A country with a population of 7 million people now controls about 3% of the total global mining power of #البيتكوين . The story of #باراغواي in mining is one of the most undercovered developments in the industry.

Miners there consume an estimated 600 megawatts of electricity, or about 25% of the country’s share from the Itaipu Dam. Electricity costs reach about $0.033 per kilowatt-hour, making it one of the cheapest places in the world to mine cryptocurrencies.

For decades, Paraguay has been selling excess Itaipu electricity to #البرازيل at a price of roughly $10 per megawatt-hour. Then Bitcoin miners came along and offered $40. By 2024, there were 45 licensed mining operations, with 20 additional applications proposing 2000 megawatts of extra capacity.

But this growth attracted a major problem of illegal mining, as there were electricity theft operations through illegal networks at an industrial scale. In 2023, the authorities shut down 43 illegal networks consuming a total of 90 megawatts. Paraguay responded by updating its penal code to impose penalties of up to 10 years in prison for electricity theft related to mining.

In March 2026, the government changed its approach. Instead of merely cracking down, it launched a state-run mining operation using about 30,000 mining devices that had been seized, and it was deployed in government facilities. The national electricity authority has become the direct owner and operator of the infrastructure, turning the seized equipment and surplus power into sovereign revenue.

Hive Digital Technologies operates 300 megawatts of capacity at two sites in Paraguay, mining more than 12 Bitcoin every day, and controlling about 3% of the global Bitcoin network. The company says it is on track to become the largest contributor of U.S. dollars in the country each month.

Paraguay had more power than it used, with a dam waiting for a better buyer since 1984. And Bitcoin came with an offer that was the best in 40 years.

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