Extreme Cold Snap Hits US, Foundry Bitcoin Hashrate Drops 60%

Cold Snap Shakes US, Hashrate Plummets

A severe cold snap sweeping across multiple regions of the United States has significantly disrupted energy supplies, causing Foundry USA—oneof the world's largest Bitcoin mining pools—to see its hashrate drop by 60%. According to TheMinerMag, Foundry’s Bitcoin hashrate has fallen by approximately 200 EH/s (exa hashes per second) since last Friday, leading to extended block times of about 12 minutes per block.

Foundry Still Holds Key Share

Despite the sharp decline, Foundry still maintains around 198 EH/s of hashrate, accounting for roughly 23% of the global Bitcoin mining pool, according to data from the Hashrate Index. This places it among the top mining operations worldwide.

The Significance of Bitcoin's Network Hashrate

Bitcoin’s network hashrate is a critical measure of its security, representing the total computing power contributed by miners to secure the blockchain. A drop in hashrate can slow transaction confirmations and potentially impact short-term mining profitability.

Broader Industry Impact

Foundry is not alone in facing these challenges. Other mining pools, such as Luxor, which serve US-based miners, have also been affected by power restrictions. As winter storm 'Fern' continues, mining operations are adjusting energy consumption to reduce pressure on the power grid.