Square was partnering with Blockstream as part of its Bitcoin Clean Energy Initiative. Credit: Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay

Square will invest $5m to build an open-source, solar-powered bitcoin mining facility at one of the US sites of Blockstream Mining.

In a tweet, Square said that it was partnering with Blockstream as part of its Bitcoin Clean Energy Initiative. Blockstream will provide infrastructure and expertise to develop and manage the project.

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In its website, blockchain technology firm Blockstream stated that the “facility will be a proof-of-concept for a 100% renewable energy Bitcoin mine at scale, with the economics of the build-out—including operational costs and ROI—made open to the public.”

Blockstream further added: “While we know that many mining operations throughout the world, including ours, already rely on renewable energy (as it is the most cost-effective power available), we hope that the open and transparent nature of this project will become a model that other businesses can learn from. We hope to show that a renewable mining facility in the real world is not only possible but also prove empirically that Bitcoin accelerates the world toward a sustainable future.”

The firm stated that it is developing an accessible dashboard indicating real-time metrics of the project’s performance, including power output and bitcoin mined.

Based on technology developed for the BMN, this dashboard will be available 24/7 from any browser, and provide the industry with a real-world, real-time case study of a renewable energy Bitcoin mine.

In February, Cambridge University researchers had stated that Bitcoin uses more power annually than the entire Argentina.

‘Mining’ for the cryptocurrency is claimed to be power intensive as it  involves heavy computer calculations to authenticate transactions.

According to the researchers, it consumes 121.36 terawatt-hours annually and is likely to drop only if the currency value falls.