When governments limit how much electricity you can use, it doesn’t just affect your fridge or AC—it can shut down your electricity rationing, government-imposed limits on power usage during shortages or political pressure. Also known as power curtailment, it’s become a major force in global crypto operations. In places like Iran, where energy is cheap but tightly controlled, this isn’t just about saving the grid—it’s about who gets to mine Bitcoin, who gets to trade, and who loses everything when the lights go off.
Crypto mining, the process of validating blockchain transactions using powerful computers that consume large amounts of electricity depends on stable, affordable power. When electricity rationing kicks in, miners get cut off first. Iran’s government doesn’t just cap usage—it owns the mining farms, licenses only state-approved operations, and bans private rigs. That’s not regulation for safety. It’s control. Miners who used to run 24/7 now scramble to find hidden power, switch to solar, or leave the country. And it’s not just Iran. In Vietnam, crypto mining was banned outright after energy demand spiked. In both cases, the same thing happened: people turned to crypto not to gamble, but to protect their savings from collapsing currencies. Bitcoin became a lifeline because it could be moved across borders, even when banks and dollars couldn’t.
Cryptocurrency energy use, the amount of electricity consumed by blockchain networks and mining hardware is often criticized—but the real issue isn’t the tech. It’s who controls the power. When a country enforces electricity rationing, it doesn’t just slow down mining—it reshapes entire markets. Exchanges like GroveX and BloFin thrive because they don’t need local power to operate—they run on offshore servers and serve users who’ve already been cut off from traditional finance. Meanwhile, platforms that rely on local infrastructure, like Iran’s Nobitex or Vietnam’s domestic exchanges, get frozen, hacked, or shut down overnight. This isn’t a technical problem. It’s a survival game.
What you’ll find here aren’t just reviews of exchanges or guides on mining hardware. These are stories of people adapting when the grid fails. You’ll read about how Iranians used Bitcoin to import medicine, how Vietnamese traders moved offshore to avoid new laws, and why platforms with no KYC became the only safe option. The common thread? When electricity rationing hits, crypto isn’t a luxury—it’s a necessity. And the ones who survive aren’t the ones with the fastest rigs. They’re the ones who understood power isn’t just about watts—it’s about control.
Kazakhstan imposed strict electricity rationing on crypto miners after a surge in demand crashed its power grid. Now, miners must buy power through a state platform, sell 75% of their crypto on a regulated exchange, and face heavy penalties for illegal operations.