The Ministry of Energy of Ukraine is considering using surplus energy from power plants in the country for mining of digital currencies, such as Bitcoin.

Since the power plants in Ukraine currently produce a lot of surplus energy, alternative ways to make the best use of it are being sought. According to a report by FX Street, the alternative proposed is the mining of crypto-currencies. The current energy surplus in Ukraine results from the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Wasting energy should be prevented by crypto-mining

One option proposed by President Volodymr Zelensky aims to increase digitization and avoid wasting energy.

Liabilities caused by the excess energy could be converted into an asset by means of mining. By passing on surplus electricity for use in mining operations, the guaranteed load of the power plants would continue to be guaranteed. This would allow the operators to generate additional financial resources. The Ukrainian Ministry of Energy, in an article published via Facebook, describes mining as “a modern and efficient way to use energy”.

According to a report on the Russian-language news site “Forklog”, the acting head of the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine calls on the state-owned company Energoatom to investigate possible ways to introduce crypto-mining. The state-owned company, which employs about 38,000 people, has an annual turnover of 1.5 billion euros.

New Ukrainian legislation friendly to crypto-currencies

It was only at the end of last year that the legislator in Ukraine passed new legislation legalizing crypto payments. The aim is to ensure strict compliance with international standards for combating money laundering (AML). With the adoption of the new regulatory provisions for crypto payments, Ukraine also complies with the guidelines set by the intergovernmental Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Since the beginning of 2019, the FATF has been seeking to instruct member states to adopt stricter regulatory provisions.

*Originally published in German at CVJ.ch