Does France need to have its own mines? French lawmakers propose giving miners preferential electricity prices. Can France, which relies on nuclear power for electricity, attract a wave of miners?

Whether France can provide policy support to miners and what electricity prices it offers will be the key to whether it can successfully attract miners.

Image source: Bitcoin

According to Bitcoin, two French parliamentarians, Jean-Michel Mis and Laure de La Raudière, have submitted a proposal aimed at making France a leading force in the cryptocurrency industry. The two believe that France must have its own mining farms and propose that cryptocurrency miners enjoy preferential electricity prices.

In the proposal, mining is considered an "energy-intensive activity", so cryptocurrency miners can enjoy preferential electricity prices.

According to French media reports, Jean-Michel Mis believes that France must have its own mining farms and that France should provide good operating conditions for mining farms. Crypto miners should be distributed all over the world, and computing power should not be concentrated in China and the United States.

For France, nuclear power generation is its main source of electricity. The electricity generated by about 60 nuclear reactors accounts for more than 70% of France's total electricity generation. In other words, for every 10 kWh of electricity used by French people, more than 7 kWh comes from nuclear power generation. Nuclear power generation has made France the country with the largest net export of electricity in the world.

So, compared with coal, oil, natural gas, and renewable energy, what is the cost of nuclear power generation? Odaily Planet Daily checked the data and found that nuclear power generation has high supply stability and low power generation cost (0.76 yuan per kilowatt-hour).

Source: http://www.cv.nctu.edu.tw/chinese/ts/activity/95template/team03/comparison.html

Cheap nuclear power makes electricity cheaper in France than in many European countries. According to Statista, the average electricity price in France in 2018 was $0.19 per kilowatt-hour (about 1.3 yuan per kilowatt-hour). In comparison, the electricity price in Germany this year was about $0.33 per kilowatt-hour.

Image source: Statista

However, for miners, they are chasing the lowest electricity prices around the world. Odaily Planet Daily previously reported that Iran's civilian electricity price is 4 cents per kilowatt-hour, and the lowest price can even reach 3 cents, but the risks of mining in Iran are high policy risks, compliance and operational difficulties, and exchange rate fluctuations; data from the Swedish data center shows that the electricity price cost that Sweden can provide is only $0.0055/kWh. In November this year, mining farms in Guizhou and Xinjiang, China, were required to shut down for rectification and accept tax and real-name inspections.

Overall, whether France can provide policy support to miners and what electricity prices it offers will be the key to whether it can successfully attract miners.

In addition, in a report this week, the two French lawmakers also warned that France "should not miss the blockchain train." They called on the French government to allocate $568 million to support the development of the blockchain industry until 2022, and suggested that the European Central Bank or the Bank of France should "test a digital currency." Laure de La Raudière also believes that the Paris authorities should develop a national strategy for the blockchain industry.

References:

French Lawmakers Propose Lower Electricity Rates for Cryptocurrency Miners

Uncovering the secrets of Iran’s mining farms: Middle East turmoil, US sanctions, Iran and miners “redeeming each other”

Mines in Guizhou and Xinjiang were required to shut down for rectification and accept tax and real-name inspections

After Norway cancels electricity price subsidies for miners, Sweden may become a new hotbed for Norwegian miners