Bitcoin mining creates jobs and generates revenue for American state municipalities.
According to the local edition of the U.S. Texas Tribune, municipalities in Texas interested in getting bitcoin miners to work because it means jobs and revenue for the budget.
For miners like Argo Blockchain, the municipality of Dickens, Texas, is attractive because there is plenty of available space and access to inexpensive energy. As a reminder, there is an efficient statewide partnership with the main electricity provider, which has the support of Texas Congressman Ted Cruz.
Notably, in the case of Argo Blockchain, we are talking about foreign investment coming into the U.S. from a company headquartered in London and whose shares are traded on the London Stock Exchange.
A total of about 30 bitcoin mining companies have started operating in Texas in recent years, and dozens more are planning to follow suit in the near future. As with Argo Blockchain, miners prefer to locate their data centers in rural areas of the state rather than within cities, given the availability of inexpensive space and favorable energy rates in those areas.
The municipality of Dickens notes that since Argo Blockchain came in, the municipality’s budget has been boosted by $17 million in revenue from the organization. In addition, the property tax potential that the company occupies is estimated at $283 million. Payments already coming in from Argo Blockchain have allowed local authorities to make repairs on roads.
Another municipality in the state, Milam, northeast of the major city of Austin, is home to a large data center for mining company Riot Blockchain, which has been operating since 2020. According to local officials, the operation of the center has created several hundred new jobs for the local community, as well as generated millions of dollars in revenue for the municipality’s coffers.