Bitcoin ‘green’ certification launched

Energy Web has launched the ‘Green Proofs for Bitcoin’ (GP4BTC) programme with metrics to demonstrate sustainable mining operations.

The new solution comprises a certification platform and registry which assesses miners via a ‘Clean Energy Score’ and a ‘Grid Impact Score’, which are calculated based on operational information including location and energy consumption data.

Together, the scores are designed to reflect miners’ procurement of renewable electricity, siting of operations in regions with low grid carbon intensity and their contributions to grid stability through demand flexibility.

Developed in partnership with miners, NGOs, grid operators and other energy and crypto market participants, the approach is devised to align with best practices for sustainability in other industries as well as to approaches to corporate ESG reporting in the financial and other sectors.

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Amy Westervelt, Senior Delivery Lead and head of the GP4BTC initiative at Energy Web, says that Green Proofs for Bitcoin seeks to provide a unifying definition of sustainable mining, as well as a shared framework for assessing and verifying miners’ sustainability practices.

“While other electricity-intensive industries have benefited from custom decarbonisation roadmaps, Bitcoin has largely been ignored, creating a negative feedback loop where climate-conscious miners are left to forge their own paths. Our goal is to create a virtuous cycle where clean mining is easier to define, pursue, and monetise – so that it eventually becomes the status quo.”

Bitcoin is frequently in the spotlight for its energy consumption and many miners are pursuing strategies to reduce their carbon footprints, including powering their operations with renewable energy or flared gas and providing flexibility to the grids.

However, a standardisation of practices and a drive for collective action across the crypto mining sector have been restricted.

The Bitcoin Mining Council for example, while an important player in monitoring energy use and driving transparency, utilises voluntary disclosure for its now semi-annual reporting.

The GP4BTC was launched with five miners, Argo Blockchain, Cowa, DMG Blockchain Solutions, Gryphon Digital Mining and Hive Blockchain Technologies.

For miners, the GP4BTC solution is considered to provide evidence of clean energy practices, with the miner retaining full ownership and control of their data, while for Bitcoin users and institutions, it enables a one-stop-shop for discovering and validating miners’ sustainability credentials.

With verifiable metrics that are consistent across companies and geographies, the solution should provide recognition and reputational benefit for companies mining sustainably, as well as improved access to institutional finance and other returns on their investments into sustainability practices.