Marathon Ramps Up Mining Rig Arsenal, Set to Become America’s Largest Bitcoin Miner

The crypto mining space is continuing to grow in impressive numbers, as companies are starting to get off the pandemic blues and grow their operations. This week, Marathon Patent Group Inc., a self-mining firm, announced a move that could see it become the largest mining firm in the United States.

Lofty Aspirations 

According to a press release, Marathon confirmed that it had entered a deal with leading mining equipment manufacturer Bitmain to purchase 10,000 units of the latter’s Antminer s19 Pro rigs. The company’s estimates show that the deal would give it 23,600 mining rigs in its arsenal, essentially delivering a total hashrate of 2.56 EH/s.

The deal would make Marathon the largest self-miner in the country and one of the world’s top 15 mining firms. Speaking to industry news source Decrypt via email, a company representative explained that they believed the current Bitcoin resurgence was the perfect time to grow.

Marathon started its whirlwind purchasing spree in August, when it announced a deal to buy 10,500 Antminer s19 Pro rigs from Bitmain. Calling the event a “milestone,” the firm confirmed that the rigs would deliver it a 1.5 EH/s hashrate and bring its haul to 13,520. 

The firm has also made significant strides in reducing its mining costs. In late August, it confirmed an all-stock purchase of fellow miner Fastblock Mining, hoping to cut its costs by half. Sadly, the deal fell through and collapsed last month. 

Despite the setback, the firm eventually snagged the deal it wanted, announcing a partnership with Beowulf Energy this month. Per the announcement, both firms will launch a 105-megawatt Bitcoin mining data center. Along with generating a potential 1.26 EH/s by Q2 2021, the deal should also help reduce Marathon’s electricity and center management costs by 38 percent. 

Riot Blockchain Coming Fast

Marathon isn’t the only mining firm taking giant strides. Last month, Riot Blockchain announced that it had bought 2,500 s19 rigs from Bitmain. The deal, valued at about $6.1 million, would reportedly increase Riot’s hashrate from the current 500PH/s level to about 2.3 EH/s by June 2021. 

The NASDAQ-listed firm started a significant purchasing spree in August, when it bought 5,100 s19 Pro rigs from Bitmain. The deal cost $11.2 million, with the miners expected to be deployed by February 2021. Riot also announced that it hoped to achieve positive cash flow by the end of the year – while also reaching a 0.55 EX/s hashrate. 

“We are believers in Bitcoin’s opportunity to be a disruptive force in the traditional finance and currency systems. Riot is making strides in positioning itself to be a part of that future, and this purchase is a hallmark of those efforts,” said Remo Mancini, Riot Blockchain’s independent chairman. 

With several top industry players bulking up, 2021 could become a significant year for the mining sub-industry. There are less than 2.5 million BTC tokens left to be mined, and everyone is trying not to be left behind.