Tether invests in El Salvador’s $1 billion renewable energy project
Stablecoin issuer Tether (USDT) has announced that it will partner with the Bitcoin-friendly nation of El Salvador to invest in a planned $1 billion renewable energy initiative.
The Central American country continues its efforts to drive Bitcoin adoption after becoming the first nation to make BTC legal tender around three years ago. The latest is a renewable power generation area in Metapán, which aims to harness solar and wind energy that will power and monetize Bitcoin mining.
Tether is among investors in a first round of capital raising to develop Volcano Energy, a soon-to-be-developed 241 MW renewable energy park. The area is located in Metapán and will include 169 MW of solar energy and 72 MW of wind.
Related: What It’s Actually Like to Use Bitcoin in El Salvador
The energy produced will power Bitcoin mining farms in El Salvador with Tether estimating the park’s computational power exceeding 1.3 EH/s. This output will place Volcano Energy’s cumulative Bitcoin mining hashrate in the top 20 pools operating globally.
Tether chief technology officer Paolo Ardoino said the investment marks the stablecoin issuer’s intention to drive investments in renewable energy production as well as mining infrastructure.
Volcano Energy CEO Josue Lopez said the park envisions being a benchmark for Bitcoin mining powered by renewable resources, as the sector continues to innovate in a competitive and expansive environment:
“Currently, more than 52% of Bitcoin mining is done sustainably. We believe this percentage will increase significantly in the coming years through important investments like ours.”
Tether did not disclose the amount of the investment in correspondence Cointelegraph.
Bitcoin proponent and broadcaster Max Keizer is heavily involved in El Salvador’s adoption efforts, serving as an advisor to President Nayib Bukele as well as chairman of Volcano Energy.
Saifedean Ammous, economist and author of The Bitcoin Standard is another Bitcoin lawyer now involved in El Salvador’s governance, having become the economic adviser to the national Bitcoin office.
The prevalence of Bitcoin and the ability to use the prominent cryptocurrency widely in El Salvador paints a more interesting picture, as Cointelegraph’s Joe Hall explored earlier in 2022 during a visit to the Central American country.
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