According to PANews, a new study from the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance at the University of Cambridge's Judge Business School shows that sustainable energy usage in Bitcoin mining has risen to 52.4%. The report highlights a shift in energy sources, with natural gas now surpassing coal as the dominant fuel for Bitcoin mining. Sustainable energy sources, including 9.8% nuclear energy and 42.6% renewable sources such as hydropower and wind, now account for more than half of the total energy consumption in Bitcoin mining — a significant increase from 37.6% in 2022.
Natural gas now represents 38.2% of Bitcoin mining's energy use, up from 25.0% the previous year, while coal consumption has dropped sharply to 8.9% from 36.6% in 2022.
The study, based on data covering 48% of global mining activity, estimates Bitcoin’s annual electricity consumption at 138 TWh, roughly 0.5% of the world’s total energy use. The network’s carbon emissions are estimated at 39.8 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent (MtCO2e).
Additionally, the data emphasizes the central role of North America in Bitcoin mining, with the United States responsible for 75.4% of the reported mining activity, followed by Canada at 7.1%.
