Russia’s Ministry of Economic Development thinks that crypto mining should be allowed in places where there is a lot of energy, and that miners should be able to get cheap electricity. To make mining legal and use Russia’s strengths as a mining destination, the department has joined the calls.
The Economy Ministry says that crypto miners should be able to get cheaper electricity.
People in Russia are still debating the future of cryptocurrencies, and the country’s Ministry of Economic Development wants to let people mint digital currencies in areas where there is a lot of electricity and set reasonable prices for mining companies. It thinks this would help households and businesses in other places who are short on power.
Izvestia, a Russian newspaper, said that the proposal also calls for lowering the costs of connecting mining farms and data centres to energy sources. Also, the ministry wants the Federal Grid Company (FGC) to cut its transmission fees as well, so that more people can get electricity.
As an example, the economy ministry says that when digital coins are exchanged for rubles, a business should be set up and taxes should be paid on the exchange. There are a lot of officials in Moscow and places like Irkutsk, where mining in residential areas has caused a lot of power consumption and outages. This regulatory approach has been approved by them.
Another idea from the ministry is to set a limit on how much electricity private people can use. Exceeding the limit would show that someone is using a lot of energy to run mining equipment. Businesses across the country would have to pay higher tariffs, or commercial rates. This would then lead to higher tariffs.
The status of crypto mining is one of the things that Russian authorities are debating as they try to get the crypto industry in order. As with the Ministry of Economic Development, the Ministry of Energy is in favour of crypto regulation. The Bank of Russia, on the other hand, wants to ban it and other crypto activities, such as trades.
It was in January that President Vladimir Putin urged the government to come up with a solution on the issue and said that Russia had a lot of “competitive advantages” in mining. He talked about how there was a lot of electricity and a lot of qualified workers. In May, China started to crack down on mining, which made Russia more important as a place to mine.
Disclaimer: These are the writer’s opinions and should not be considered investment advice. Readers should do their own research.