HIVE Acquires Bitfarms’ Paraguay Bitcoin Mine for $56M
HIVE Digital (NASDAQ: HIVE) has finalized a $56 million deal to acquire fellow Canadian mining peer Bitfarms’ partially completed 200-megawatt (MW) Bitcoin mine in Yguazú, Paraguay.
HIVE said in an announcement on Tuesday that it signed a binding letter of intent with Bitfarms and expects to expand its Bitcoin mining capacity to 25 EH/s by September with the acquisition, tapping into Paraguay’s low-cost, renewable hydroelectric power.
The $56 million acquisition includes a $25 million upfront payment due at closing, expected in Q1, with the remaining $31 million structured in six equal monthly installments over the following half−year.
According to the release, the 200 MW Yguazú facility will be developed in two stages, with Phase 1 slated for completion by April 1, 2025, and already 80% constructed.
This initial phase, which includes HIVE assuming the remaining payments to finalize energization, is expected to add approximately 6 EH/s of Bitcoin mining capacity, which will be operational by Q2. Phase 2, targeting an August 31, 2025 completion, will integrate hydro-cooled Bitmain S21+ ASICs to deliver an additional 6.5 EH/s. HIVE estimates completion costs at $400,000 per MW, funded through existing cash and its Bitcoin reserves.
The acquisition is in addition to HIVE’s existing 100 MW expansion plan in Paraguay announced last year, which is said to “remain on track for energization by June 2025” with another 6.5 EH/s. As of December 2024, HIVE boasted a realized hashrate of 5.46 EH/s with 2,805 BTC on its balance sheet.
Bitfarms’ Rocky Road in Paraguay
The acquisition follows Bitfarms’ stalled efforts to develop the Yguazú site, originally part of its 2024 expansion into Paraguay. Delays forced Bitfarms to relocate miners intended for Paraguay to Stronghold Digital’s Pennsylvania facility in 2024 as part of its merger with Stronghold to enter the U.S. market.
Bitfarms’ decision to sell the Paraguay site underscores shifting priorities as it reallocates resources to stabilize its North American operations, which also came after the company’s management reshuffle last year.
“We are pleased to announce the sale of our Yguazu site to HIVE as we continue to streamline our operations and rebalance towards North America,” Bitfarms CEO Ben Gagnon stated in a release. “Bitfarms will be reinvesting the capital from this sale towards its 1 GW growth pipeline in the U.S. for BTC and HPC/AI infrastructure.”
Gagnon said Bitfarms remains fully committed to its existing operations in Latin America with three sites totaling 144 MW with long-term power agreements.
For HIVE, the purchase aligns with its hashrate expansion and green-energy priority amid the rising competition from its mining peers. HIVE’s realized hashrate increased by 40% from January to December 2024, while Bitcoin’s average hashrate expanded by nearly 50% during the same period.
“Paraguay’s political stability and renewable energy infrastructure make it a cornerstone of our growth,” said HIVE executive chairman Frank Holmes. HIVE has previously pre-ordered 15 EH/s of hydro-cooled ASICs from Bitmain and Canaan (NASDAQ: CAN), with plans to acquire additional hardware to hit the 25 EH/s target.
HIVE will also assume $19 million in pre-existing power purchase agreement (PPA) deposits paid by Bitfarms to Paraguayan utility ANDE, as well as responsibility for completing construction costs after signing the binding LOI.
