The rising energy demand of proof-of-work cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC) has been a hotly debated topic. But the 3rd Global Cryptoasset Benchmarking Study by the University of Cambridge shows that 76% of cryptocurrency miners use electricity from renewable energy sources as part of their energy mix.<\/p>\n
The study found that over 39% of the total energy consumed by PoW cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ether (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and others comes from renewable energy sources.<\/p>\n
This is in contrast to a previous such study by the university, which found that only 28% of the total energy consumed for cryptocurrency mining came from renewable resources. In 2018, 60% of the miners used renewable energy sources as part of their energy mix.<\/p>\n
According to the latest study, hydroelectric power is the most common source of energy for miners. Almost 62% of miners are reported to be using hydroelectricity. Coal and natural gas sources take the second and third spots at 38% and 36%, respectively.<\/p>\n
Wind, oil and solar energy are the three other common energy sources for cryptocurrency miners.<\/p>\n
The report further divides miner energy consumption by region, noting that miners from Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America use an almost equal percentage of hydroelectric power as compared to electricity from other sources such as coal, natural gas, wind and oil.<\/p>\n
Energy from coal is most common in the APAC region, contributing almost an equal amount of electricity to miners as hydroelectric sources. No miners from Latin America use coal-fired electricity to mine cryptos.<\/p>\n
The report also notes that APAC miners contribute almost 77% of the Bitcoin hash power but use the lowest amounts of renewable energy sources. And while North America adds only 8%of the total hash power, 63% of the energy consumed in mining Bitcoin came from renewable sources. Europe is only second to North America with almost 30% of its cryptocurrency mining powered using renewable energy. The continent contributes nearly 10% of the worldwide Bitcoin hash power.<\/p>\n
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