Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Texas Tribune
The Texas Tribune
National
Allyson Chiu, The Washington Post

Limiting crypto helped the Texas power grid weather a heat wave

Crypto Texas ERCOT Bitcoin Electricity Mining Lee Bratcher Texas Tribune University of Texas at Austin
Power lines outside of Whinstone's Rockdale facility on Oct. 22, 2021.
Power lines outside of Whinstone's Rockdale facility in October. (Credit: Michael Gonzalez/The Texas Tribune)

As a blistering heat wave smothered Texas this week and taxed the power grid with record-high demand, bitcoin mining operators in the state shut down their electricity-guzzling machines.

Complying with requests from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas — the grid operator that asked businesses and residents to voluntarily conserve electricity during the heat wave — nearly all industrial-scale mining in the state powered down, according to the Texas Blockchain Council, an industry association.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Jack White pays moving tribute to brother Edward Gillis after death from cancer
Edward ‘Eddie’ Gillis was the manager of the vinyl pressing factory in Detroit for White’s Third Man Records
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Newborn Baby With Moustache Goes Viral as 'Don Julio' Joke Amuses Viewers and AI Concerns Grow
A Boatos.org fact-check concluded that a viral video showing a newborn with a thick moustache was digitally altered, although the original footage and software remain unverified
International Business Times UK
International Business Times UK
Why Some Foods Taste Better When You Eat Them With a Plastic Fork
Have you ever noticed that a fast-food salad, a takeout pasta dish, or a slice of cake seems more satisfying when you eat it with a flimsy plastic fork? The food itself has not changed, yet the experience can feel different from eating the same meal with silverware at home.…
Grocery Coupon Guide
Grocery Coupon Guide
Table for 1? Nearly 40 percent of all restaurant visits are solo diners
More people are embracing the idea of taking themselves out on a date in recent years, with one New York City-based influencer telling her viewers: ‘It’s hard for me to want a boyfriend because I take myself on cute solo dates’
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
The Hidden Difference Between “Natural” and “Organic” on Food Labels
Walk down a grocery store aisle, and you will find packages promising everything from natural ingredients to certified organic products. Both labels can make food sound healthier, cleaner, or closer to the way nature intended, but they do not mean the same thing. One generally describes certain characteristics of a…
Grocery Coupon Guide
Grocery Coupon Guide
Is having urine the color of Mountain Dew normal?
A Trump administration doctor says neon yellow urine is normal because of diets consisting entirely of meat and fermented foods. Here’s what experts say
The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.
Download on the AppStore Get it on Google Play