Iris Energy, a company specializing in renewable Bitcoin mining, is poised to significantly boost its hash rate to 10 exahashes per second (EH/s) by 2024 through the acquisition of new Bitmain T21 mining rigs. The company disclosed its acquisition of an extra 1.6 EH/s of Bitmain T21 miners, slated for delivery in the second quarter of 2024. As of December 2023, the company’s operational capacity currently stands at 5.6 EH/s.
This latest hardware from Bitmain, the Chinese manufacturer, represents a new generation of mining equipment that will enhance Iris’ operational efficiency, reducing it from 29.5 joules per terahash (J/TH) to 24.8 J/TH. Iris made a substantial investment of $22.3 million in the most recent Bitmain order, pricing the hardware at $14 per terahash. Additionally, Iris anticipates a mining output of 1.4 EH/s by activating a prior order of Bitmain S21 miners in the initial quarter, while also awaiting another batch of Bitmain T21 miners to boost its capacity by 1.3 EH/s.
Iris disclosed its expansion plans, specifically an 80-megawatt (MW) expansion at its Childress data center operation in Texas, back in June 2023. Expected to be operational from January 2024 onwards, this expansion will facilitate the reception of new hardware from Bitmain and elevate the operating hash rate to 10 EH/s.
Furthermore, the company intends to construct an additional 100 MW of data centers at the same site, made feasible by tapping into an additional 500 MW of available power capacity for its operation.
While historically focused on Bitcoin mining, Iris has broadened its data center operations to cater to the rising demand for generative artificial intelligence computing. In August, the company allocated $10 million to acquire 248 cutting-edge Nvidia H100 GPUs, scheduled for delivery by the end of 2023.
Presently, Iris operates data center facilities across various locations in North America, including Canal Flats, Mackenzie, Prince George in Canada’s British Columbia, and its site in Childress, Texas. The company asserts that its four operations are powered entirely by renewable energy sources, utilizing a combination of wind, solar, and hydroelectric power. However, a disclaimer on its website specifies that its three Canadian sites derive 98% of their power from renewables, with the remainder offset by purchasing renewable energy certificates.
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