As of May 2021, El Salvador has mined approximately 2,200 Bitcoin, which is worth over $170 million at current prices. This makes El Salvador the first country in the world to mine more than 2% of the total supply of Bitcoin.
El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele has been a big proponent of Bitcoin, and played a key role in getting the country’s legislature to pass a law making Bitcoin legal tender. Bukele has said that he wants El Salvador to become “the first sovereign nation in the world with its own digital currency.”.
El Salvador’s Bitcoin mining operation is run by a company called Kaldera, which was founded by two brothers who are originally from El Salvador. The company has invested $10 million in Bitcoin mining infrastructure, and employs over 100 people.
Kaldera says that it has plans to expand its operations and increase its workforce to 500 people by the end of 2021.
The majority of El Salvador’s Bitcoin is mined using renewable energy, specifically hydroelectric power from the country’s volcanoes. This is in line with Bukele’s goal of making El Salvador “the most climate-friendly country in the world.
” In addition to being good for the environment, using renewable energy to mine Bitcoin also saves the country money on energy costs.
El Salvador’s use of Bitcoin mining to generate revenue is a novel approach, and one that could be copied by other countries looking for new ways to boost their economies. If successful, it could provide a much-needed boost to developing nations around the world.