Mining is nothing new to northern British Columbia, but an Australian tech firm is aiming to hit digital gold in Prince George and Mackenzie.
Iris Energy is establishing two data centers in northern British Columbia to take advantage of the province’s low-cost, clean energy source, according to Kane Doyle, Iris Energy’s senior manager of investor relations. Bitcoin miners rely on cheap electricity, and the three data center buildings under construction in Prince George are estimated to consume 50 megawatts of power.
Construction on the three data center facilities in Prince George had commenced as of Iris Energy’s April update, and the buildings were projected to be electrified by the third quarter of this year. Next year, more data center capacity is planned to be added.
Mining – “The process that Bitcoin and numerous other cryptocurrencies employ to generate new coins and validate new transactions.” It entails the use of huge, decentralized networks of computers all over the world to verify and safeguard blockchains, which are virtual ledgers that record bitcoin transactions. Computers on the network are rewarded with fresh coins in exchange for contributing their processing power.”
Iris Energy received building permits from the City of Prince George this spring for two structures related with the Prince George data center, totaling more than $8.5 million in value.
Iris Energy’s first B.C. 9 MW data centre is now operational in Mackenzie, and 41 MW of additional data center capacity is currently under development and scheduled to be finished in the third quarter of this year.
“The Prince George site during construction is expected to employ approximately 70-90 people at the peak of construction and will require approximately 15-20 full-time employees to manage and maintain our data center buildings,” Doyle said. “The Mackenzie site is expected to employ approximately 40-50 people at the peak of construction and will need approximately 15-20 full-time employees to manage and maintain our data center buildings.” Doyle said Iris Energy is committed to mining Bitcoins in an environmentally-sound manner.
“Our proprietary data centers (designed in-house) are optimized for operating performance and enhanced miner life (e.g. our unique airflow system and recirculation design takes advantage of the heat generated by the computers and also helps minimize our environmental footprint as no secondary heating or air conditioning is required),” Doyle said. “Our proprietary data centers and operational efficiency have recently been ranked (by an independent analyst) as one of the best in class (vs. other listed miners) in terms of Bitcoin mined per unit of computing power.” The company picked Prince George and Mackenzie to build their data centres because they “provide access to abundant low-cost renewable energy,” he said.
“We are helping to replace large industrial loads which have exited the network at a time when large volumes of supply is coming online from new hydro generation projects committed many years ago. Therefore, in regulated markets (where utilities seek to recover their required return on capex) our load and additional revenue to utilities contributes to lower power prices to all consumers,” Doyle said. “We are able to bring employment and economic activity to rural communities that are often the hardest hit by declining industrial activity.”
In Mackenzie, the firm just established a Community Grants Program, via which it would offer up to $100,000 per year to support local community projects in the areas of community engagement, sustainability, safety, technology, and learning.
“We are committed to supporting local communities including improving the welfare of the Indigenous communities in which we operate. In addition to increased investment and economic activity, initiatives currently being explored include local employment, training (including apprenticeships), community workshops and annual grant programs,” Doyle said. “We proudly sponsor local fire departments and sports teams, including the Mackenzie Mountaineers!”