The cost of Bitcoin mining machines has surged sharply in Shenzhen, China, following the recent spike in the Bitcoin price.
According to a recent report by a Beijing-based newspaper Wen Wei Po, the price of Ant mining machines developed and produced by Bitmain, has increased 30% from the previous year.
One merchant noted that the Antminer S21 335T is priced at $5,600 each, a 30% increase from 2023.
The spike in Bitcoin mining machine prices is attributed to high market enthusiasm after Bitcoin surged past $106,000, on Monday. President-elect Donald Trump’s plans to create a U.S. bitcoin strategic reserve, fueled the price of Bitcoin.
Further, some of these machines have been in higher demand, the report added. Investors from Russia, Ethiopia, the United States and Canada have “purchased hundreds or even thousands of units,” Shenzhen-based merchants revealed.
Meanwhile, with great crude oil and natural gas production output, Russia enjoys some of the cheapest electricity prices in the world. “I opened a mine in Russia to mine Bitcoin. I have hundreds of machines,” a business owner noted. “The electricity cost there is only more than 2 cents, which is very cheap. I earn 12,000 yuan a day.”
According to the merchant, few miners from Russia, and other nations have imported hundreds of new BTC mining machines. Some of them have even traded thousands of machines, he added.