In the middle of the desert: a $350 million Bitcoin factory

One factory, 17,000 machines: Oman Builds a giant 'mining factory' for Bitcoin in the middle of the desert. The cost is estimated at US$350 million. It is already the second plant of this size in the country. In November 2022, they announced a $390 million mining center. In total, nearly a billion dollars will be invested in Bitcoin mining. The hope: to stimulate the economy and create jobs. The facility will also serve as a data center.

The Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information and the company Exahertz International are responsible for the project. The plant will be built in the Salalah Free Zone, one of Oman's main industrial areas. It is a pilot project. The plant is already in operation with 2,000 machines. A total of 15,000 will be added. They will come from China's leading cryptomining equipment manufacturer Bitmain. The plant should be ready by the middle of next year. If it is a success, more offshoots are planned in the region.

Mining factory also under construction in Abu Dhabi

Two large mining plants for BTC are also being built in the United Arab Emirates. They are being built in Abu Dhabi by the American company Marathon Digital and Zero Two, at a total cost of $400 million. Currently, the country carries four percent to the global hashrate. With the new investments, it aims to grow by 50 percent and become the region's leader.

Oman is an absolute monarchy and authoritarian regime in the Middle East with a population of nearly five million. The country is ruled by Islamic Sharia law. According to NGOs, press freedom and freedom of speech are threatened, human rights are regularly trampled on, homosexuality is punishable by imprisonment, and critics of the regime are persecuted and imprisoned. The death penalty is still in effect but is almost never carried out.