Russian crypto miners may face higher electricity bills next year, but the development could allow miners to continue their trade without further scrutiny from energy providers. It is thought that energy providers may even assist them in setting up their operations in ways that place less strain on local grids.
Many have voiced concerns that the slow pace at which the government is moving towards crypto legislation would leave both the miners and power providers in limbo. But per the media outlets Kommersant and Glas Naroda, the government appears to have found a solution that does not involve any legislative changes.
In an official statement, the government explained that it has handed local governors the power to “independently determine the maximum volume of electricity consumption” that citizens can use at “preferential” residential rates. Anyone exceeding this maximum volume limit will be forced to pay higher rates. The exact rates can be determined by the regions and power companies themselves.
The system has already been pioneered in Crimea and particularly in its largest city, Sevastopol, where citizens’ energy usage at lower residential rates is capped at 150 kWh per month.
The Ministry of Energy assured crypto users that the new legislation was not intended to raise taxes or fess, instead claiming that its purpose was solely to “combat inappropriate energy consumption.”
Regions have also been given the power to set “different tariffs for certain groups of the population.” This means to essentially ramp up electricity fees for people who the power providers have identified as crypto miners.
As for how it came to this situation, certain regions have complained to the government about escalating power usage on their grids. As mining has no legal status in Russia. This means that miners – particularly those working from home – pay the same fees as ordinary households for their electricity.
But some power companies, and regional governors, want crypto mining to be officially recognized as a form of industry or “entrepreneurship.” They also want miners to pay for electricity accordingly. If they are prepared to do so, some governors have said, they will be actively welcomed and even assisted in their efforts.
Larger crypto mining operations have happily agreed to the decree, hoping that the government might “legalize” mining in the process and provide them with less regulatory ambiguity.
A number of industry players have been concerned that the government’s glacial pace of crypto legislation creation would leave miners and power providers in an uneasy limbo for months to come.
But it looks like the changes brought about by the work-around might not take immediate effect. The Governor of the Voronezh Oblast, Alexander Gusev, was quoted as telling citizens in the Central Russian region that he wanted to “assure” them that “such changes” will “not take place until 2023.”
“For 2022, the electricity tariffs for Voronezh residents have already been fixed, following a decision that has already been taken by the federal authorities,” the Governor added.
Other more northerly regions, which have higher numbers of miners, may not want to wait that long, however.
