Energy Ministry Suggests Fourth Reliability Tier: Miners Face First-Out Power Cuts

Russia’s Ministry of Energy has proposed creating a IV category of electricity supply reliability. Under this plan, entities with heavy non-essential usage, such as crypto mining farms, would be disconnected first during emergencies. The primary goal is to protect crucial infrastructure from blackouts.

Preliminary estimates suggest that peak demand shortages could exceed 2–3 GW if high-load consumers are not promptly shut off. Around 10–12% of all miners could be affected, particularly in regions already struggling with limited grid capacity. Meanwhile, major industrial enterprises contributing substantial tax revenue and jobs remain in higher categories.

Officials aim to hold public hearings before finalizing the rules, which may take up to a year to implement. Industry observers say the measure will simplify dispatchers’ workload and avert cascading outages in major urban centers.