(Bloomberg) — New York State again delayed its decision on whether to allow operations to continue at a Greenidge Generation Holdings Inc. power plant used for Bitcoin mining until after primary elections in June.
The cryptocurrency industry and environmental advocates have watched closely for the decision on pollution permits for Greenidge’s facility in Dresden, New York, which they see as a sign of whether the state government will allow Bitcoin operations at power plants. Bitcoin, the world’s dominant cryptocurrency, depends on so-called miners using high-powered computers to process transactions and earn rewards in the valuable virtual currency.
Crypto mining has become an issue in the race for governor, with candidate Jumaane Williams calling for a ban and environmental groups pushing Governor Kathy Hochul to outlaw the activity. The primary vote will be held June 28.
The Department of Environmental Conservation said Thursday in an emailed statement that it was delaying its decision until June 30. The state agency told Greenidge that the plant needed more emission mitigation, noting that last week the company proposed new measures to meet climate requirements.
Even when running at full permitted capacity, Greenidge said that greenhouse gas emissions amount to 0.2% of the statewide target for 2030, according to an emailed company statement following the decision. Greenidge, which is controlled by private equity firm Atlas Holdings LLC, said its operations will continue uninterrupted while it awaits the outcome.
Greenidge applied last year for the standard state pollution permits that power plants must have to operate. The decision is controversial since cryptocurrency mining is increasingly under scrutiny for its outsized electricity consumption.
Environmental advocates called the delay politically motivated and criticized the plant and mine for its large emissions and small number of jobs.
“It is outrageous that Governor Hochul not only failed to act, but punted a decision to after the primaries in an apparent attempt to cover her political interests,” Yvonne Taylor, vice president of the non-profit group Seneca Lake Guardian, said in a statement.
The state department delayed its decision on Greenidge’s plant in January and had set March 31 as its new deadline. Greenidge has said it is operating in compliance with its existing permit. Meanwhile, lawmakers in New York advanced a bill in March that if passed would impose a two-year moratorium on an energy-intensive type of cryptocurrency mining in the state.
Other politicians are also focused on the industry’s energy consumption. U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren wrote a letter to Greenidge in December pressing the company about the impact of its operations on climate change, the local environment and power prices. Greenidge responded by saying its operations are carbon neutral.
(Adds information from state agency in fourth paragraph and company comment in fifth paragraph.)
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