Crypto miners in Texas shut down operations as state experiences extreme heat wave

cointelegraph.com:

With many parts of Texas enduring days of temperatures well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit in July, many crypto miners have shuttered operations in anticipation of the state’s energy grid being unable to meet demand.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, on Sunday called on Texas residents and businesses to conserve electricity with “record high electric demand” expected on Monday. According to ERCOT’s forecast, demand for electricity in Texas — due in part from running air conditioners amid extreme heat — could surpass the available supply.

The energy supplier’s prediction model showed demand could reach a record high of 79,615 megawatts (MW). While energy costs in Texas in June were reportedly lessened due to increased production from wind and solar, ERCOT reported on Sunday that wind generation was “generating significantly less than what it historically generated in this time period” — less than 8% of capacity when demand was predicted to be highest.

Many crypto miners in the Lone Star State have announced they have already scaled back or shut down operations in anticipation of demand Texas’ energy grid may not be prepared to handle.  In a Monday announcement on Twitter, crypto miner Core Scientific said it had powered down all its ASIC servers located in the state until further notice "to provide relief to people in Texas."

To provide relief to people in Texas, ALL of Core Scientific ASIC servers located in the state have been powered down. Core Scientific’s ASIC servers in Texas comprise less than 15% of our footprint, and will remain powered down until further notice.

A Riot Blockchain spokesperson told Cointelegraph its Whinstone facility in Rockdale had curtailed energy use at ERCOT’s request during the