SAN reporter’s inquiry into Texas’ Bitcoin mines triggers lawsuit

Watch SAN reporter’s inquiry into Texas’ Bitcoin mines triggers lawsuit - Straight Arrow News on Dailymotion

Transcript

00:00The Texas Public Utility Commission doesn't want you to know how many cryptocurrency mines are

00:05located in the state. Now, state office holders are suing each other to keep the information

00:10confidential. I'm Keaton Peters, an energy reporter at Straight Arrow News. Here in Texas,

00:15there are a lot of cryptocurrency mines. These are big data centers, mostly for Bitcoin. These

00:21facilities have been a source of wealth for some, but controversy for others, because they often

00:26locate in communities and can be a source of noise pollution. Energy economists also worry that

00:31they use so much electricity that it drives up the price for everyone else. The Bitcoin mining

00:36companies, well, they say they actually strengthen the grid by being a customer that incentivizes

00:41new energy development, but then being able to turn off their computers at a moment's notice

00:46when that power is needed elsewhere on the system. As a journalist, I wanted to know who was right

00:51and what the truth really is. I submitted a request for information on cryptocurrency mining

00:57facilities that had registered with the Public Utility Commission of Texas. The Utility Commission

01:02denied my request. They said that the information could be used to aid acts of terrorism. I appealed

01:09my request to the Texas Attorney General's office, who actually cited largely in my favor, saying that

01:15the Utility Commission didn't cite enough evidence for its terrorism argument. In response, the Public Utility

01:21Commission filed a lawsuit in June against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. This is a story not

01:27just about how cryptocurrency mining interacts with the electric grid. It's also about government

01:32transparency. Check out the full article by searching for Bitcoin Mines on san.com or in the Straight Arrow News app.