In a recent Tweet the governor of Texas, Greg Abbot, shared a post on Twitter that ‘Texas will lead globally in Bitcoin and Blockchain Technology’.
The state has been in several meetings with the Texas Blockchain Council. Therefore, Texas boasts of the coveted position of leading globally in Bitcoin and Blockchain Technology.
Abbot commented that cryptocurrency is coming to grocery stores following a decision by H-E-B to put cryptocurrency points in a number of the grocery stores. Several reasons for Texas leading in blockchain technology are:
Rural Texas
Rural Texas is an area of interest to cryptocurrency miners. There is even a cryptocurrency mine under construction. Texas is planning to house thousands of supercomputers in the 320-acre mining facility of Dickens County.
The supercomputers will work day and night to solve a series of complex bitcoin ledger algorithms. Not many people live in Texas, and it being a rural area, the energy release will not affect the environment compared to urban areas.
Cheap Electricity
Bitcoin mining consumes a lot of electricity and this is the reason why researchers and miners are looking for alternatives to Bitcoin mining other than PoW. Texas is a place with cheap electricity because the power grid is deregulated. Therefore, miners can choose different types of power providers, each at low rates.
China’s ban also halved the Bitcoin mining hashrate. Therefore, more processing power is required to make up for the crackdown. The mining facilities will also help miners sign long-term contracts with power providers; mining will occur at a fixed price over many years.
When the demand for electricity goes up in Summer, Texas will pay the mining facilities to reduce energy consumption. The sources of electricity in Texas are also green and cheap, for example, wind, and coal making mining a clean process. There is pure combustion of energy.
Space
Mining machines consume large amounts of space hence a cryptocurrency mine cannot fit in urban areas. Dicken’s county population is 2300 and the rest is primarily grassland and pasture.
This is why Kevin Brendle, the top county official, agreed to the idea of building the facility in the area. The area also has few economic activities because it is a cattle area, which leaves the land open and wide range.
Job Creation and a Bill Validating Cryptocurrency Mining
Creating a mine in Texas will create job opportunities for the citizens in the state and boost the state’s economy. Greg Abbott also signed a bill that puts cryptocurrency under commercial law.
Therefore, unpredictable bans against cryptocurrency and bitcoin mining cannot occur like in China. Cryptocurrency miners have job security in Texas and have the mandate to sue the state in case of such occurrences.
Texas Will Be King in Bitcoin and Blockchain Technology
Indeed Texas is King in Bitcoin and blockchain technology. Passing a bill and accepting cryptocurrency kiosks for transactions is not an easy choice for many states. Abbot deserves applause.