A tax on the energy used by crypto miners could cut emissions by 100 million tons a year, equal to Belgium’s emissions, say two IMF executives.
Two executives from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) say increasing the average crypto mining electricity costs globally by as much as 85% through taxes could put a huge dent in carbon emissions.
A tax of $0.047 per kilowatt hour “would drive the crypto mining industry to curb its emissions in line with global goals,” the IMF Fiscal Affairs Department’s deputy division chief Shafik Hebous and climate policy division economist Nate Vernon-Lin wrote on Aug. 15.
If accounting for miners’ local impact on health, the tax would rise to $0.089 per kilowatt hour, the pair said.
