Today, Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc. launched (NASDAQ: MARA), a leading Bitcoin mining company, has launched an innovative pilot project to recycle heat generated from Bitcoin mining for community heating in Finland. The 2-megawatt data center, which was commissioned at the end of May, is located in the Satakunta district, which has a population of 11,000.
JUST IN: Marathon is now heating a town of more than 11,000 people in Finland using heat #Bitcoin Mining 🤯 🇫🇮
— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) June 20, 2024
“This pilot project in Finland is a critical step forward in our strategy of global expansion and sustainable innovation,” said Fred Thiel, Chairman and CEO of Marathon. “We don't just produce digital assets; We heat homes and incorporate sustainable practices into our business model. We believe that this type of innovation can drive progress in the digital asset computing industry and strengthen Marathon’s leadership position in this field.”
This initiative represents the first district heating project in Marathon and its first appearance in Europe. District heating involves heating water centrally and distributing it through underground pipes to heat local buildings. Finland, known for its clean energy mix, relies heavily on biomass for district heating. By harnessing the heat generated by digital asset data centres, the project aims to reduce carbon emissions and operating costs.
Marathon's ASIC heating setup
“Europe's cold climate has given rise to a vast network of district heating systems providing warmth to millions of residents,” says Marathon in its new report Heating with Retail, published in full below. “This same climate has attracted a different industry – data centres – which benefit from lower energy consumption and infrastructure costs associated with cold temperatures. The share of electricity consumed by data centers in the EU is at least twice the global average, with data centres. About 3% of EU electricity consumption compared to 1.0-1.5% globally, these energy-intensive facilities 3 generate large amounts of heat, creating a unique opportunity for strategic partnerships with district heating systems.
“One industry needs heat, while the other generates a lot of it,” Marathon continued in the report. “Instead of wasting the abundant heat produced by data centers, it can be recycled to meet heating demand. This innovation turns an unwanted byproduct of data centers into a valuable resource for district heating systems, reducing costs and waste for everyone involved while reducing the need for non-heat sources.” carbon-emitting efficiency.
Heating marathon report with retail
The project is part of Marathon's broader commitment to sustainability, expanding its business to twelve locations across four continents. According to Future Market Insights Inc, the district heating market is expected to grow from $198 billion to $340 billion by 2033, presenting significant growth opportunities. By recycling heat, Marathon aims to strengthen its sustainability portfolio and explore new revenue streams, in line with its goal of achieving zero-cost power for digital asset computing.
“Following the success of our pilot project in Utah, where we demonstrated that it is economically feasible and environmentally beneficial to use landfill gas to account for digital assets, we have continued to experiment with innovative ways our operations can add value beyond securing distributed ledgers, such as Bitcoin,” said Adam Swick, senior Marathon Growth Officers “This pilot project in Finland is our first attempt to turn the heat we produce as a by-product of our operations into a valuable resource for the local community. We look forward to collecting more data from this project as we look for additional ways to leverage digital asset accounting to build a more sustainable future.”
For more information about Marathon's sustainability initiatives, visit their website here. Those interested in reading Marathon's Heating with Hashes full report can do so below:
