Thailand seizes 996 Bitcoin miners after busting native operation stealing electrical energy

Thai authorities confiscated 996 Bitcoin (BTC) mining rigs in Chon Buri province, accusing operators of illegally siphoning electrical energy to energy the energy-intensive machines.

The raid, carried out on Jan. 8 within the Phanat Nikhom district, highlights rising issues in regards to the misuse of public utilities for crypto mining operations. Thai authorities beforehand carried out a number of raids on properties consuming an unusually great amount of electrical energy.

Police and officers from the Crime Suppression Division focused JIT Co., a agency registered for digital asset buying and selling, after uncovering proof of tampered energy meters used to evade electrical energy fees.

Crime Suppression Division Commander Montree Theskhan, who led the operation, stated the modified meters allowed the corporate to bypass substantial electrical energy prices, incurring losses estimated within the a whole lot of hundreds of thousands of baht for native suppliers.

Regardless of the presence of photo voltaic panels on the property, investigators famous they weren’t linked to the mining gear, which requires immense computing energy to validate crypto transactions.

An official advised reporters:

This sort of theft not solely prices the financial system hundreds of thousands but in addition strains the electrical energy provide.”

Authorities famous that the everyday month-to-month family electrical energy invoice in Thailand is roughly 750 baht, contrasting sharply with the industrial-scale consumption of the seized rigs.

Bitcoin mining is understood for its heavy power consumption. Based on research, mining a single Bitcoin in 2023 required roughly 155,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electrical energy, even with extremely environment friendly setups.

In Thailand, the place electrical energy prices common 4 baht per kWh, mining one bitcoin would quantity to 620,000 baht — far past the common family’s month-to-month electrical energy invoice of 750 baht.

The operation highlights ongoing challenges for regulators as crypto mining operations develop globally. Thailand’s authorities maintains a cautious stance on digital asset actions, and officers burdened the significance of safeguarding public assets in opposition to exploitation.

Investigations are persevering with to evaluate the total scope of damages and determine further events concerned within the scheme.