Bitcoin miners are adapting their business strategies as the continued trade war between the US and Canada makes energy prices and policies all the more uncertain.
US President Donald Trump threatened to double his tariffs on steel and aluminum from 25% to 50%, leading the government of the province of Ontario to walk back its own plan to increase the cost of power exports to the US.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford had promised to further increase the surcharge or even “shut off the electricity completely,” given further provocation. However, he appears to have softened his stance, at least for now.
The trade war may have reached a lull, but some crypto firms are looking ahead at possible policy changes in order to protect their growth.
Bitcoin miners expect changes in energy markets
Ben Ganon, the CEO of Canadian Bitcoin mining firm Bitfarms, told Bloomberg on March 11 that the recent energy price hikes, had they gone through, were unlikely to affect his firm’s business.
Bitfarms’ operations are mostly in Quebec and British Columbia, both of which boast significant hydroelectric capacity in relation to the total provincial energy mix. Ontario, by comparison, is “not as robust of an energy market. And over the last several years, they’ve really taken a big push on cutting back on baseload capacity.”
But even though Bitfarms’ energy situation may look solid for the time being, Ganon said that the tariffs “have implications for what policy and regulatory frameworks are going to look like in the future.”
He said that his firm wants to see “greater access to electricity markets” as well as fewer regulations on setting up a new business or new power applications.
Energy policy has been a contentious area of debate in Canadian politics, with critics accusing the Liberal government — now led by Prime Minister Mark Carney — of harming the Canadian economy with their strategies to lower emissions.
Related: What Canada’s new Liberal PM Mark Carney means for crypto
Ganon said: “The opportunities that are present in the United States are also present in Canada. And I think that this will all resolve itself and end up in a much more deregulated and smooth and efficient market because for years it’s been tied up in regulatory red tape.”
How would a Bitcoin miner benefit from tariffs?
Tariffs on goods such as steel, aluminum, and other industrial products — intended to encourage…
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