The Kosovo government has stopped using crypto mining in the country due to electricity restrictions during the winter season.
The Minister of Economy of Kosovo, Artani Rizvanoli, has decided to stop cryptocurrency mining on the recommendation of the Technical Committee for Emergency Energy Supply, according to local newspaper Express Gazeta.
The report notes that the government took a decision after the electricity supply in Kosovo fell below target levels and began cutting electricity during periods of high consumption.
Radwanuli said the government decided to form a technical committee to evaluate emergency power supply strategies in response to the situation. Based on the commission’s recommendations last week, the government decided to take emergency measures, including stopping digital currency mining across Kosovo’s borders.
The report indicates that law enforcement agencies intend to intervene to stop the production of cryptocurrencies and work to determine where such operations are taking place. The minister said:
“These actions are aimed at the potential unexpected or long-term shortage of energy generation, transmission or distribution to overcome the energy crisis without increasing the burden on the people of the Republic of Kosovo.”
Due to low domestic production and heavy taxes on energy imports, the Kosovo power distribution company KEDS announced that electricity will be cut across the country on December 22. Bitcoin mining is known to consume a lot of energy, with a recent report claiming that Bitcoin uses eight times more energy than Google and Facebook combined.
In recent months, several countries, including Iran and Kazakhstan, have expressed concerns about power outages associated with mining operations.
On the subject: Iran stops exporting electricity due to crypto-mining and hot summer
Meanwhile, after Chinese miners surrendered due to the country’s announced crypto ban in September, it appears that cryptocurrency mining in Thailand is booming. According to Cointelegraph, Thai entrepreneurs and cryptocurrency companies have used Chinese miners to dump their mining hardware.
