New research reveals Bitmain’s S19 miners command 76% of Bitcoin network hashrate, while energy efficiency sees a significant surge.
New research conducted by Coinmetrics has revealed that Bitmain’s S19 series of Bitcoin miners dominate the network’s hashrate, accounting for a significant 76% of the total computing power. The study specifically highlights three models: the Antminer S19j Pro with a 34.3% share, the S19 with 28.1%, and the S19 XP with 13.7%. Coinmetrics notes that these machines have been the most widely utilized on the network since March 2021. However, the researchers were unable to detect the presence of MicroBT’s M50 model.
To determine the prevalence of mining machines, the study employed a unique methodology that involved tracking the distinctive characteristics of different models. It was observed that the energy consumption varied among the machines, with different models utilizing different amounts of electricity to generate a specific computing power.
In addition, the report highlights a remarkable improvement in the energy efficiency of the Bitcoin network over the past five years. Since July 1, 2018, the energy efficiency has surged by approximately 60%. The current average energy consumption stands at 33.6 joules per terahash (J/TH) of computing power, in contrast to the previous figure of 89.3 J/TH. However, the report acknowledges that the rate of improvement has slowed down compared to previous periods.
Furthermore, the research reveals that the Bitcoin network consumes 13.4 gigawatts (GW) of power, which is 13% lower than the commonly referenced index published by Cambridge University’s Centre for Alternative Finance.
In summary, Bitmain’s S19 series of Bitcoin miners, particularly the S19j Pro, S19, and S19 XP, dominate the network’s hashrate, accounting for a significant portion. The energy efficiency of the network has also witnessed substantial improvement over the past five years, although the pace of advancement has decelerated recently.
