[vertnerd]

Comic relief from the real dystopia. From my local paper (in New Hampshire) today:

"There are ... bills tied to energy production that Republicans hope will boost crypto here. One would define “off-grid electricity providers” as entities that generate, transmit or sell electricity but remain unconnected to any existing generation or transmission system.

If built, such providers would be exempted from most state utility regulations.

Another bill would permit electric utilities to own and operate “advanced nuclear resources” which can be used to power crypto-mining enterprises. The potential development timeline for any modular nuclear generators here remains entirely speculative, but projects in other states are expected by 2030."

I'm trying to imagine the future where our government promotes the development of private nuclear power plants for the sole purpose of doing pointless math in pursuit of money.

[piperswe]

I suspect that state law isn't what's preventing private nuclear power plants, the federal red tape around nuclear projects (and secrets) is probably the big blocker

[binary132]

I hate to play Ayn Rand’s advocate here, but:

- Developing private nuclear is a good thing

- Getting giant power sinks off public grid is a good thing

- Private electrical generation doesn’t need to guarantee the same level of service as utilities depended upon by the public. Who cares if they surge or starve some hash calculator? Why not let them operate more efficiently?