at a constant rate and be able to shift to bitcoin mining during the slow periods. It would add to the overall resiliency of the electrical grid while paradoxically reducing the cost of running a nuclear plant. It's a very smart move.
This is another sign that bitcoin is here to stay.
It's not forever: it's for speculation.