Bitcoin Hashrate Plunges as Arctic Blast Hits U.S. Grids

A powerful winter storm sweeping across the United States has triggered one of the sharpest short-term Bitcoin (BTC) hashrate drops in recent years. 

Roughly 200 exahashes per second (EH/s) have gone offline, slowing Bitcoin block production to about 12 minutes. The event is offering a real-time stress test of how Bitcoin mining now interacts with national power grids.

Foundry and U.S. Pools Hit by Arctic Curtailments

According to Wu Blockchain and TheMinerMag, Foundry USA’s hashrate has fallen nearly 60% between January 23 and January 25, dropping by close to 200 EH/s as Winter Storm Fernan moved across large parts of the country.

Foundry currently controls roughly 198 EH/s, accounting for about 23% of the global pool hashrate, making its curtailment highly visible at the blockchain level. Real-time data shows Bitcoin’s average block time stretching to roughly 12 minutes, reflecting the sudden loss of computing power.

Other U.S.-focused pools have also seen declines. Luxor’s hashrate dropped from roughly 45 EH/s to 26 EH/s, whereas smaller reductions were observed at Antpool and Binance Pool, suggesting the total offline capacity may exceed 110 EH/s across the network.

The storm has caused power outages for more than one million residents, prompting grid operators to issue conservation alerts as heating demand surged.

Why This Is Different From Past Mining Shutdowns

As TheMinerMag reports, unlike emergency failures seen during Winter Storm Uri in 2021, this pullback reflects a deliberate response, not a system breakdown.

Many U.S. Bitcoin miners now participate in demand-response programs, allowing them to rapidly curtail operations during periods of grid stress. By stepping aside, miners reduce strain on power systems and free electricity for households and critical infrastructure.

This “flexible-load” model has become increasingly common as mining operations integrate directly with grid operators in a dynamic that did not exist at scale just a few years ago.

What It Means for Bitcoin Going Forward

From a network perspective, the slowdown is temporary. Bitcoin’s difficulty adjustment will eventually compensate if reduced hashrate persists, restoring normal block times.

More importantly, the event highlights how Bitcoin mining in the U.S. has evolved from a grid liability into a dispatchable energy load. Short-term hashrate volatility may increase during extreme weather, but the system is becoming more resilient.

For now, the storm-driven slowdown is less a warning sign for Bitcoin and more a case study in how mining and energy markets are converging.

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