"Demand from bitcoin miners on these semi-stranded assets is making renewables in Africa economically viable." ~ CNBC Yesterday, I posted on Bitcoin mining lowering power prices for a community in Norway by 20%. But does Bitcoin mining also help lower electricity prices for consumers in the Global South? It would appear, the answer is again "yes". Bitcoin mining company Gridless has already done this in Kenya, Malawi and Zambia. According to CNBC, as a direct result of Bitcoin mining using the otherwise wasted energy from a micro-hydro plant in Kenya: "the hydro plant dropped the price of power from 35 cents per kilowatt hour to 25 cents per kWh." That's a 28% price drop. Even lower than the 20% price drop in Norway. The price drop isn't always this low. Sometimes its only around 4% (more on that tomorrow). But even that can be significant for struggling families. And, the story is consistent, across grids and across the world: if you have Bitcoin mining using otherwise wasted renewable electricity, the direct result is that consumers of energy will pay less for their power.(Daniel Batten)