Bitcoin Policy Institute pitches mining as a fix for Scotland’s wasted wind power
Britain paid wind farms £393 million in 2024 to curtail 8.3 TWh of output, with 98% of that waste occurring in Scotland due to transmission bottlenecks.
Britain has a peculiar energy practice: paying Scottish wind farms to switch off while simultaneously compensating gas plants elsewhere to ramp up production. A new report from the Bitcoin Policy Institute (BPI) proposes a solution to this inefficiency by positioning Bitcoin miners as flexible buyers for the curtailed wind power.
The scale of the wasted energy is substantial. In 2024 alone, Britain spent £393 million to curtail 8.3 TWh of wind output, with Scotland bearing 98% of this burden. The problem stems from Scotland's wind capacity growing faster than the transmission infrastructure needed to deliver power to demand centers in England.
Mining as flexible demand
The BPI report casts Bitcoin miners as buyers of last resort who can consume surplus power without requiring delivery to specific locations. Their key advantage lies in flexibility—mining rigs can rapidly adjust consumption based on energy availability, unlike firm loads such as AI data centers that need steady power.
A modeling analysis from May 2026 found that a 20 MW mining operation alongside a 100 MW wind farm could utilize 83% of the farm's curtailed energy. This setup could potentially increase overall system revenue by 32% and raise the wind farm's effective capacity factor from 29% to 32%.
Regulatory hurdles
Despite the energy benefits, the report identifies significant obstacles that could prevent Britain from becoming a Bitcoin mining hub. Banking restrictions and inconsistent investment and tax rules are highlighted as major drags on competitiveness, even though Bitcoin already has legal recognition as property in the UK.
The report doesn't stop at the energy argument. It also flags obstacles that could keep Britain from becoming a serious Bitcoin hub.
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