Norway Moves Toward Restricting New Energy-Intensive Crypto Mining
Norway’s government announced that it would investigate a temporary, limited prohibition on new data centers primarily engaged in energy-intensive cryptocurrency mining. Government strategy documents identified Bitcoin as by far the most mined cryptocurrency in Norway, making Bitcoin mining the principal activity affected by the proposed restriction.
On June 20, 2025, Norway’s government announced that it would investigate a temporary restriction on the establishment of new data centers devoted mainly to energy-intensive cryptocurrency mining. Ministers framed the proposed measure as a way to reserve electricity, grid capacity and land for other industries and socially useful data-center activity. The proposal was to be examined under Norway’s planning law rather than imposed as an immediate nationwide mining ban.
The policy was written in general cryptocurrency terms, but the government’s own data-center strategy made the Bitcoin connection explicit. It identified Bitcoin as by far the most mined cryptocurrency in Norway and said measures aimed at proof-of-work mining would therefore affect most of the country’s cryptocurrency-mining activity and power consumption. Norway’s renewable and relatively inexpensive electricity, stable grid and cool climate had made it attractive to miners, while the government argued that the sector generated too few jobs and local economic benefits relative to its power demand.
The June action was a policy commitment and investigation stage, not enactment. The government said it intended to study a temporary and limited planning provision during the second half of 2025 and distinguish mining restrictions from data centers supporting artificial intelligence, digitalization and other blockchain applications. The announcement nevertheless marked a clear national policy direction: Norway was considering using land-use and electricity policy to constrain new proof-of-work mining capacity in a country where that activity was overwhelmingly associated with Bitcoin.