Key Points
- Marathon Digital’s Bitcoin production fell by 6% in February due to increased network difficulty and fewer operational days.
- The company plans to strengthen its position in the artificial intelligence space to create additional revenue opportunities.
Marathon Digital, a Bitcoin mining firm, saw a decrease in its Bitcoin production in February. The company attributed this 6% month-over-month drop to a rise in network difficulty and a reduction in operational days.
Details on Marathon’s Bitcoin Production
On March 4, Marathon Digital released a report revealing a 4% daily increase in crypto production compared to January. However, Bitcoin production saw a 6% decrease month-over-month. Despite this, the firm’s energized hashrate remained stable.
Fred Thiel, Marathon Digital’s chairman and CEO, explained that the decrease in Bitcoin production was primarily due to a higher network difficulty level and three fewer operational days. Thiel also mentioned that the company is nearing the completion of a 40-megawatt data center in Ohio, where they plan to install over ten thousand S21 Pro immersion miners.
Marathon’s Future Plans and Challenges
Thiel also revealed that the mining company is aiming to fortify its standing in the artificial intelligence sector. This move, he believes, will generate additional revenue opportunities in the long run.
The increase in network difficulty has been a hurdle for miners since the halving of Bitcoin in April 2024. The halving reduced the rewards per mining block, making it more challenging to maintain production rates. As competition on the network increases, fewer blocks are being won, which affects production numbers.
Following the update on production, Marathon’s shares fell by 5% in pre-market trading, according to data from Yahoo Finance. The timeline for the full deployment of new miners at the Ohio site remains uncertain.