Iris Energy Saw July Electricity Spike to $61k per Bitcoin

U.S.-listed bitcoin mining and data center operator Iris Energy experienced a sharp rise in electricity costs in July, exceeding $60,000 per bitcoin.

In its production update on Tuesday, the company reported mining 222 bitcoins in July, with an average revenue of $61,306 per BTC, while electricity costs soared to $61,677 per BTC.

The 56% cost increase compared to June was driven by higher energy hedge pricing at its Childress, Texas, site during the summer. Iris added that, unlike previous periods, the energy market saw much lower volatility, reducing opportunities for energy trading that previously helped offset costs.

For example, in August 2023, Iris Energy achieved a net electricity cost of negative $0.08/kWh due to favorable trading conditions. The company is now reassessing its future energy pricing structures.

Despite the cost surge, Iris Energy maintained a steady production rate, mining 222 bitcoins and 13 bitcoin equivalents from power sales, with a realized hashrate of 9.57 EH/s and an installed hashrate of 10.5 EH/s at the end of July.

Additionally, Iris Energy reported AI cloud servicing revenue of $1.2 million last month, up from $1.08 million in June.