The prohibition is a part of an attempt to control the demand for energy and guarantee that clean electricity powers industrial expansion.
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British Columbia, a province in Canada, intends to permanently prohibit new bitcoin mining businesses from joining to its electrical grid.
As part of a larger effort to control energy consumption and guarantee that clean electricity powers industrial expansion, BC Hydro has banned new crypto mining businesses from connecting to the grid.
In January 2026, the province will also implement a competitive allocation method and restrict the amount of power available for data centers and artificial intelligence.
Citing the need to safeguard power supply for sectors that provide employment and public income, British Columbia announced intentions to permanently prohibit new bitcoin mining businesses from joining to its electrical grid.
The action taken by the government of the third-most populous province in Canada is a component of a larger legislative and regulatory reform that was presented on Monday and imposes new restrictions on the amount of power that data centers and artificial intelligence (AI) firms may consume.
“To protect the province’s electricity supply and prevent the overburdening of the electricity grid, the government will also implement several regulatory and policy changes in fall 2025 that will … permanently ban new BC Hydro connections to the electricity grid for cryptocurrency mining,” the government stated in a post on its website.
According to the province, the limitations would guarantee that clean energy powers industrial expansion and help avoid grid pressure.
In the blog post, Charlotte Mitha, president and CEO of electricity company BC Hydro, said, “We are witnessing record demand from both conventional and developing businesses.” “The province’s plan enables BC Hydro to appropriately handle this expansion, maintaining the dependability of our system and the affordability and cleanliness of our energy future.”
According to the statement, cryptocurrency mining businesses often use a lot of power without generating a lot of local employment or tax income.
On the other hand, there is a perception that projects such as mines or LNG plants are more advantageous to the economy.
Along with the crypto prohibition, the province will limit the amount of power available for data centers and artificial intelligence (AI) while starting a competitive allocation procedure in January 2026.
November will see the implementation of comprehensive legislation, and January 2026 will see the start of a competitive procedure to distribute power to AI and data centers.