How a Jack Dorsey-backed bitcoin miner uses a volcano in Kenya to turn on the lights in rural homes
HELL’S GATE, Kenya — Two-and-a-half hours northwest of Nairobi by car, a small group of bitcoin miners set up shop at the site of an extinct volcano near Hell’s Gate National Park.
The mine, tucked away on the edge of Lake Naivasha, is operated by a startup called Gridless and consists of a single 500-kilowatt mobile container that, from the outside, looks like a small residential trailer.
Backed by Jack Dorsey’s Block, Gridless electrifies its machines with a mix of solar power and the stranded, wasted energy from a nearby geothermal site. It’s one of six mines run by the company in Kenya, Malawi and Zambia, powered by a mix of renewable inputs and working toward a broader mission of securing and decentralizing the bitcoin network.
Gridless runs Gridlesin Hell’s Gate operates on geothermal power.
MacKenzie Sigalos
“Most people think about bitcoin and the price of bitcoin and how they can save value in it or maybe spend it,” Gridless CEO Erik Hersman told CNBC during a visit to the Kenyan mine earlier this year. “That doesn’t happen without the bitcoin miners and us being globally distributed.”
Decentralization is a key feature of bitcoin, because it means the network isn’t controlled by any entity and can’t be shut down — even if a government disapproves.
Bitcoin and some other cryptocurrencies are created through a process known as proof-of-work, in which miners around the world run high-powered computers that collectively validate transactions and simultaneously create new tokens. The process requires heaps of electricity, leading miners to seek out the cheapest sources of power.
While there are more than a dozen publicly traded miners, thousands of smaller, private operations are also competing to process transactions and get paid in new bitcoin. That includes individual miners in countries from Venezuela to Lebanon, and can involve a single mining rig in a kitchen or several hundred thousand of them in an industrial-grade datacenter.
Gridless runs a geothermal-powered bitcoin mine in Hell’s Gate on the shore of Lake Naivasha.
MacKenzie Sigalos
Wherever the operation, bitcoin mining is a volatile business, because so much of the economics depends on the price of the cryptocurrency. Since losing 60% of its value in 2022, bitcoin has come roaring back, hitting a record above $73,000 in March, before pulling back a bit in recent weeks.
Much of the rally has been tied to the launch of spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the U.S., as well as optimism surrounding the so-called halving that took place late Friday. That event occurs every four years and is designed to cut the reward for bitcoin miners in half, reducing the pace at which new bitcoins enter the market. Prior halving events have been followed by big run-ups in the cryptocurrency.
“Bitcoin is effectively unbreakable at this point,” said Adam Sullivan, CEO of Core Scientific, a bitcoin miner based in Texas. “Bitcoin is at a point where it is more profitable to continue supporting the network than to try and break it.”
Analysts at Deutsche Bank wrote in a note on April 18 that they expect the geography of crypto mining to shift after the halving as slimmer profit margins force miners to seek cheaper and more reliable forms of energy. The analysts wrote that the U.S. currently accounts for 40% of mining, with Russia at 20% and China at 15%.
“Latin America, Africa and the Middle East have caught the attention of crypto miners due to their lower energy costs,” they wrote.
Bitfarms, based in Toronto, is now operating in Argentina, while Marathon Digital, headquartered in Florida, has expanded into the United Arab Emirates and Paraguay.
Hersman, 48, was raised in Kenya and Sudan, where his parents were linguists. Before getting into bitcoin mining, he and his two co-founders, Philip Walton and Janet Maingi, spent years building internet connectivity infrastructure in rural and urban Africa.
Gridless runs bitcoin mines in Kenya, Malawi, and Zambia on a mix of renewable energy sources. The company’s site in Hell’s Gate operates on geothermal power.
MacKenzie Sigalos
In early 2022, the trio began brainstorming creative solutions for the divide between power generation and capacity, and the lack of access to electricity in Africa. They landed on the idea of bitcoin mining, which could potentially solve a big problem for renewable energy developers by taking their stranded power and spreading it to other parts of the continent. In Africa, 43% of the population, or roughly 600 million people, lack access to electricity.
Gridless now has eight full-time staffers and manages much of its operations remotely with its software.
Turning lava into bitcoin
Hell’s Gate is a deep and winding canyon that is home to cheetahs, zebras, and giraffes and rimmed by cliffs, volcanoes and thick bush.
The area is covered in ash, and sulfuric plumes of steam will periodically emit from the ground, a reminder of the surrounding, smoldering volcanic craters that wiped out some of the native Maasai tribe in the mid-19th century and threatened others who dared to take up residence there.
Gone are the days of fatal eruptions and spewing lava. Instead, an elaborate, labyrinthine piping system and volcanic plugs comprise multiple geothermal power stations.
A drilling hole at the Olkaria geothermal power station in Hell´s Gate National Park.
Getty Images/Michael Gottschalk
Volcano-powered bitcoin mining isn’t new.
Iceland, El Salvador and other countries have been harnessing geothermal energy to mine bitcoin. To make the conditions work for miners, the businesses need the combination of a buy-in from local authorities, cheap and abundant power and some infrastructure, said Nic Carter, founding partner of Castle Island Ventures, which focuses on blockchain investments.
“If you have those three ingredients, it can work, but sometimes, it’s the nation state, or a national, state energy company doing it,” Carter said. He pointed to the Middle East, which is getting into flare gas mining as an example of state-level actors entering the business.
“In some cases, it’s with the explicit blessing of the nation state like Bhutan, and then in Texas, it’s just with very favorable local regulators and local conditions,” he said.
Africa is home to an estimated 10 terawatts of solar capacity, 350 gigawatts of hydro and another 110 gigawatts of wind.
Some of this renewable energy is being harnessed already, but a lot isn’t because building the specialized infrastructure to capture it is expensive. Even with 60% of the best solar resources globally, Africa only has 1% of installed solar PV capacity.
Enter bitcoin miners.
Bitcoin gets a bad rap for the amount of energy it consumes, but it can also help unlock these trapped renewable sources of power. Miners are essentially energy buyers, and co-locating with renewables creates a financial incentive to bolster production.
“As often happens, you’ll have an overage of power during the day or even at night, and there’s nobody to soak that power up,” said Hersman. He said his company’s 50-kilowatt mining container can “take up whatever is extra throughout the day.”
Steam tubes at the Olkaria geothermal power station in Hell´s Gate National Park.
Getty Images/Michael Gottschalk
“Within any second or minute, we are going up and down on a certain number of miners that are running,” Hersman said. “It might be down to 50 kilowatts, then up to 300 kilowatts, then down to 200 kilowatts, and then up to another level — and that will happen all day and all night.”
According to the International Energy Agency, in Africa’s rural areas, “where over 80% of the electricity-deprived live, mini-grids and stand-alone systems, mostly solar based, are the most viable solutions.”
Demand from bitcoin miners on these semi-stranded assets is making renewables in Africa economically viable. The power supplier benefits from selling energy that previously had been discarded, while the energy plants will sometimes lower costs for the customer. At one of the Gridless pilot sites in Kenya, the hydro plant dropped the price of power from 35 cents per kilowatt hour to 25 cents per kWh.
The buildout of capacity is also electrifying households.
Gridless says its sites have powered 1,200 houses in Zambia, 1,800 in Malawi and 5,000 in Kenya. The company’s mines also have delivered power for containerized cold storage for local farmers, battery charging stations for electric motorcycles and public WiFi points.
“It’s not really sexy,” Hersman said. “It’s a mining container made from a shipping container. It’s got a bunch of dumb machines sitting in it running the same equation over and over again, but it’s actually what secures the network.”
Amazon is adding over 200 Mercedes-Benz eActros 600 electric semi trucks to its fleet later this year – its largest-ever order of electric heavy goods vehicles (eHGVs).
Amazon’s new electric semi trucks
These electric trucks will handle high-mileage routes across the UK and Germany, moving trailers between Amazon’s fulfillment centers, sorting centers, and delivery stations.
The new eHGVs are expected to transport more than 350 million packages annually once fully operational.
Amazon is installing 360kW charging stations at key sites capable of powering the 40-tonne trucks from 20-80% in just over an hour. The company is also working with stakeholders to establish external charging locations to support longer routes.
The eActros 600 is Mercedes-Benz Trucks’ flagship electric long-hauler, with a battery capacity of more than 600 kWh and a range of 310 miles (500 km). Production of the eActros 600s recently began at Mercedes-Benz’s factory in Wörth, Germany.
Sustainable delivery across Europe
In the UK, Amazon has begun using the electric rail network for package transport at scale. It’s also rolling out on-foot delivery options in London, with associates using carts that can be restocked from nearby vans. In Germany, Amazon doubled its fleet of Rivian electric delivery vans to over 600, and electric cargo bikes delivered more than 1.5 million packages in Berlin alone last year.
By the end of 2024, Amazon plans to expand its micromobility hubs – locations supporting deliveries by foot and cargo bike – to Germany’s five largest cities and beyond. Across Europe, the company is investing more than €1 billion to further electrify and decarbonize its transportation network.
Amazon’s European network already includes 38 eHGVs, with 50 electric semis recently deployed in California. The company’s fleet of electric delivery vans in Europe has grown to over 3,000 and is expected to surpass 10,000 by the end of 2025. Micromobility hubs have also expanded from 20 cities in 2022 to more than 45 by the end of 2024, including new additions in Belfast, Madrid, Rome, and Vienna.
Electrek’s Take
Amazon says its latest electric semi truck order aligns with The Climate Pledge it announced in 2019, in which the company committed to achieving net zero across its operations by 2040. While The Climate Pledge initiative has garnered praise, it has also faced criticism and skepticism regarding its effectiveness and transparency.
In 2020, Amazon faced allegations of retaliating against employees who spoke out about the company’s environmental policies. The National Labor Relations Board found that Amazon had illegally fired workers who advocated for climate action and better safety measures.
Amazon is also donating $1 million to President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural fund. Trump is a climate change denier who actively opposes renewables, and not just in the US. Earlier this month Trump demanded that the British government open up the North Sea to fossil fuel drilling and get rid of “windmills.”
Read more: It begins: Mercedes eActros 600 electric semi truck enters production
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![Check out the new Genesis GV60 interior, it looks even more luxurious in blue [Video]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/01/Genesis-new-GV60-interior.jpeg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
If you thought the current GV60 looked pretty inside, wait until you see the updated model. Genesis unveiled the new GV60 earlier this month, its first major redesign since launching in 2021. Here’s our first look at the interior of the new Genesis GV60.
Genesis GV60 interior gets an upgrade in the new model
Genesis launched the GV60 in October 2021 as its first dedicated EV. Less than four years later, the luxury electric SUV is already getting a new look.
The luxury brand unveiled the new GV60 last week for the first time. One of the biggest updates is to the front end.
Although the GV60 is already a sporty-looking EV, the redesigned front bumper with a new 3-D shape takes it up another level. Then, add the signature Genesis Two Line headlamps with Micro Lens Array (MLA) tech, and the refreshed GV60 is a head turner.
The revamped model now features 21″ wheels with a new five-spoke design, complementing its wide, low stance.
Inside, the upgraded GV60 features its new 27″ connected car Integrated Cockpit (ccIC) infotainment system. The design “eliminates the bezel” between the driver display and infotainment screens.
The new Genesis GV60 interior also gains a redesigned three-spoke steering wheel for an even more sporty feel while you’re in the cockpit. Other popular features from the outgoing model, like the Crystal Sphere shift-by-wire system, are still included.
After revealing the updated model for the first time last week, we are already getting a look at the redesigned interior.
A new video from Korea’s HealerTV gives us our first look at the Genesis GV60 interior in a new blue color. Although the reporter initially thought it was a performance model, he noted it was just a new color option. Other added design elements, like the large quilting pattern on the side panels, give it that Bentley or Rolls-Royce feel.
Last week, HealerTV posted a video revealing the first look at the updated Genesis GV60 exterior design. You can see the redesigned front and rear bumpers add to the GV60’s already impressive look.
In the US, the 2025 Genesis GV60 starts at $52,350. A new AWD trim was introduced this year, starting at $55,850.
The current mode gets up to 294 miles driving range, but a bigger battery is expected to push that number closer to 300 miles in the 2025MY. It’s expected to feature the same 84 kWh battery as the updated 2025 IONIQ 5, which provides up to 318 miles range. That’s up from 303 miles in the previous model with a 77.4 kWh battery.
| 2025 Genesis GV60 trim | Range (EPA-est) |
Starting Price* |
| Standard RWD | 294 miles | $52,350 |
| Standard AWD | 264 miles | $55,850 |
| Advanced AWD | 248 miles | $60,900 |
| Performance AWD | 235 miles | $69,900 |
Genesis will launch the updated GV60 in Korea in the first quarter of the year, with overseas markets following shortly after. Check back for more info, including prices and specs, closer to launch.
What do you think about the new GV60 design? Do you like the changes? What would you change? Let us know in the comments below.
Ready to check out the electric luxury SUV for yourself? With the 2025 models here, Genesis is offering clearance prices on the 2024 lineup while they are still in stock. You can use our link to find offers on 2024 and 2025 Genesis GV60 models at a dealer near you today.
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