Fort Worth, Texas, becomes the first city in the United States to mine Bitcoin, on the initiative of millennial mayor Mattie Parker, according to CNBC.
A mining operation consisting of three Antminer S9 miners from Bitmain was installed in the mayor’s office IT department. For security, the devices are connected to a private network.
Mining cryptocurrency requires a large amount of electricity and technical staff to maintain. Therefore, according to the mayor, the project began as a small pilot.
Parker noted that it would not yield significant revenue, but the cost of the electricity consumed could be offset.
In addition to acquiring digital assets for the city’s balance sheet, the use of Bitcoin is intended to raise Fort Worth’s profile.
“Regarding Fort Worth — many people do not know who we are. We want to change that, and we believe that technological innovations, including cryptocurrency, are a way to do it,” Parker said.
Partners in the project included the Texas Blockchain Council, an industry association, and the mining-pool operator Luxor Technologies. The former donated three S9s, each worth about $600.
The mayor has held office for about a year. She said that discussions with fellow venture-capitalists prompted the Bitcoin mining idea. They noted that 80% of capital goes into technology, and cryptocurrencies are now at the heart of this.
“We are the fastest-growing city in the country. There is a lot of momentum around North Texas and Fort Worth in particular. To keep that energy up, we need to promote ourselves in various ways. We believe cryptocurrency is a huge part of our future economy,” the mayor said.
After six months of the mining pilot, Fort Worth will decide whether to invest real funds in building a farm.
In March, Texas congressman Pete Sessions expressed the view that Bitcoin mining could play a “key role” in ensuring the country’s energy independence. The state already hosts or is building data centers for a number of industry players, including Compute North, Iris Energy, Core Scientific and Marathon Digital.
Earlier this year, the commune of Sarodino in Argentina’s Santa Fe province decided to resort to mining to overcome financial difficulties. Local authorities expect monthly income of $500-$600.