The geopolitical compass in Washington has once again swung towards a fascinating, albeit ambitious, proposal: the United States potentially acquiring Greenland. While the discussions themselves are noteworthy, for the world of Bitcoin mining, this prospect opens up a truly monumental horizon. Miners are closely tracking Greenland's vast, untapped power resources, particularly its impressive hydropower and wind potential, which could conceivably transform the island into a global epicenter for sustainable digital currency production.
Greenland's Hydropower Goldmine: A Beacon for Industrial Scale
Greenland's government has laid out ambitious plans for its energy sector, specifically targeting large-scale industrial use. A public tender round, anticipated in the latter half of 2026, will focus on two of its largest mapped hydropower sites: Tasersiaq (site 07.e) and Tarsartuup Tasersua (site 06.g). These two sites alone are projected to generate over 9,500 gigawatt-hours annually. To put that into perspective for Bitcoin miners, this is a staggering amount of power.
Considering modern mining hardware like Bitmain's Antminer S21, which boasts an efficiency of about 17.5 joules per terahash (J/TH), and factoring in a Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of around 1.1 for cooling and overhead, 1 megawatt of facility power translates to approximately 0.052 exahash per second (EH/s). Therefore, a fully utilized 1.08 gigawatts of average power from these two sites implies an electricity-limited hashrate ceiling of roughly 44.8 to 65.7 EH/s, depending on miner efficiency. At a conservative 17.5 J/TH, this could reach around 56.0 EH/s. To contextualize, today's global Bitcoin network hashrate hovers around 1.03 to 1.17 zetahash per second (ZH/s), meaning these two sites alone could potentially contribute 4-6% of the current global network capacity.
The current installed hydropower capacity in Greenland is far smaller, about 91.3 megawatts, and electricity is sold at retail-style prices that aren't conducive to large-scale mining economics. This highlights why future large builds are contingent on industrial power purchase agreements or behind-the-meter supply from new generation facilities, rather than existing grid infrastructure. Greenland's lack of a national grid also means power stations typically serve local settlements, limiting interconnection and making co-locating flexible loads at specific plants an attractive initial strategy for utilizing 'stranded' or surplus energy.
From Pilot Projects to Gigawatt Scale: The Progression
Initial opportunities in Greenland might involve aggregating 5-25 megawatts of surplus power near existing generation, supporting pilot projects with a potential hashrate of 0.21-1.52 EH/s. While significant for a pilot, this won't move the needle on global network share. The next step up involves the expansion of Nuuk's main hydro plant, Buksefjord. With plans to grow from 45 megawatts to 121 megawatts by 2032, this expansion could provide 50-121 megawatts for miners, translating to an electrical ceiling of 2.07-7.33 EH/s.
However, it is the two-site tender for Tasersiaq and Tarsartuup Tasersua that truly elevates Greenland into a gigawatt-scale discussion for Bitcoin mining, presenting an opportunity for a centralized, massive operation.
The Trump Connection: Mining Capital Eyes New Frontiers
The convergence of large-scale renewable energy potential and significant mining capital is a potent combination. Interestingly, entities linked to Donald Trump's business interests are already making moves in the Bitcoin mining space. Hut 8, a prominent mining firm, partnered with Eric Trump to launch American Bitcoin, an enterprise that includes Donald Trump Jr. among its investors. As of late 2025, American Bitcoin had an installed hashrate of approximately 24 EH/s with an impressive fleet efficiency of around 16.4 J/TH.
Using the same PUE 1.1 planning value, a 24 EH/s operation like American Bitcoin would require roughly 430 megawatts of facility power. This illustrates that a fully utilized 1.08 GW tender buildout in Greenland could power such an operation more than once over, assuming the power is dedicated to mining and the immense logistical challenges are overcome. The involvement of such high-profile capital underscores the serious interest in securing large, cheap, and clean energy sources for Bitcoin mining.
Beyond Hydro: Greenland's Massive Wind Power Vision
While hydropower offers a firm, consistent energy source, Greenland's true theoretical energy ceiling lies in its colossal wind potential. A systems study published in Energy and indexed on ScienceDirect suggests that Greenland's onshore wind technical potential is approximately 333 GW nameplate capacity. This could produce about 1,487 TWh per year, assuming 20% of Greenland's ice-free area is made available. This equates to roughly 170 GW of average generation.
Translating this energy-only ceiling into hashrate reveals an astonishing theoretical capacity: 170 GW of average wind generation could imply approximately 7.0 to 10.4 ZH/s of hashing capacity. This figure alone is several times larger than today's entire Bitcoin network hashrate. Moreover, if a crude linear extrapolation were made to utilize 100% of Greenland's ice-free area, the potential skyrockets to around 7,435 TWh per year, or roughly 34.8 to 51.7 ZH/s.
It's important to stress that these are theoretical, physics-and-maps ceilings. Such a monumental buildout would require an estimated $384 billion in turbines alone, before considering Arctic premiums, massive transmission infrastructure, and the costs of curtailment, storage, and firming to convert variable wind power into a 24/7 load. Acquiring the necessary 21 million or more ASICs to utilize 333 GW would add another estimated $143 billion, excluding shipping, duties, spares, and building infrastructure. These 'back of the envelope' calculations indicate an investment in the hundreds of billions of dollars, but underscore an undeniable fact: Greenland holds enough unused energy to power the Bitcoin network many times over.
Practical Realities and Geopolitical Considerations
Even in a hypothetical scenario where Greenland becomes a part of the U.S., the path to realizing this mining utopia is fraught with practical challenges. Industrial hydropower and wind projects demand multi-year construction timelines, complex logistics for materials and personnel in a remote Arctic environment, and long-duration power offtake agreements. Furthermore, large-scale mining operations require robust data links, readily available spares, and significant import capacity for fleets of ASICs. While Greenland Connect provides some subsea cable connectivity, it doesn't solve transmission to remote hydro basins.
Clean, firm megawatts also face increasing competition. The International Energy Agency has warned that the burgeoning demand from AI data centers will significantly drive up electricity consumption, potentially raising the opportunity cost of dedicating vast renewable output solely to Bitcoin mining. Finally, the diplomatic landscape surrounding Greenland's status remains critical. European officials have consistently emphasized that Greenland's future, including any changes to its sovereignty, rests firmly on the consent of its people and established sovereignty norms. The upcoming tender round in 2026 will be a crucial step in setting the baseline for any large-scale Bitcoin mining endeavors on the island.
Ultimately, Greenland's energy potential represents one of the most significant untapped resources on Earth. While geopolitical shifts and immense logistical hurdles stand in the way, the sheer scale of its hydropower and wind capabilities paints a compelling picture for a future where the island could host a colossal, green Bitcoin mining hub, potentially reshaping the global landscape of digital currency production.
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