Bitcoin Mining Launched at Idle Power Plant in Bolivia

Bitcoin mining project launched at idle power plant in Bolivia.

Italian company Alps Blockchain, in collaboration with local firm Qurubiqa, has initiated a bitcoin mining project at an unused gas-fired thermal power plant in Bolivia’s Cochabamba department.

The plant has a capacity of 127 MW. Currently, the facility consumes about 27 MW, providing a hashrate of 1.23 EH/s. By the end of 2026, the partners aim to increase consumption to 45 MW, eventually reaching full capacity utilization of the power plant’s infrastructure.

The project operates on a behind-the-meter model: equipment is located near the power station and consumes energy without feeding it into the grid. Transactions are denominated in US dollars.

This financial model was chosen due to Bolivia’s prolonged currency crisis and liquidity shortages. Previously, the country’s government allowed the state oil and gas giant YPFB to use cryptocurrencies for paying energy imports.

The volume of virtual asset transactions in the first half of 2025 increased by more than 530% year-on-year—from $46.5 million to $294 million. This surge in activity was recorded after the official ban on cryptocurrency use was lifted in June 2024.

Alps Blockchain includes the Cochabamba site in its list of active projects alongside those in Oman, the USA, Ecuador, and Italy. The company’s total managed capacity is 242 MW.

Back in November 2025, Bolivia’s Minister of Economy José Gabriel Espinoza announced that the country would integrate cryptocurrencies and stablecoins into the national financial system to modernize it.