By On October 21st, 2019, Bitmain, Chinese cryptocurrency hardware manufacturer, announced that it had opened the “world’s largest” facility for Bitcoin mining in Rockdale, Texas.
According to a news release published on October 21st, Bitmain completed the project together with the Rockdale Municipal Development District and Canadian technology firm DMG Blockchain Solutions.
The Partners
Rockdale is located in Milam County, east of Austin. The facility sits on a 33,000-acre site and is currently developed to a current 25MW capacity, which can expand to a capacity of over 300MW in the future.
DMG is to provide hosting and management services for the Texas facility and will also cooperate with Bitmain to ensure the efficiency of the site’s mining operations.
The facility is seeking the local Rockdale suppliers to support the ongoing construction work. Bitmain will also purchase energy directly from Rockdale’s electric grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.
Bitmain, together with the Rockdale school district, plans to launch educational programs and training on blockchain technology and mining data center operations.
Facility’s Significant to Bitmain’s Global Expansion Plans
Bitmain announced its plans for the Texas facility on Aug. 2018 and said it expected to create 400 local jobs in the first two years. It also expected $500 million as its total planned investment into the economy over an initial period of seven years.
Earlier this year reports alleged that the project was being downscaled, with some reports of staff layoffs and suspended operations. But the reasons were thought to be adverse market conditions.
Clinton Brown, Rockdale Lead Manager for Bitmain, said that launching the facility is a move towards Bitmain’s global expansion plans. He added that the state’s efficient energy resources would be fundamental to supporting what he believes is set to be the inevitable scale of growth in the mining industry.
Comments