A severe winter storm in the United States has caused Bitcoin's network hashrate to fall by about 12% since November 11, the largest drop since 2021. Major mining operations curtailed activities to protect infrastructure and meet grid demands, leading to sharp declines in production and revenue. This disruption marks one of the toughest periods for miners in years, amid falling Bitcoin prices.
Bitcoin mining has faced significant challenges following a harsh winter storm that swept through key U.S. regions. The network's total hashrate declined approximately 12% from November 11, reaching around 970 exahashes per second—its lowest point since September 2025. This downturn, the steepest since the recovery from China's 2021 mining ban, accelerated recently as extreme weather interrupted power supplies in major mining areas.
Publicly traded miners responded by temporarily shutting down equipment, both to safeguard facilities and to adhere to electricity grid curtailment orders. This action exacerbated an ongoing softening in mining activity, which had already begun as Bitcoin's price retreated from its all-time high of $126,000 toward the $100,000 mark late last year.
The economic impact was immediate and severe. Daily mining revenue tumbled from about $45 million on January 22 to a yearly low of $28 million just two days later, though it has since recovered slightly to around $34 million—still below recent norms. Production among large public miners plummeted from 77 Bitcoin per day to 28, while output from other miners fell from 403 to 209 Bitcoin daily.
Over a 30-day rolling period, publicly listed miners saw a 48 Bitcoin drop in output, the sharpest since May 2024 after the halving event. Non-public miners experienced an even larger decline of 215 Bitcoin, the biggest since July 2024.
Profitability metrics underscore the strain. CryptoQuant's Miner Profit and Loss Sustainability Index dipped to 21, its lowest since November 2024, indicating that many operations are struggling to cover costs despite recent network difficulty reductions. While offline machines have eased difficulty somewhat, persistent low hashrate could lead to further adjustments, potentially providing some relief if the weather stabilizes.
