Iceland has become the premier hotspot for cryptocurrency mining, more specifically Bitcoin (available on Coinbase), and the countries officials are now in a panic. With its cool temperatures, it makes it the perfect location to keep these hot data mining centers cool, without the need for extra air conditioning. While Bitcoin (available on Coinbase)’s price has been on the decline within’ the past few months many companies have seen the island as the holy grail to mine the remaining digital tokens. They are equating it as the 21st century ‘gold rush’ as many companies have flooded the country in hopes of starting their own mining data centers.

However, Iceland’s electricity grid has been severely stretched and are not equipped to handle the amount of electricity that is needed for all the mining. The country produces 80 percent of its energy within hydroelectric stations, compared to the U.S that is only 6 percent. A single Bitcoin (available on Coinbase) mining transaction takes up the same amount of energy as a single household in the U.S for a whole week. Back in November, all Bitcoin (available on Coinbase) mining operations used more power than about 160 countries, combined.