A banner that reads: We accept Chivo and Bitcoin is seen outside a bussines in Antiguo Cuscatlanville in Ivoana.
SAN SALVADOR Reuters - El Salvador's unfolding experiment as a first-adopter of the cryptocurrency bitcoin could be increasingly powered by new streams of renewable energy, said the chief of the country's hydroelectric commission in an interview with reporters on Friday.
The energy-intensive cryptocurrency mining is done by computers, and has come under criticism from environmentalists as a major source of demand for fossil fuel derived electricity.
Last month, El Salvador became the first country in the world to recognize bitcoin as a legal tender alongside the U.S. currency, which for years had served as the country's sole official currency.
Daniel Alvarez, president of the state-run Lempa River Hydroelectric Executive Commission CEL said El Salvador has potential to generate electricity from hydroelectric, solar, wind and tidal power projects.
The possibilities are infinite. It’s just about willpower and that we have the means and the ability to start these projects, Alvarez said.
In September, the Salvadoran government started harnessing geothermal energy to mining bitcoins from a plant at the base of Tecapa volcano, 106 kilometers 66 miles east of capital, owned by a company which is part of CEL.
The plant generates a total of 102 megawatts, and the government plans to add another five megawatts next year. At present, 1.5 megawatts are allocated for Bitcoin.
Alongside the plant, officials have built a room inside a container to house 300 computers that process cryptocurrency transactions.
The Tecapa plant along with another geothermal plant in northwestern El Salvador supply between 23% and 24% of the national electricity grid, according to authorities.