中國比特幣礦業公司進軍衣索比亞，瞄準該國超低電力成本

衣索比亞位於非洲之角六個不同鄰國之間的內陸地區，約有 1.2 億居民，是非洲大陸第二人口大國

Chinese bitcoin (BTC) mining company BIT Mining (BTCM) has announced a $14 million deal to acquire bitcoin mining facilities in Ethiopia, as part of its strategy to extend the lifespan of its aging mining rigs and capitalize on the country's low electricity costs.

中國比特幣 (BTC) 挖礦公司 BIT Mining (BTCM) 宣布斥資 1,400 萬美元收購埃塞俄比亞的比特幣挖礦設施，作為其延長老化礦機使用壽命並利用該國較低電力成本的策略的一部分。

According to Dr. Youwei Yang, chief economist at BIT Mining, the high electricity prices in Ohio, where BIT Mining currently operates its bitcoin mining facilities, have limited the company to deploying only the newest ASICs, such as the first or second generation. However, in Ethiopia, the company can deploy older generation machines due to the lower electricity costs.

BIT Mining 首席經濟學家楊有偉博士表示，BIT Mining 目前營運其比特幣挖礦設施的俄亥俄州電價較高，限制了該公司只能部署最新的 ASIC，例如第一代或第二代。然而，在埃塞俄比亞，由於電力成本較低，該公司可以部署舊一代機器。

“The price of electricity is maybe 70% higher in Ohio than in Ethiopia, sometimes almost double, so it can only run very advanced ASICs, like the newest or second newest generations,” said Yang in an interview with CoinDesk. “Now we can just move older generation machines into Ethiopia.”

「俄亥俄州的電價可能比埃塞俄比亞高 70%，有時幾乎是兩倍，因此它只能運行非常先進的 ASIC，例如最新一代或第二代最新一代，」Yang 在接受 CoinDesk 採訪時表示。 “現在我們可以將老一代機器搬到埃塞俄比亞。”

This move is significant because BIT Mining primarily operates a hosting business, where it houses mining facilities for various clients, in addition to mining litecoin (LTC) and dogecoin (DOGE) itself. State-of-the-art mining rigs are expensive, with a single machine costing between $5,000 and $10,000 for retail buyers. Investors are typically hesitant to send such valuable equipment to war-torn regions.

此舉意義重大，因為 BIT Mining 主要經營託管業務，除了開採萊特幣 (LTC) 和狗狗幣 (DOGE) 之外，還為各種客戶提供採礦設施。最先進的採礦設備價格昂貴，對於零售買家來說，一台機器的價格在 5,000 美元到 10,000 美元之間。投資者通常不願意將如此寶貴的設備運送到飽受戰爭蹂躪的地區。

Hence, the strategy is to install the newer rigs in the U.S. and send the aging ones to Ethiopia. This creates a positive feedback loop, where investors can extract greater returns from their machines compared to if BIT Mining were limited to operating in the U.S., which, in turn, attracts more capital, said Yang.

因此，戰略是在美國安裝較新的鑽井平台，並將老化的鑽井平台送到埃塞俄比亞。楊說，這創造了一個積極的反饋循環，與 BIT Mining 僅限於在美國運營相比，投資者可以從他們的機器中獲得更大的回報，從而吸引更多的資本。

“We can get at least two extra years by moving the rigs to Ethiopia, and then maybe after that, they're completely done,” said Yang.

「透過將鑽孔機移至埃塞俄比亞，我們至少可以獲得額外兩年的時間，也許在那之後，它們就完全完成了，」楊說。

Ethiopia, a hotspot for bitcoin mining

埃塞俄比亞，比特幣挖礦熱點

But what makes Ethiopia an ideal destination for BIT Mining's bitcoin mining expansion?

但是是什麼讓埃塞俄比亞成為 BIT Mining 比特幣挖礦擴張的理想目的地呢？

For one, the country's electric standard is similar to China's, which enables BIT Mining to leverage its engineering team's expertise and redeploy some of the electric equipment it used in the Middle Kingdom before the bitcoin mining ban.

其一，該國的電力標準與中國相似，這使得 BIT Mining 能夠利用其工程團隊的專業知識，重新部署比特幣挖礦禁令之前在中國使用的一些電力設備。

Moreover, Ethiopia boasts an abundance of hydroelectric power, thanks in part to Chinese investments, which have totaled $8.5 billion across more than 3,000 projects in recent years. For instance, China helped fund the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which, upon completion, will become the largest dam in Africa, generating over 5,000 MW.

此外，衣索比亞擁有豐富的水力發電，這在一定程度上要歸功於中國的投資，近年來中國對3,000多個項目的投資總額達85億美元。例如，中國資助建造了埃塞俄比亞復興大壩（GERD），該大壩建成後將成為非洲最大的水壩，發電量超過5000兆瓦。

However, not all of Ethiopia's electric output is utilized yet, presenting an opportunity for bitcoin miners, especially given the Ethiopian government's support for the mining industry. In fact, the country contributes 1.5% to Bitcoin's total hashrate, according to Hashrate Index, which is roughly equivalent to Norway's contribution to the network.

然而，埃塞俄比亞的電力輸出尚未全部被利用，這為比特幣礦工提供了機會，特別是考慮到埃塞俄比亞政府對採礦業的支持。事實上，根據算力指數，該國對比特幣總算力的貢獻為 1.5%，大致相當於挪威對該網路的貢獻。

This is despite the Ethiopian federal government's tenuous control over the country's territory. Hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians were killed in the government's war against the Tigray People's Liberation Front from 2020 to 2022, and the state only signed a peace treaty in December with the Oromo Liberation Army, which it had been fighting in some capacity since the 1970s.

儘管埃塞俄比亞聯邦政府對該國領土的控制微弱，但情況仍然如此。 2020年至2022年間，數十萬埃塞俄比亞人在政府針對提格雷人民解放陣線的戰爭中喪生，該國直到12月才與奧羅莫解放軍簽署了和平條約，該國自1970年代以來一直以某種身份參與戰鬥。

When asked if BIT Mining had any concerns regarding the country's social unrest, Yang stated that the firm had been “studying, researching and also visiting [Ethiopia] several times, just [ascertaining] that it's a stable place.” To avoid any unforeseen issues, the decision was made to purchase a facility rather than constructing one from scratch, he added.

當被問及 BIT Mining 是否對該國的社會動盪有任何擔憂時，楊表示，該公司一直在“學習、研究並多次訪問[埃塞俄比亞]，只是[確定]這是一個穩定的地方。”他補充說，為了避免任何不可預見的問題，我們決定購買一套設施，而不是從頭開始建造。

Even so, convincing BIT Mining employees to relocate to Ethiopia from their previous homes in the U.S. or China was a challenge, according to Yang.

楊表示，即便如此，說服 BIT Mining 員工從之前在美國或中國的家搬到衣索比亞仍然是一個挑戰。

“People obviously like to live and work in richer and safer countries,” he said. While a third of the facility's operating team are foreign at present, the goal is for the team to eventually comprise mostly locals, he added.

「人們顯然喜歡在更富裕、更安全的國家生活和工作，」他說。他補充說，雖然目前該設施的營運團隊有三分之一是外國人，但目標是最終團隊將主要由當地人組成。

Meanwhile, the company is seeking new investment opportunities in the country, whether in energy infrastructure projects, data centers for AI purposes or additional bitcoin mining facilities.

同時，該公司正在該國尋求新的投資機會，無論是能源基礎設施項目、人工智慧數據中心還是額外的比特幣挖礦設施。

“There's plenty of opportunities in Ethiopia,” said Yang. “The AI thing… We've been studying it for the last six to nine months. We have the power. We have the people. We have the ability to do it. But [the whole process] is very capital heavy. Construction in the U.S. is a lot more expensive, so it's very hard to do a pilot experiment, but it's a lot easier to [try one] in Ethiopia.”

「埃塞俄比亞有很多機會，」楊說。 「人工智慧的事......過去六到九個月我們一直在研究它。我們有權力。我們有人。我們有能力做到這一點。但[整個過程]資金量很大。美國的建設成本要高得多，因此很難進行試點實驗，但在埃塞俄比亞[嘗試]要容易得多。