The proposal which was initially suggested in March by the Red Party was met with opposition from the Parliament. It failed to win political support outside of members of Norway’s Socialist Left Party, Red Party and Green Party and was ultimately defeated in the final vote.
The Red Party’s Sofie Marhaug said that she was “obviously disappointed” by the result and would work harder in the future to call for support from the citizens. She stated that the country’s energy use must be “prioritised,” citing the energy-intensive criticism of cryptocurrency mining and its negative impact on climate change.
According to Jaran Mellerud, an analyst at Arcane Research, the vote represented a significant victory for large-scale Bitcoin mining:
“Having lost this vote, these political parties will likely make one more attempt at increasing the power tax specifically for miners, which is now their only tool left in the toolbox for making life difficult for miners.”
Mellerud claimed that anti-Bitcoin political parties have been attempting to drive miners out of Norway by imposing a higher power tax rate. He referred to the government’s decision to overturn the proposal as “the latest nail in the coffin” for efforts to rid Norway of the crypto industry.
According to the report, Norway is a “green oasis” for Bitcoin mining due to its abundant hydropower and low energy prices. Norwegian miners contribute up to 1% of Bitcoin’s global hash rate, thanks in part to the country’s use of renewable energy.
