Paraguay Ends Bitcoin Miners' Power Contracts in 2027 as AI Data Centers Gain Priority
Paraguay's state utility ANDE says special power contracts for crypto miners will expire December 31, 2027, with no extensions planned under current rules. The utility is simultaneously signing 15-year supply deals with AI data centers, including one for up to 286 MW.
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What ANDE Has Announced
Paraguay's state utility ANDE has told Bitcoin miners that their special power tariffs end on December 31, 2027, and that no extensions are planned under current regulations. According to Crypto Briefing, the contracts cover operators drawing a combined 943.8 MW from surplus hydropower generated at the Itaipú and Yacyretá dams. CoinDesk, citing the same timeline, described the contracts as selling power to roughly 4% of the world's bitcoin mining at $44 per megawatt-hour, worth about $350 million a year to Paraguay.
The two reports differ on the price. CoinDesk puts the miners' rate at $44/MWh, while Crypto Briefing says operators now face tariffs of around $30/MWh, roughly double earlier levels, along with new upfront deposit requirements. The likely explanation is that the figures describe different points in the tariff history, but the sources do not reconcile them, and readers should treat the exact current rate as unconfirmed.
The Replacement Deals
While the miners' contracts wind down, ANDE is offering AI and high-performance computing data centers 15-year agreements priced around $49/MWh, according to Crypto Briefing. The most prominent example is Kuntur, a company linked to Araico and the planned $12 billion Iguazú AI City project, which holds a 15-year contract for up to 286 MW. CoinDesk reported that the deal was signed and is backed by Founders Fund.
The supply ramps gradually. Kuntur begins at 6 MW in December 2026 and scales toward its ceiling, while the miners' 943.8 MW faces a hard cutoff in 2027. That mismatch leaves an open question about how much surplus power sits idle during the transition or gets reallocated to new users.
Exposure for Public Miners
HIVE Digital Technologies is the most exposed listed miner. CoinDesk reports that its Paraguayan sites house about 77% of its operating mining capacity. Crypto Briefing cites research findings placing the share between roughly 77% and 80%, a small discrepancy that does not change the picture. HIVE operates two facilities in the country: Yguazú at about 200 MW and Valenzuela at about 100 MW.
The broader sector is also contracting. Crypto Briefing reports that the number of legal mining operators in Paraguay has fallen from 71 to 41 after enforcement against illegal grid connections. The sources do not agree on the scale of the 2027 impact across the whole industry, and no source gives a full accounting of how many operators will remain once the contracts lapse.
What ANDE Is Optimizing For
Crypto Briefing frames the shift as a policy choice: officials appear to favor projects that create more jobs and commit to longer horizons. An AI campus tied to a $12 billion development offers a larger economic footprint and a longer relationship than a fixed-term mining tariff. The utility is still expected to generate hundreds of millions of dollars annually from intensive users, so the revenue base is being reshaped rather than abandoned.
The signals to monitor are concrete: any HIVE disclosures on contingency plans for its Paraguayan capacity, any regulatory change that reopens extension talks before 2027, and whether ANDE signs further long-term AI contracts.
Why It Matters
For Traders
Miners with Paraguayan exposure face a dated loss of low-cost power, so watch HIVE's next disclosures for any sign of how the 2027 cutoff will be handled.
For Investors
Paraguay's shift toward AI tenants signals that cheap hydropower is being reallocated away from Bitcoin mining, which may reshape where the sector can operate at scale.
For Builders
Mining infrastructure planned around Paraguayan power tariffs now needs a post-2027 fallback, since the current contracts carry a fixed end date and no renewal path.
This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Read the full disclaimer.
