Hmm where are the biggest mining hardware companies based ?
PROOF: Bitmain is selling old hardware as NEW miners!
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2244677.0https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/7txh2f/sooo_you_guys_are_aware_that_bitmain_is_selling/How cheap is electric in China ?
http://uk.businessinsider.com/why-china-mines-more-bitcoin-than-any-other-country-2017-12But by far and away the country where most of this mining is taking place is China for a couple of reasons. One and the biggest reason of all is low-cost electricity or free electricity.
China has very cheap coal-based electricity and also a lot of extra hydro-capacity.
So a number of hydro-facilities in provinces like Szechuan were developed in anticipation of new cities coming online to take advantage of this new inexpensive electricity.
However that electricity is idle, its not being utilised so many hydro dam operators have gone into the cryptocurrency mining business and I think this is important to keep in mind as we think about the environmental impact of bitcoin.
If that electricity is just going to waste its already less of a negative externality for bitcoin to be having this excess hydro-capacity used for bitcoin mining.
So just these two factors above state that
1 the worlds biggest ASIC manufactures are running thousands of machines prior to selling them as new
2 electric was/is cheap, free plentiful
The Chinese government surely wouldn't be smart enough to have an interest in having a controlling stake in the biigest asset in a new emerging asset class.
Oh and Garlinghouse the CEO of the 3rd biggest cryptocurrency, got to where he is today by being a total dick that does not know what he is talking about. LOL Sarcasm