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A district court has sentenced a man to two years in prison for illegally connecting his crypto farm to the grid. The decision comes as Moscow authorities prepare to address the lack of proper regulations for cryptocurrency mining, which has become a popular source of income in Russia.
Russia’s Komi illegal crypto farm burns 1.3 million kWh
A 39-year-old local resident who runs an underground crypto farm has been found guilty of electricity theft by a court in Syktyvkar, the capital of Russia’s Komi Republic. The hardware was installed in a building rented from an industrial enterprise and was illegally connected to a nearby substation.
The man operated the mining facility for at least five years, using 1.3 million kilowatt-hours of unpaid electricity to mint digital currency, the district attorney’s office said in a press release on Tuesday. The value of the stolen electricity was estimated at 5.7 million Russian rubles (closer to $75,000 at the time of writing).
according to announcement, the man, who was not immediately identified, was sentenced to two years of probation for his mining activities between 2015 and 2020, which he admitted in court.
Without rules passed by the government, crypto mining has been spreading in energy-rich Russia, not only as a lucrative business but as an additional source of income for many ordinary citizens. In some areas, local authorities have complained that the rise of basement and garage mining has wreaked havoc on power grids that are struggling to meet growing loads.
The Irkutsk region maintains the lowest electricity prices in Russia, at $0.01 per kWh for households, and a power company has archive There were 85 lawsuits against home miners this year. According to a recent report, the company has won nine cases and is expected to receive 18.7 million rubles ($250,000) in damages.
Officials in Moscow and some regions are increasingly calling for make out Crypto mining as an economic activity and taxation of it. It will also give the authorities an opportunity to charge miners more for their energy consumption.One working team The State Duma is developing regulations for some cryptocurrency-related activities, including mining.
In December, the federal government allow Russian regions determine local electricity prices in residential areas. The move is expected to affect amateur miners, who will pay more after reaching a certain consumption threshold. Home mining is so popular mainly because it provides cheaper electricity to the population.
Do you think Russia will soon regulate cryptocurrency mining? Share your expectations in the comments section below.
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