



“I don’t see any violation of the law in the bitcoin production as this activity is not prohibited in Georgia,” the governor of the Mestia municipality says commenting on the protests of the locals, who were left without electricity due to the sharp increase in bitcoin mining.

There is nothing strange that crypto farms have chosen a high-mountainous region exempt from paying for the consumed electricity - no miner will refuse such a gift of fate as free energy.

Until recently, local residents did not have any particular complaints but the situation has changed - the bitcoin production in Svaneti has grown so much that people are regularly left without power. Due to the constant electricity outrages, not only houses, but also schools, kindergartens, hospitals are left without power for many hours. Not to mention that such large-scale power outages badly affect tourism which is the main source of income for the local population.

Bitcoin mining is not theoretically a violation of the law as it is a legal activity in which a large number of companies and individuals are involved outside Svaneti.

How is it acceptable in the region that does not pay for electricity and have almost 1000 bitcoin miners that use the energy for free instead of being used on public benefit? Isn’t it a breach of the law?

“People were without power for almost a week because of bitcoin mining that caused protests. We held talks with miners in one of the villages and agreed that they would stop working. But this can repeat tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, ” Mestia’s governor Kakha Zhorzholiani says.

In Zhorzholiani’s words, he has no levers of influence on the situation in legal ways and can only rely on the consciousness of citizens. He is also hoping for talks with miners based on local mountain traditions.

The locals are confident Bitcoin mining business is patronized by high-ranking officials - the cable to one of the largest farms is laid quite legally and its territory is guarded by the police.

“People say about Bidzina Ivanishvili’s interests in this business, but these assumptions have nothing to do with reality. Ivanishvili has no relation to local bitcoin farms, ” the governor points out.

It is difficult to say how the situation will develop in the future, and whether local authorities will be able to prevent energy overruns in the region. However, no one has legal mechanisms to protect the interests of the population.