Sweden, the last remaining stronghold of bitcoin miners in Europe, is abolishing tax incentives for data centers in July – potentially putting the last nail in the coffin for the industry in the region.

Energy prices in Europe have spiked in the past year largely in part due to the war in Ukraine, driving out bitcoin miners. The northernmost regions of Norway and Sweden were some of the last areas where the industry was still profitable and operating – although the crowd had thinned out – as they offer an ideal environment for data centers; cool and home to cheap hydroelectricity.

But not even these remote parts of Europe remained unaffected from the energy crisis, which caused prices to increase and some miners to turn off their operations, at least partly, in 2022.

Energy prices started to normalize in 2023, but the upcoming tax will likely stop any new investment in Sweden, which is currently home to about 150 megawatts (MW) of mining. The tax will increase from SEK 0.006 ($0.0006) to SEK 0.36 ($0.035) per kilowatt hour (kWh) starting July of this year, according to the financial budget published in November 2022.

(By Eliza Gkritsi)