UK’s Argo Blockchain Becomes First Climate Positive Crypto Miner

By RTTNews Staff Writer | Published: 8/18/2021 10:39 AM ET

Crypto miner Agro Blockchain has become the first publicly-traded climate positive cryptocurrency mining company well ahead of its committed year of 2030. The company has become Climate Positive for Scope 1, 2, and 3 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions associated with all of its respective crypto-related operations.

Scope 1 of GHG protocol covers direct emissions from owned or controlled sources. Scope 2 covers indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, steam, heating and cooling consumed by the reporting company. Scope 3 includes all other indirect emissions that occur in a company’s value chain.

Argo is now climate positive and has mitigated Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions associated with all of its respective crypto-related operations.

Climate Positive means that the company is addressing its own GHG emissions to become carbon neutral, and going even further by mitigating emissions through support of projects outside of Argo.

This achievement is a key milestone in the company’s Climate Strategy, which includes its ongoing and future initiatives in energy efficiency, reducing e-waste, use of waste heat in partnership with local municipalities, carbon capture, and supporting the industry with sustainability standards.

Since inception, Argo has been committed to sustainability and believes that cryptocurrency mining can spur renewable power innovation and pave the way to reducing GHG emissions.

Argo sources its energy from hydro and other renewable clean sources wherever possible. Its newly acquired Quebec facilities are on the Hydro Quebec power grid, which use 100 percent hydro and wind energy. By choosing Quebec hydropower, Argo avoided 14.9 MTCO2e in 2020.

In the US, Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) were purchased to neutralize all 46.9 MTCO2e of emissions resulting from Argo’s operations. Agro’s Texas facilities under development will source mainly wind and solar power.

Argo had committed to being Climate Positive by 2030, supporting the adoption and verification of blockchains powered by 100 percent renewable sources by 2025.

However, Argo has now become the first Climate Positive cryptocurrency mining company well ahead of schedule by purchasing RECs and Verified Emissions Reductions (VERs) in excess of its Scope 2 & 3 GHG emissions.

Argo said it will continue innovating and prioritizing sustainability on its path to being a climate action leader in the Bitcoin mining world. It is also now a participant of the UNFCCC’s Climate Neutral Now Initiative. As a participant, Argo undertakes to measure, reduce, contribute, and report emissions on a yearly basis in order to achieve a Climate Neutral world by 2050.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Markethive Advertisement

Article written by an RTT News Staff Writer, and posted on the RTT News.com website.

Article reposted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe