Venezuela is making headlines today following the pre-sale of its new national cryptocurrency, the oil-backed Petro. As reported by Reuters, President Nicolas Maduro announced the country managed to raise $735 million in the first day of its sale. In addition to the controversial Petro launch, there is another reason why Venezuela is catching the attention of many: it was recently named the cheapest country for mining Bitcoin.
A look at data collected by lighting firm Elite Fixtures and recently published by CNBC reveals the cheapest and most expensive countries for mining Bitcoin, which has recently become the subject of possible regulation.
Mining around the world
Mining has come a long way from the days when Bitcoin could be mined on a single GPU. As cryptocurrency began to catch on, mining became more complex, thus requiring more resources. Nonetheless, the notion of becoming rich from mining crypto remains appealing. For mining to be profitable, it is necessary to find the cheapest resources, and in the mining world, the most important resource is electricity.
A total of 115 different countries were analyzed to produce the lists featured below. Electricity prices were determined using data provided by each country’s government, utility firms, and the International Energy Agency. The price of power consumption was based on averages the AntMiner S7, the Antminer S9, and the Avalon 6, which were chosen for their popularity.
South Korea heads the list as the most expensive country, where mining a Bitcoin costs $26,170. This may not be surprising given that South Korea accounts as one of the world’s largest crypto markets. Germany finds itself as the 10th most expensive country at a cost of $14,257 per Bitcoin.
Top Ten Most Expensive Countries to Mine 1 Bitcoin
| Country | Price |
| South Korea | $26,170 |
| Niue | $17,566 |
| Bahrain | $16,773 |
| Solomon Islands | $16,209 |
| Cook Islands | $15,861 |
| Marshall Islands | $14,751 |
| Tonga | $14,671 |
| Tuvalu | $14,493 |
| Denmark | $14,275 |
| Germany | $14,275 |
The countries listed as the least expensive places offer mining prices below $3,000. Kazakhstan fills the tenth spot with a price of $2,835. As previously mentioned, Venezuela earned the spot as least expensive country with a price of $531 per Bitcoin — that’s a difference of about $2,000 between the least and most expensive country for mining.
Top Ten Least Expensive Countries to Mine 1 Bitcoin
| Country | Price |
| Venezuela | $531 |
| Trinidad and Tobago | $1,190 |
| Taiwan | $1,190 |
| Uzbekistan | $1,788 |
| Ukraine | $1,852 |
| Myanmar | $1,983 |
| Kuwait | $1,983 |
| Belarus | $2,177 |
| Bangladesh | $2,379 |
| Kazakhstan | $2,835 |
Future mining legislation
Some countries are beginning to consider implementing taxes on cryptocurrency mining due to increased activity. Iceland, a popular mining destination because of its cheap electricity and cold climate, is among the countries mulling over a mining tax. In fact, demand for electricity is so great that Iceland is expected to spend more electricity on mining than on powering homes this year. Meanwhile, miners in other places around the globe are curbing costs by turning to green energy.
Earlier this year, data on Blockchain.info indicated that 80% of Bitcoin had already been mined. Since then, the mining industry has experienced exponential growth, and seems to be continuing on this path. It is up to miners to use their resources — and funds — wisely if they want to profit from this growing industry.
