Mining hardware manufacturer Canaan has been awarded a contract to supply 4.5 megawatts (MW) of Bitcoin mining application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) to a project to help stabilize Japan’s power grid.
According to Thursday’s announcement, the company will supply a Bitcoin mining ASIC with a capacity of 4.5MW to an electrical engineering solutions provider for the project. The project will deploy Canaan’s new Avalon A1566HA-488T water-cooled mining ASIC for “real-time grid balancing and energy efficiency optimization,” Canaan said.
Mining operations run continuously and utilize controlled overclocking and underclocking to adjust power consumption and stabilize regional grid loads. Canaan’s proprietary control system dynamically adjusts frequency, voltage, and hashrate to match power supply and demand.
Related: CleanSpark, IREN report huge debts, ‘US tariffs on mining rigs skyrocket’
Nangeng Zhang, Chairman and CEO of Canaan, said that machines equipped with this system “allow utility companies to leverage Bitcoin mining as a digital load balancer, improving both energy sustainability and grid efficiency.” He also emphasized that “this project builds on a similar initiative we supported in the Netherlands last year.”
Crypto mining as grid load balancing
Grid load balancing is the continuous matching of power supply and demand to maintain frequency and voltage within safe limits. These measures are necessary because consumption and renewable energy production fluctuate widely, leading to potential price hikes and power outages if left unaddressed.
Related: Bitcoin ASIC producer Canaan tests production in the US, withdraws from AI business
Crypto mining helps by acting as a fast and controllable demand response. Miners are located near wind and solar power facilities that provide electricity to absorb unnecessary surplus power and can be shut down in seconds when the grid becomes strained.
Earlier this week, the CEO of Brazilian solar power company Torpen said the company is considering a move to Bitcoin mining to absorb excess energy generated by the country’s burgeoning renewable energy sector. A January report from the Digital Asset Institute suggested that Bitcoin mining has impacted Texas’ power grid, saving the state as much as $18 billion by eliminating the need for a new gas speaker plant.
magazine: 7 reasons why Bitcoin mining is a terrible business idea
