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The global power needed to create cryptocurrencies this year could compete with the entire electricity consumption of Argentina and be a growth engine for renewable energy producers from the United States to China.
Bitcoin miners and other cryptocurrencies could take up to 140 terawatt hours of electricity in 2018, about 0.6% of the world total, Morgan Stanley analysts led by Nicholas Ashworth on a Wednesday note. This is the demand for power more than expected by electric vehicles in 2025.
"If cryptocurrencies continue to appreciate we expect an increase in global mineral energy consumption," Ashworth wrote in the statement.
Although the figure is too small to be a major driver of global service shares, it represents an important growth for companies investing in wind and solar energy combined with energy storage – a list that includes NextEra Energy Inc. , Iberdrola SA and Enel SpA, according to the note. Other potential beneficiaries include large oil companies that are investing in renewable energy and green energy developers backed by capital increases with initial money supply.
Miners will probably focus on low-energy regions, including China and the United States in the Midwest and the Pacific Northwest. Miners earn prizes in bitcoins to perform the complex calculations necessary to confirm transactions in the cryptocurrency.
The report, however, offered some caution.
"There are many uncertainties that mean that energy consumption could flow in both directions," wrote Ashworth. "This is clearly not an exact science".
