hodler

4 Jun 2026, 17:00

Bitcoin Miners Positioned as Future Power Lessors for AI, Bernstein Says

BitcoinWorld Bitcoin Miners Positioned as Future Power Lessors for AI, Bernstein Says Investment firm Bernstein has issued a bullish outlook on select Bitcoin miners, assigning ‘Outperform’ ratings to TeraWulf (WULF) and Cipher Digital (CIFR). The firm argues that these companies are evolving beyond cryptocurrency mining into critical infrastructure providers for the rapidly expanding artificial intelligence industry. Miners as Infrastructure Partners for AI According to a recent Bernstein research note, Bitcoin miners have signed at least 17 power supply agreements with major technology firms over the past two years. These contracts, valued at a combined $110 billion, involve supplying approximately 6 gigawatts (GW) of electricity to companies including Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Nvidia, and CoreWeave. The agreements position miners as ‘power lessors’—entities that lease their existing, large-scale electrical infrastructure and data center operational expertise to AI developers. Bernstein highlights that miners possess a unique advantage: they already manage vast amounts of power capacity and have deep experience operating high-density computing environments. This makes them natural partners for AI firms facing a severe shortage of available energy and ready-to-use data center space. Revenue Growth Projections The investment firm projects that AI-related revenue for the companies it covers will increase approximately ninefold over the next four years. The forecast estimates revenue will climb from $1.2 billion in 2026 to $10.7 billion by 2030. This growth is expected to be driven by long-term contracts that provide stable, recurring cash flows, reducing the miners’ historical dependence on the volatile price of Bitcoin. Implications for the Energy and Tech Sectors This shift represents a significant strategic pivot for the Bitcoin mining industry. For years, miners have been criticized for their substantial energy consumption. The new model, however, frames them as essential grid infrastructure that can be repurposed to meet the surging energy demands of AI. For technology companies, the arrangement offers a faster path to securing power for new AI data centers than building from scratch, which can face years of permitting and construction delays. Conclusion Bernstein’s analysis suggests that the convergence of cryptocurrency mining and artificial intelligence is not a passing trend but a structural shift. By leveraging their power assets and operational know-how, companies like TeraWulf and Cipher Digital are positioning themselves at the center of the next wave of technological infrastructure investment. The long-term contracts with industry leaders provide a foundation for revenue stability and growth, regardless of the near-term direction of Bitcoin prices. FAQs Q1: Why are Bitcoin miners considered good partners for AI companies? Miners already have access to large amounts of pre-permitted power and have extensive experience running high-density data centers. This makes it faster and cheaper for AI firms to secure the energy and facilities they need. Q2: Which companies did Bernstein rate as ‘Outperform’? Bernstein assigned ‘Outperform’ ratings to TeraWulf (WULF) and Cipher Digital (CIFR), citing their strong positioning in the AI infrastructure market. Q3: How much AI revenue does Bernstein forecast for these miners? The firm projects AI-related revenue for the covered companies will grow from $1.2 billion in 2026 to $10.7 billion in 2030, a roughly ninefold increase. This post Bitcoin Miners Positioned as Future Power Lessors for AI, Bernstein Says first appeared on BitcoinWorld .

4 Jun 2026, 08:30

Bitdeer Breaks Ground on 100 MW Alberta Site With on-Site Gas Power

Bitdeer (NASDAQ: BTDR) has started construction on a vertically integrated energy and computing facility in Alberta, advancing a project that reflects how bitcoin miners are increasingly pairing data centers with dedicated power generation as demand from AI workloads reshapes the market for electricity and digital infrastructure. This article first appeared in The Energy Mag. The

4 Jun 2026, 07:38

MARA Holdings: A $1.5 Billion Acquisition Just Transformed Its Identity

Summary MARA Holdings maintains sector-leading energy costs at $0.04/kWh for owned sites, critical for Bitcoin mining competitiveness. MARA's total cost per acquired Bitcoin rose to $40,047 in Q1 2026, reflecting global hashrate growth, but energy cost discipline remains strong. MARA is pivoting towards AI infrastructure by acquiring Long Ridge Energy & Power, securing a 505 MW gas asset with expansion potential beyond 1 GW. Diversifying into AI data center power provision positions MARA to reduce reliance on volatile Bitcoin mining while retaining industry leadership. Sometimes, the difference between survival and extinction in business all comes down to tiny incremental numbers. This reality is set in stone in a business like Bitcoin mining, and companies like MARA Holdings ( MARA ) are well aware of the fact that they must do everything within their power to force some separation between themselves and the competition. This is why I was so pleased to see this tidbit of news from the company's Q1 2026 earnings report : On the cost side, our cost per kilowatt hour was $0.04 for our owned sites in the first quarter of 2026. For context, we believe this remains among the most competitive in the sector at a larger scale. Salman Khan, Chief Financial Officer for the company, was quoted as saying that. He went on to report that the total cost per acquired Bitcoin had risen to $40,047 in Q1 2026, compared to $35,728 the year prior, but he attributed that to growth in the global hashrate. So, while the cost of acquisition for each Bitcoin was higher than the year before, the company is doing an excellent job of managing its energy costs. That will be increasingly important as energy demand continues to soar . MARA is Working on an AI Transformation I have to hand it to the management team at MARA. They appear to be well aware of the fact that the earth beneath them is shifting, and they need to be reactive to it in order to survive. The steep decline in the value of Bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) over the last year has made it difficult to post positive news for companies that operate in this space: Data by YCharts However, rather than stand pat and simply complain about the changing economics of the space, management at MARA has made the proactive decision to make a shift towards becoming a critical AI infrastructure provider. Namely, the company seeks to provide some of the power that AI data centers and other AI infrastructure require. To take steps in that direction, the company recently closed a deal to acquire Long Ridge Energy & Power LLC from FTAI Infrastructure Inc. ( FIP ). This deal gives MARA access to a facility that is a 505 MW combined-cycle gas asset with 1,600 acres of property and the potential to expand beyond 1 GW of power capacity. This provides MARA with an excellent opportunity to leverage the asset that they acquired in this deal to step in to provide AI data centers with the power capacity that they will require as they continue to expand their operations. Is it a pivot from the type of business that MARA has built its reputation on? Yes. Is it also a timely move that grants MARA the ability to reinvent itself and begin to operate in an industry that is booming? Also, yes. I believe that this is a bold move that can begin to shift MARA out of the volatile Bitcoin business slowly but steadily. While Bitcoin mining will likely always be at least part of MARA's identity, I believe that diversifying revenue streams is always a smart step, and that is the step that MARA is taking. Record Hashrate Expansion Proves That MARA Remains Ahead of Bitcoin Mining Competitors While I have largely focused on how I believe MARA will diversify itself out of the Bitcoin mining business, it is important to note that they do still operate in this realm for the time being. I don't anticipate some massive unwinding of this business entirely at any point in MARA's near future. As such, they must remain ahead of the competition in this space. In Q1 2026 , the company proved once again why it is a leader in the Bitcoin mining arena. In particular, its record hashrate expansion was a shining moment of pride for the company. Here is how Salman Khan reported on that: During the quarter, we delivered record energized hashrate of 72.2 exahash per second, increasing 33% from 54.3 exahash per second in Q1 of 2025. He went on to say: This growth reflects continued fleet optimization and the deployment of approximately 2.4 exahash of new generation ASIC miners at favorable pricing during the quarter. Our share of available mining rewards reached 5.5%, up from 4.8% in Q4 of 2025. Once again, I read this as a company that is focused on operational efficiencies. Given what has happened with the price of Bitcoin over the last year, I believe this is exactly where the attention of all Bitcoin miners should be. If a company can nail down the basics like this, then it stands a better chance of weathering the storm of a Bitcoin decline, and I believe that is precisely what MARA has done. Valuation Figures Suggest That MARA's Story is Just Getting Started One of the interesting things that I noted as I began to explore MARA's valuation figures in relation to those of their competition is that they seem to be a company that has been left behind. On most of the metrics that I checked, MARA's competition showed largely better results. Typically, if I saw this, I would wonder if there was something fundamentally wrong with the company. However, after digging into MARA's story, I don't believe that to be the case. Instead, I believe that as a company that has yet to turn profitable, MARA has been somewhat overlooked by the market even as its peers have seen their share prices soar. A few of MARA's peers that I examined include: IREN Limited ( IREN ) Hut 8 Corp. ( HUT ) Bitdeer Technologies Group ( BTDR ) CleanSpark, Inc. ( CLSK ) Riot Platforms ( RIOT ) Just take a moment to appreciate how much the shares of each of these companies have appreciated in the last year compared to MARA: Data by YCharts They are all flying high while MARA has virtually flatlined. This is notable simply because it seems that the rest of the industry is being rewarded while MARA is being overlooked. While I certainly understand a fair dose of skepticism about MARA's ability to rebound from some pretty devastating Bitcoin price action over the last year, I don't think the market is giving the company its fair respect when it comes to the company's work to transition into the AI infrastructure business. If that segment of the business takes off, and I believe there is a chance that it will, then MARA could see its share price finally begin to behave like that of some of its rivals, in my opinion. Forward P/E Ratio As regular readers already know, I am a big fan of the forward P/E ratio metric as a comparison tool. I find it to be extremely useful in that it helps to show me what kind of future Wall Street projects onto the various companies that I examine. Does it mean that it always pans out just how Wall Street anticipates that it will? No, but it is still useful for at least helping me to better understand what perceptions of various companies look like. When I ran this comparison on these various competitors, here is what I found: Data by YCharts Of this group, one company, Hut 8 Corp., doesn't have earnings to compare its price against. The others largely showed companies with extraordinarily high forward P/E ratios. However, that simply wasn't the case for MARA's figure. Instead, it appears quite reasonable, and dare I say, even attractive at this level. It appears to me that the lack of gains in its share price over the last year might be helping to keep that number in line. Price-to-Book Ratio While I don't typically gravitate towards using price-to-book ratios as a means of comparison, I noticed something interesting while examining MARA. That is that the company boasts of an enterprise value larger than its current market cap. MARA seemingly has significant assets on its books, but it isn't being valued fairly based on that in my view. That led me to run a comparison of the price-to-book ratios of each of these competitors as well, and this was the result: Data by YCharts On this measure, MARA is the runaway winner. My opinion is that they are being undervalued and disrespected by the market given their enterprise value and capital position. The Bearish Take Although I largely see MARA as a value name at this juncture, there are certainly plenty of bearish investors who view the name in a different light. They have certain arguments that they tend to pivot to when debating this stock, and I think it is fair to give them the floor to make those arguments. Here are the bearish takes on this name: MARA is Still Mostly a Bitcoin Proxy As much as management might want to talk about a transformation into an AI infrastructure provider, many still see the company as nothing more than a Bitcoin proxy . This being the case, many investors treat it in exactly that light. They continue to trade the stock based on the value of Bitcoin, and that value is highly volatile. This argument also goes a long way towards explaining why MARA lags competitors so significantly and why, in the minds of bears, that reality won't change anytime soon. The AI Pivot Isn't a Guarantee The move towards becoming an AI power supplier might seem like a brilliant play by management, but bears still question if it will work. There are plenty of bullish takes that say that this is a diversification play, but the bears want to see real proof in the pudding before assigning any value to this move at all. MARA is the Stock That Has Been Left Behind When it was all said and done, after my review of this name, I came to a simple conclusion. That is that MARA feels like a stock that has been left behind. Maybe it is due to the level of Bitcoin exposure that it still has, or perhaps Wall Street is simply too caught up chasing other stories. Whatever the case may be, I believe that this name is undervalued. I understand that the Bitcoin exposure still exists, but I see where the company is making vital efficiency improvements. Also, if MARA has managed to survive this severe decline in Bitcoin's price over the last year, then I believe that it will likely see better days if and when Bitcoin's price recovers. Add to that the fact that the company is making tangible acquisitions in its mission to transform into an AI infrastructure play, and I feel confident in recommending MARA as a buy for any portfolio.

4 Jun 2026, 06:43

Why Are Bitcoin Miners Setting Up Next to Nuclear and Hydro Plants?

BitcoinWorld Why Are Bitcoin Miners Setting Up Next to Nuclear and Hydro Plants? Bitcoin miners setting up next to nuclear and hydro plants is one of the clearest signals of how the mining industry has matured from a chaotic, fossil-heavy business into an energy-strategy game. The logic is simple: these plants offer cheap, reliable, low-carbon power that turns electricity, a miner’s single largest cost, into a durable competitive advantage. This article breaks down the economics behind these co-location deals, why nuclear and hydro specifically attract miners, the real-world partnerships already operating, and how miners double as flexible grid partners. Why Do Bitcoin Miners Want to Be Located Next to Nuclear and Hydro Power Plants? The core reason Bitcoin miners set up next to nuclear and hydro plants is cost. Electricity typically represents 60–80% of a mining operation’s operating expenses , so even a fraction of a cent per kilowatt-hour decides whether a miner is profitable or bleeding cash. Locating directly beside a power source eliminates transmission fees and grid markups, unlocking some of the lowest electricity rates in the industry. Key drivers behind the co-location trend: Rock-bottom power costs: At Pennsylvania’s Nautilus Cryptomine , miners reportedly drew nuclear electricity at around $0.02 per kWh , one of the cheapest rates in the public mining sector. Baseload reliability: Nuclear and hydro deliver stable, 24/7 power , which suits mining hardware that earns most when it runs continuously. Low-carbon profile: Both sources are carbon-free or low-carbon , helping miners answer the ESG criticism that has dogged the industry. Squeezed margins: With network hashrate surging (exceeding 831 EH/s in May 2025) and rewards thinning after the halving, only the cheapest-power operators survive. Why Are Nuclear Plants Specifically Attractive to Bitcoin Miners? Nuclear plants face a structural problem that Bitcoin mining happens to solve: they run at full output around the clock but cannot always sell all that electricity, especially overnight when demand drops. A miner sitting next door becomes a guaranteed “buyer of last resort” for power that would otherwise be sold cheaply or wasted. Surplus monetization: Plants that can’t sell 100% of their output can route the excess to mining, improving plant economics. A clean-energy use case: Analysts at ScottMadden have framed nuclear-plus-mining as a partnership that diversifies utility income while putting carbon-free power to productive use. Rising nuclear share: Nuclear’s slice of Bitcoin’s energy mix climbed from about 4% in 2021 to roughly 10% in 2025 , according to Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance data. Real partnerships: TeraWulf formed a 2021 joint venture with Talen Energy beside the 2.5 GW Susquehanna plant; Standard Power partnered with Energy Harbor in Ohio; and Oklo has explored small modular reactor (SMR) deals with mining firms. Why Do Bitcoin Miners Cluster Around Hydroelectric Dams? Hydropower is the single largest renewable source in Bitcoin mining, accounting for around 23.4% of the surveyed energy mix in the Cambridge data. Its appeal is seasonal abundance: dams frequently generate more electricity than the local grid can absorb, particularly during high-flow rainy seasons, and miners convert that surplus into revenue instead of letting water spill past idle turbines. Soaking up surplus: In Paraguay , miners have worked with the national power authority to absorb excess hydropower from the massive Itaipu Dam . Cheap, cool, and renewable: Iceland, Norway, and Quebec pair abundant hydro (and geothermal) with cold climates that cut cooling costs, making them long-standing mining hubs. Curtailment avoidance: Around New York’s Niagara River , miners ramp up during high-flow seasons and scale back when household demand rises, helping balance the system. How Does Locating Near Power Plants Help the Grid, Not Just the Miners? A frequently overlooked point in the Bitcoin miners and nuclear/hydro plants story is that mining is an interruptible, location-flexible load unlike almost any other heavy industry. Miners can power down within seconds to minutes, which makes them useful partners for grid operators managing volatile supply from renewables. Rapid curtailment: During Winter Storm Elliott in December 2022, Texas miners curtailed over 1.5 GW within minutes, freeing enough power for roughly 300,000 homes. Paid to pause: In some ERCOT grid events, miners earned more by curtailing and selling power back than by continuing to hash. Renewable smoothing: Miners can soak up midday solar or overnight wind surpluses and step aside at peak demand, reducing curtailment without costly new storage. Plant viability: By providing steady baseline revenue, mining can improve the financial case for keeping struggling nuclear plants and renewable projects running. div]:bg-bg-000/50 [&_pre>div]:border-0.5 [&_pre>div]:border-border-400 [&_.ignore-pre-bg>div]:bg-transparent [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8"> _*]:min-w-0 gap-3 standard-markdown"> Frequently Asked Questions Why are Bitcoin miners setting up next to nuclear power plants in 2025 and 2026? Bitcoin miners set up next to nuclear plants mainly to secure cheap, reliable, low-carbon baseload power, often at rates near $0.02 per kWh that are hard to beat anywhere else. Nuclear’s share of Bitcoin’s energy mix rose from about 4% in 2021 to roughly 10% in 2025, driven by deals like TeraWulf’s venture beside the Susquehanna plant. With mining margins squeezed by rising hashrate and post-halving rewards, locking in the lowest possible power cost is now a survival strategy. Is Bitcoin mining with hydropower actually good for the grid? In many cases, yes. Bitcoin miners act as flexible, interruptible buyers that absorb surplus hydropower during high-flow seasons and power down quickly when households need electricity, as seen in Paraguay’s Itaipu Dam partnership and Quebec’s hydro surpluses. This load flexibility helps avoid curtailment and improves the economics of hydroelectric plants, though it doesn’t make mining universally “green.” Are AI data centers competing with Bitcoin miners for nuclear and hydro power? Yes, and increasingly so. The same baseload nuclear and hydro power that drew Bitcoin miners is now in high demand from AI hyperscalers, who often generate more revenue per megawatt and can outbid crypto firms for grid access and long-term contracts. Several former Bitcoin mining sites near power plants are already being converted into AI data centers, while some miners pivot to hosting AI workloads to stay competitive. Conclusion: Why the Race for Plant-Side Power Matters Now The trend of Bitcoin miners setting up next to nuclear and hydro plants is not a quirk of the crypto world; it is a preview of how every energy-intensive industry will fight for clean, reliable, low-cost electricity. Miners proved that co-locating with baseload generation slashes costs, answers environmental criticism, and even strengthens grids through flexible demand, lessons AI operators are now racing to copy. With hyperscalers competing for the same nuclear and hydro contracts and former mining sites already converting to AI use, the window to lock in premium plant-side power is narrowing fast. For miners, utilities, and investors alike, the strategic message is clear: in the new energy economy, whoever controls cheap baseload power controls the future, and the time to secure it is now. This post Why Are Bitcoin Miners Setting Up Next to Nuclear and Hydro Plants? first appeared on BitcoinWorld .

3 Jun 2026, 19:45

'Embarrassing': Canadian Billionaire Slams Cathie Wood's Bitcoin Price Predictions

Canadian mining mogul and billionaire Frank Giustra has fiercely criticized Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood over her remarkably high price targets for Bitcoin.

3 Jun 2026, 16:20

Bitcoin Miners Hit $1.08B in May Revenue, Then Prices Pull the Floor Away

Bitcoin miners finally had something to celebrate, delivering their strongest revenue gain in four months as May lifted earnings beyond the $1 billion mark for the first time since January. Current revenue, however, has cooled considerably, with bitcoin slipping below the $66,000 mark on Tuesday before staging a modest recovery the following day. Miners Feel