Washington Bitcoin Miners Will Soon Pay More For Electric

Not long ago, it was disclosed that the supply of bitcoin was going to be halved. Now, it seems that, at least in one U.S. state, miners are going to have to work extra hard just to keep the lights on, literally.

CoinDesk reported on Wednesday (July 20) that a utility that is based in Washington State has boosted the rates that it charges bitcoin miners, a culmination of sorts to an argument and dialogue between utilities and the miners over power usage.

The Chelan County Public Utility District said that, effective at the beginning of 2017, rates would go up for those exceeding the threshold of 250 kilowatt hours per square foot, annually.

The impact of a rate hike would not be felt for a while, noted the site. There’s a five-year transition period, allowing existing utility customers to prove that they’ve made investment locally.