Nuclear Bitcoin Mining Hits Snag as UK Startup Sells Business

A firm that was building out a nuclear energy-powered mining facility in Ohio is the latest victim of tough crypto market conditions.

UK-based Lake Parime, a company focused on transforming energy into zero-carbon computing power, has been acquired by Statar Mining.

The group’s recently-acquired bitcoin mining hardware decreased in value as bitcoin prices fell, according to restructuring specialist Interpath Advisory. Interpath’s Ed Boyle and Will Wright became joint administrators to Lake Parime Limited on Jan. 27.

A number of projects Lake Parime had invested in “fell away,” according to Interpath, leaving the company in “an immediate cash crisis.”

A solvent solution could not be found, the advisory firm added. As a result of the sale to Statar Mining, 16 Lake Parime employees have joined the acquirer.

The sale comes as Compute North and Core Scientific have filed for bankruptcy in recent months, and industry watchers had said they expect more casualties in the mining space this year.

“The current crypto winter has posed challenges for many companies operating across the crypto spectrum,” Boyle said in a statement. “In this particular instance, the price of bitcoin fell by more than 60% over the course of 2022, which in turn impacted Lake Parime’s ability to raise finance.”

It is unclear where Statar Mining is based. The company could not be reached.

Spokespeople for Lake Parime and Interpath Advisory did not immediately return requests for comment.

Nuclear energy could still play larger role in bitcoin mining

Lake Parime had revealed in November that it launched a site in Ohio using 100% nuclear energy.

“We’re excited to expand our site portfolio from largely wind and hydropower to nuclear energy, showcasing the huge potential of our deployments in accelerating the energy transition,” Lake Parime CEO Sath Ganesarajah said in a statement at the time.

Executives at bitcoin miners Marathon Digital and TeraWulf told Blockworks last week they were bullish on the prospect of more bitcoin miners using nuclear energy at scale in the years ahead if the power industry cooperates. TeraWulf recently revealed it is setting up operations at a nuclear energy-powered data center in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania.

Lake Parime’s 20 megawatt Ohio site’s hosting clients were Marathon Digital and TAAL, a company that offers blockchain services and infrastructure.

Charlie Schumacher, Marathon’s vice president of corporate communications, told Blockworks last week the Ohio site is a good way for Marathon to “test the waters” about potentially using nuclear energy on a larger scale.

It is unclear how the sale will affect Marathon’s operations at the site. A company spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment.

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