Authorities in China’s Qinghai Province order miners to halt operations

The Qinghai Province Department of Industry and Information Technology ordered local mining companies to suspend current operations. New projects in the sector are also banned.

China’s Qinghai Province also issued a document today calling for a ban on virtual currency mining. https://t.co/MF4gb277y8

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) June 9, 2021

Local regulators will monitor and pursue enforcement against any facilities attempting to mask cryptocurrency mining as the operation of data centres or supercomputers.

Details of the order will be announced on June 20.

Journalist Colin Wu noted that the wording used in the document suggests a pause for adjustments and does not necessarily indicate a full ban. In Qinghai, miners use energy produced by local coal-fired power plants.

The department said its actions are carried out under the “Measures for the Evaluation of Energy-Saving of Investment Projects,” adopted by the National Development and Reform Commission. Officials also cited the State Council directive on maintaining financial stability by cracking down on cryptocurrency mining and trading of Bitcoin.

Qinghai has become the third province whose authorities have revised their stance toward cryptocurrency mining. Previously, similar initiatives were voiced in Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia.

As reported, on May 23 China’s Xinhua News Agency criticised cryptocurrency mining and Bitcoin trading, three days after Vice Premier Liu He spoke in a similar vein.

Earlier, officials in Sichuan Province held a seminar on using surplus hydroelectric power under the ban. Media reported that the meeting with local miners was held in a cordial atmosphere, but without any resolutions.

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