Russia could rank first in the world in mining in the next 3 years 16:52

Russia has become one of the world leaders in mining, this is due to the excess of energy capacity in Siberia. Russian President Vladimir Putin stated this at the plenary session of the IX Eastern Economic Forum (EEF-2024).

The head of state noted that the Far East is actively developing the big data economy and artificial intelligence infrastructure. The government will support these programs.

Earlier at the Eastern Economic Forum, the role of cryptocurrencies and artificial intelligence in the modern world was discussed by participants at the session “Industrial mining: a new driver of the digital economy and international relations.”

Today, Russia ranks second in terms of mining capacity, and in terms of production growth rates, it is ahead of the market leader in the United States. After Putin signed into law in August the first of which regulates the sector, and the second of which allows payment for imports in cryptocurrency, experts expect an increase in the rate of production growth. And this is already noticeable – in August alone, the demand for equipment for industrial data centers in Russia has tripled. Participants in the discussion attribute this, among other things, to the great interest of foreign investors, primarily from Asia and the Middle East, in the Russian crypto industry.

“Over the past years, the industry in Russia has developed thanks to synergies through partnerships with Asian investors and partners from the Middle East. Now this provides a new incentive for the industry to reach a completely new level. So we see attempts by the US to dominate this sector. But here we have much more competitive advantages. So we will overtake America in this race,” said Igor Runets, owner and CEO of BitRiver, the largest data center operator in Eurasia.

Russia’s competitive advantages are, first of all, the abundance of electricity, its relatively low price for industry, human resources and interest from foreign investors. All this, the participants of the discussion concluded, will allow Russia to increase its production volumes several times and take first place in the world in mining in the next 2-3 years.

The site talked not only about the foreign policy advantages of the development of the crypto industry in Russia. But also about what mining brings to the regions. So, the participants of the discussion noted that the Far East is a promising region for the construction of new computing centers. Already in October, one of the largest data centers in Russia for energy-intensive computing with a capacity of 100 megawatts will be opened here.

“I think this is one of our first steps in the Far East, but it is definitely not the last. The Far East is rich in energy resources. So, of course, the industry will develop here,” Runets said.