Bitcoin mining firm Riot Platforms acquires Block Mining in $92.5 million deal to expand operations

Bitcoin mining firm Riot Platforms today has acquired Block Mining, a Kentucky-based bitcoin miner, in a $92.5 million deal to expand its mining operations.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Riot said that the acquisition could immediately add 60 megawatts of current operational capacity. “Riot intends to further expand Block Mining's two sites, targeting 110 MW for self-mining operations by the end of 2024,” the company added. That would bring Riot’s total potential power capacity to 2 gigawatts.

“This transaction allows us to diversify our operations nationally and accelerate Block Mining's expansion in Kentucky,” Jason Les, CEO of Riot, said in the statement. “With a combined 60 MW of existing developed capacity, and a pipeline to rapidly scale to over 300 MW, this acquisition expands our operations and further enhances our path towards our growth target of 100 EH/s.”

Riot paid the purchase deal with $18.5 million in cash and $74 million worth of Riot common stock, according to the statement.

In a filing earlier this month, Riot said that it earned 255 BTC in June, compared to 215 BTC in May and 460 BTC in June 2023. The firm mined about half as many bitcoin year-on-year in June, as expected following bitcoin's halving event in April.

Shares of Riot on Nasdaq closed down 5.31% on Tuesday, according to Google Finance. The company’s stock price has dropped by 24.79% year-to-date.