Tesla’s investment in Bitcoin

Kimball Musk added that Tesla has been inundated with “millions” of messages complaining about the company’s plans for Bitcoin. Here’s the investor’s rejoinder, in which he shares details of what happened.

Of course, our company is in the business of creating the future of alternative energy, so we really weren’t informed enough when we made this decision.

Apparently, the auto manufacturing giant really didn't take the time to learn how cryptocurrency works from the inside. Still, the topic of serious energy consumption by Bitcoin miners is no secret, but you need to understand the specifics of digital asset mining properly.

Elon Musk and Kimball Musk

Recall that Tesla announced last February that it would accept bitcoins as payment for its electric cars. However, a very short time later, this possibility was abolished with Ilon Musk stating his concerns about the negative impact of BTC on the environment. Here is his brother’s quote on the matter, published by the news outlet Decrypt.

I can’t accept the negative impact of cryptocurrencies on the environment, but I like the positive aspects of the crypto industry. So we just need to find a way to reduce the negative impact of Bitcoin mining on the environment. Leaving things as they are simply can’t be done.

Tesla ranks second on the list of companies that have officially acquired bitcoins

Read also: How much has Tesla made from its Bitcoin investments over time?

Bitcoin mining is seen as an environmental threat due to the ever-increasing energy consumption of miners. Much of it is met by the resource produced by thermal power plants. The issue has recently been discussed at a high level, even in the European Union, as its members prepare to consider a proposal to ban the mining of Proof-of-Work cryptocurrencies, which include Bitcoin and Etherium in its current form.

The proposal is part of the forthcoming EU Draft Crypto Asset Markets Act (MiCA), which would set the rules for regulating digital assets in Europe. The draft MiCA package tabled for discussion includes a provision banning PoW-based mining. A whole trend of pressure on miners may even be forming within the EU.

As a reminder, back in November last year, Swedish regulator Finansinspektionen called for a ban on crypto mining in the country with the following quote.

Sweden needs the renewable energy sources targeted by miners for the climate transition of our energy sector. Large-scale electricity consumption by miners threatens our ability to comply with the Paris Agreement. Thus, cryptocurrency mining using large amounts of electricity should be banned.

Bitcoin network’s rising power consumption

According to Cambridge University, the Bitcoin network consumes around 120 terawatt hours of electricity per year. This is more than the annual electricity consumption of most countries in the world. Last year, experts also found that only 39 per cent of the Bitcoin network is powered by renewable energy sources. Thus, the annual greenhouse gas emissions due to consumption on the Bitcoin network as a whole are equivalent to about 27.2 billion kilograms of coal burned.

Be that as it may, the industry continues to gain momentum and actively switch to renewable energy sources. This is a particularly hot topic in the US, where miners are responsible for their environmental impact and have access to such energy.


We believe that the Bitcoin mining niche has really started to shift towards a more environmentally friendly direction since the spring of 2021, when China banned coin mining on its territory. As a result, investors now have less reason to ignore the cryptocurrency and not get involved with it. And since there are plenty of examples of large investments by global companies, it is possible that there will be more of them.


For more interesting information about crypto and mining, check out our Millionaire Crypto Chat. There we will talk about other topics related to the blockchain and decentralization industry.