New York’s Valatie Falls Hydroelectric Dam to be Repurposed for Cryptocurrency Mining Operations

DPW Holdings plans to repurpose the Valatie Falls hydroelectric dam to provide electricity for its proposed cryptocurrency mining operations. When completed, the dam will provide low-cost electricity to a new cryptocurrency mining facility operated by a DPW subsidiary company. With concerns over the high energy consumption of virtual currency mining centers, this plan could have profound implications for the industry moving forward.

Details of the Plan

On August 22, DPW Holdings, Inc., a diversified holding company, announced via a press release that the historic New York hydroelectric dam, Valatie Falls, will be functional in Q4 2018. The dam will serve as a fully-dedicated source of low-cost and renewable power for a new cryptocurrency mining farm. The mining farm will be built and operated by DPW’s wholly-owned Super Crypto Mining subsidiary.

The 1-megawatt Valatie Falls Dam, built in 1983, was acquired in March 2018 by Valatie Falls Hydro, LLC via debt financing provided by Super Crypto Mining. The DPW subsidiary plans to establish a new cryptocurrency farm at the site, utilizing its new proprietary AntEater miner. The AntEater miner was developed in early 2018 in conjunction with Samsung Semiconductors.

Speaking on the company’s crypto mining project, Milton “Todd” Ault, III, CEO and Chairman of DPW Holdings, said,

“This project provided a unique opportunity for DPW subsidiaries to collaborate and innovate to create a new model for cryptocurrency mining, for which electricity is by far the largest operational cost factor. Our power solution engineers at Coolisys Technologies, Inc. worked closely with our cryptocurrency mining engineers and with Valatie Falls Hydro, LLC’s hydroelectric engineers to upgrade and retrofit the Valatie Falls dam for this exciting new phase of its long-lived operation.”

Cryptocurrency Mining in New York

There is as yet, no consensus on the argument concerning the energy consumption of cryptocurrency mining operations. However, an enterprise like DPW’s sets the stage for cryptocurrency mining to migrate from dependence on public power grids to their own electricity installations. Such a move has the potential to render moot many of the conversations and controversies on the subject.

New York continues to be a prime destination for cryptocurrency miners looking to situate their facilities in North America. Areas such as upstate New York, with its low electricity cost, are attracting considerable interest from mining companies.

In June 2018, Coinmint, the world’s largest digital currency center, commenced operations on its 1300-acre, 435-megawatt site in Massena, New York. As of June, the company had plans to invest up to $700 million in its new location.

Earlier in the year, Plattsburgh imposed an 18-month moratorium on Bitcoin mining in the city. In the same month, the New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) gave upstate municipal power authorities the right to charge higher electricity rates to high-electricity-consuming cryptocurrency mining companies. In July 2018, the New York PSC approved new electricity rates for Massena Electric Department to allow cryptocurrency companies to qualify for service.