It’s something most of us have heard of, but few understand. Where does it come from, what does it do? Gwinnett is getting a better look into the digital data and crypto currency world. A new bitcoin mining facility has opened in Norcross.
CleanSpark is a bitcoin mining company that puts environmental impact on the forefront of their processes. CEO Zachary Bradford, Director Matthew Shultz and several other executives were present at the ribbon cutting ceremony at the new immersion cooling facility on Wednesday November 2nd, 2022. And they weren’t alone. Members from Partnership Gwinnett, as well as county Chairwoman Nicole Love Hendrikson and Norcross Mayor Craig Newton were also present to speak about the benefits for Gwinnett.
The facility is made up of two main phase rooms and dozens of machines that are mining away. They use a combination of power, including the solar panels on the facility roof, to work towards a reduced carbon imprint. In total, the facility uses 20 megawatts of power, 8 in the first room and 12 in the second. Unlike the traditional air cooling approach, CleanSpark is using immersion cooling technology at this location. This means that the servers, because they get so hot from running consistently, are cooled with a biodegradable mineral oil.
So how do you mine bitcoin? Let’s make it simple. The process is really just blocks of information about transactions that register on a blockchain. You think of a blockchain as a giant digital ledger that everyone with a computer shares. The “mining” is just running and verifying the code behind all of this digital data. Those who mine bitcoin, earn bitcoin. Bitcoin is a currency that’s decentralized, which means there is no one bank or person who is in charge. It’s limited, meaning the value isn’t dependent on the value of everything else, avoiding inflation. And it’s secure.
“We have plans to continue to expand. We have four campuses in Georgia and we expect to continue to grow them!”
– Matthew Shultz.
The company currently has presence in Washington, Sandersville, College Park and now Norcross. The Gwinnett CleanSpark facility was an initial 50 million dollar investment. And it’s supposed to generate about $145 million dollars within the community over the next five years in regards to the new availability of jobs, technological training, tuition books and more.
You can learn more about CleanSpark on their website.
Interested in finance? Learn how to be financially fit with the Your Green Podcast with Roger Green.
Marisa Hernandez, GMAG Producer.
