Stablecoin issuer Tether has announced that it will partner with Bitcoin-friendly nation El Salvador to invest in a planned $1 billion renewable energy initiative.
The Central American country continues efforts to boost Bitcoin (BTC) adoption after becoming the first nation to do BTC legal tender about three years ago. The latter is a renewable energy generation facility in Metapán that aims to harness solar and wind energy that will power and be monetized by Bitcoin mining operations.
Tether is among investors in a first round of capital raising to develop Volcano Energy, a soon-to-be-developed 241-megawatt (MW) renewable energy park. The site is located in Metapán and will comprise 169 MWs of photovoltaic solar energy and 72 MWs of wind energy.
Related: What is it really like to use Bitcoin in El Salvador?
The energy produced will power Bitcoin mining farms in El Salvador, and Tether estimates that the park's computing power exceeds 1.3 exhashes per second. This output would place Volcano Energy's cumulative Bitcoin mining hash rate in the top 20 pools operating globally.
Tether CTO Paolo Ardoino said the investment marks the stablecoin issuer's intention to boost investment in renewable energy production as well as mining infrastructure.
Volcano Energy CEO Josué López said he envisions the park being a benchmark for Bitcoin mining powered by renewable resources as the sector continues to innovate in a competitive and expansive environment:
“Currently, more than 52% of Bitcoin mining is done sustainably. We believe that this percentage will increase significantly in the coming years through significant investments like ours."
Tether did not disclose the amount of the investment in a correspondence with Cointelegraph.
Bitcoin proponent and broadcaster Max Keizer is heavily involved in El Salvador's adoption efforts, acting as an adviser to President Nayib Bukele and as president of Volcano Energy.
Saifedean Ammous, economist and author of the bitcoin standard, is another Bitcoin advocate who is now involved in the government of El Salvador after incorporation as economic adviser to your National Bitcoin Office.
The proliferation of Bitcoin and the ability to use the preeminent cryptocurrency widely in El Salvador paints a more interesting picture, as Cointelegraph's Joe Hall explored in early 2022 during a visit to the Central American country.
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