Deutsche Telekom, Europe’s largest telecommunications provider, has announced a pioneering pilot project to operate Bitcoin mining infrastructure using surplus renewable energy. The initiative is a collaboration between Deutsche Telekom subsidiary MMS and Bankhaus Metzler, aiming to utilize excess electricity that will otherwise remain unused resulting from grid limitations or lack of storage solutions.
Deutsche Telekom Starts Bitcoin Mining
With the increasing integration of renewable energy sources like wind and solar into the facility grid, energy production has grow to be more irregular, resulting in challenges in grid stabilization. The pilot project seeks to handle this by converting surplus energy into digital assets through Bitcoin mining, a process known for its high energy consumption. “This regulating power through Bitcoin mining is already successfully practiced in other countries (including the USA and Finland). The pilot project goals to validate the method for Germany,” the official announcement states.
“As a result of the flexible load, Bitcoin miners could play a crucial role in balancing supply and demand within the energy grid in the longer term,” the businesses added of their joint announcement. “Surplus energy is converted into digital values through the miners. We call this digital monetary photosynthesis,” said Oliver Nyderle, Head of Digital Trust & Web3 Infrastructure at Deutsche Telekom MMS.
The hosting of the Bitcoin miners is managed by Metis Solutions GmbH from Dresden. The mining containers are situated on the premises of Riva GmbH Engineering in Backnang, a manufacturer of metal and glass facades that operates its own photovoltaic system. This setup allows the project to leverage on-site renewable energy for mining operations.
Deutsche Telekom MMS, leveraging years of experience with Web3 infrastructure, oversees the operation of the mining devices. Bankhaus Metzler contributes by defining test runs and analyzing data evaluations, exploring further possibilities of economic services with Bitcoin through the pilot.
Bankhaus Metzler, a non-public bank established in 1674, has shown increasing interest in blockchain technology. “Our goal is to achieve experience in various application areas to further advance the modern power of blockchain technology in Germany,” said Hendrik König, Head of Digital Assets Office at Bankhaus Metzler. “Blockchain technology is gaining increasing importance in operational business outside the financial industry—and a trusted financial partner is indispensable for managing crypto assets.”
The pilot goals to supply valid field data and insights to plan subsequent projects, potentially offering solutions to stabilize the energy grid during fluctuations that stress the system. This approach may benefit renewable energy producers who face challenges with unpredictable regulating power.
Notably, Deutsche Telekom has been engaged within the crypto ecosystem since 2020. Deutsche Telekom MMS has been providing infrastructure for various decentralized protocols within the Web3 sector, including Chainlink, Fetch.ai, and Polygon. In 2023, Deutsche Telekom expanded its portfolio by operating a Bitcoin node.
At press time, BTC traded at $69,250.
Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com