January 13, 2023

Data centers and cryptocurrency miners in Oregon will be required to comply with the state’s new clean energy goals, as outlined in a new bill.

Republican Pam Marsh, Senator Michael Dembrow, and Republican Mark Gamba are the sponsors of House Bill 2816. It aims to reduce the carbon footprint of high-energy-use facilities like cryptocurrency mining, following the established goal of reducing emissions by 60% below their current baseline levels by 2027.

The bill requires high-energy-use facilities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from electricity use at predetermined intervals. The ‘baseline emissions level,’ according to the bill, is 0.428 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per megawatt-hour. All high-energy-use facilities must reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 60% of baseline levels by 2027, 80% by 2030, 90% by 2035, and 100% by 2040.

The bill does make exceptions for smaller operators with facilities or campuses that use less than ten megawatt-hours. However, it requires facilities to submit an annual report to the Department of Environmental Quality to demonstrate compliance.

Failure to comply with the standards established by the bill in 2023 will result in a $12,000 penalty per megawatt-hour of violation per day, as well as the loss of tax breaks.

The sources for this piece include an article in TheRegister.