First solar-powered crypto mining facility coming to Australia

Collie, Australia, an old coal-mining town about 35 miles east of Bunbury, is about to see a new type of mining. Data center operator DC Two expects to build a “behind-the-grid data center” in Collie through its D Coin subsidiary, billing it as the country’s first solar powered mining operation. IT Brief reports that the facility will be powered using a solar farm expected to be built by Hadouken Pty Ltd., a company with experience in large solar farms.

The main objective of the facility will be to provide competitive energy rates using renewable sources. DC Two anticipates that it will be able to offer a data center that provides the highest density and lowest costs in the country. It will provide pre-defined zones that will be configured specifically for cryptocurrency mining operations.

DC Two explained, “By providing customised low cost hosting options specifically engineered for cryptocurrency and Bitcoin mining at globally competitive rates, DC Two & D Coin have been able to attract the interest of both the local and international crypto mining community.”

DC Two expects to have the initial operations up and running early next year. It will begin by offering 256 IT racks with each rack capable of administering as much as 30 kilowatts (KW) of IT load. According to DC Two, “In complete crypto mining configuration, using the initial 4 megawatt (MW) power availability, the data centre could mine about 650 bitcoins per annum worth around $6 million based on current mining and exchange rates.”

The company indicated that the data center is going to be highly beneficial to the area, which has recently seen a decrease in employment opportunities after the coal mining operations were cut back. DC Two stated, “This is very important for the state and the country as it enables us to provide another export product by hosting and supplying power to international customers in the Collie data centre, who might have otherwise located their equipment overseas.”

DC Two’s data center will be the second “behind-the-grid data center” in Australia. IoT Group, a blockchain company out of Sydney that is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, inked a deal in May with crypto mining hardware manufacturer Bitfury to establish a data center in Hunter Valley. Both IoT and DC Two are expected to have the projects in place within the next eight months.