Solo Bitcoin Miner Strikes Gold: Nets $200K with Just 0.5 EH/s

In a remarkable feat of solo mining, a Bitcoin miner operating at a hashrate of only 0.5 exahash per second (EH/s) successfully solved a Bitcoin block, earning a reward of 3.319 BTC, valued at approximately $200,000. The event, which took place on May 13, 2024, was confirmed for block 843,231 by CKpool, where the miner is connected, according to TheMinerMag.

This isn’t the first time this solo miner has made headlines; Dr -ck, the developer behind CKpool, indicated that the same operator likely mined another block on May 5. At the current network difficulty, a setup with 0.5 EH/s would typically solve a block every nine days. This recent success comes shortly after Bitcoin’s mining difficulty adjusted downward by 6% earlier in May, which has slightly improved the odds for smaller or solo operators.

Operating such a hashrate solo is unusual given the substantial energy requirements—equivalent to running 2,500 units of the Antminer S21. This setup consumes around 216,000 kWh daily, costing about $15,120, assuming electricity costs of $0.07 per kWh. Despite these costs, the decision to mine solo may be a strategic move to evaluate the feasibility and potential profits of solo mining under current network conditions, especially with reduced block subsidies post-halving.