Iris Energy to secure 600 MW Texas mining capacity

The mining company Iris Energy has signed a binding agreement with energy company AEP Texas to connect to the Texas grid for a Bitcoin mining data center with a capacity of 600 MW.

$IREN signs transformational 600MW connection agreement with @AEPTexas
— 765MW expected power capacity (from 165MW)
— 23 EH/s potential #bitcoinmining capacity (from 4.6 EH/s)
— 15.2 EH/s execution plan for secured miners now clear
— #renewables heavy Panhandle region, Texas

— Iris Energy (@irisenergyco) January 21, 2022

This could potentially raise the amount of electricity available to the firm from 165 MW (corresponding to a hash rate of 4.6 EH/s) to 765 MW (22 EH/s).

Based on the amount of mining equipment reserved, Iris Energy laid out a plan whereby computing capacity would reach 15.4 EH/s in 2023, using around 530 MW.

The company is building mining farms in the Canadian province of British Columbia, for which it has already secured power.

The Texas data-centre buildings are planned to be completed by the end of 2022, with electricity connected in the first quarter of 2023.

Iris Energy paid AEP Texas $19 million as a security deposit and upfront payment for the installation of power lines.

The facility will be located in the Panhandle region, Texas, an area with substantial renewable energy resources, the company stressed.

As of writing, Iris Energy operates a single mining centre in British Columbia with a capacity of 30 MW. About 98% of the company’s electricity comes from environmentally friendly hydropower.

As a reminder, in August 2021 the company submitted a filing with the SEC for a direct listing on Nasdaq, although previously was considering the option to go public via a SPAC deal.

In October, Iris Energy again changed its intention and decided to go public through the conducting IPO. Initially the firm said it planned to raise $100 million in the offering, and then raised the hard cap to $223 million.