Bitcoin Mining Faces 50% Block Reward Cut, Network Hashrate Soars 77%

Bitcoin mining has entered a new epoch following the 2024 halving, with block rewards reduced from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC. This significant reduction has compelled miners to reassess their operations, focusing on optimizing efficiency, cutting energy costs, and upgrading hardware to maintain profitability. Industry experts at Uminers have provided insights into this transformation, highlighting improvements in ASIC efficiency, corporate performance, geographical expansion, and new revenue models. As miners adapt to these changes, Bitcoin is poised to enter a new era where institutional momentum and sovereign adoption could redefine its role in the global financial system.

Despite the financial challenges posed by the halving, Bitcoin’s network hashrate has continued to climb. As of May 1, 2025, the total computational power of the network reached 831 EH/s, with an earlier peak of 921 EH/s in the same month. This represents a 77% increase from the 2024 low of 519 EH/s, demonstrating the industry's relentless drive for efficiency. Larger mining firms are reinvesting in fleet upgrades and energy optimization to maintain profitability in the face of shrinking margins.

The mining industry's arms race has always been centered around power efficiency. With rising energy costs, the latest ASIC models from Bitmain, MicroBT, and Canaan are optimizing energy requirements per hash. Bitmain’s Antminer S21+ delivers 216 TH/s at 16.5 J/TH, while MicroBT’s WhatsMiner M66S+ pushes immersion-cooled performance to 17 J/TH. Semiconductor giants TSMC and Samsung are driving the next wave of innovation with 3-nm chips already in use and 2-nm technology on the horizon.

Post-halving, Bitcoin mining profitability has tightened significantly. Hashprice, the daily revenue per terahash per second, dropped from $0.12 in April 2024 to about $0.049 by April 2025. Network difficulty has surged to an all-time high of 123T, making it harder for miners to generate returns. To stay competitive, operations must extract maximum value from every watt of power consumed. This shift has intensified the search for cheap, reliable power, driving mining expansion into regions where energy costs remain low.

Electricity pricing now dictates mining profitability. In certain regions, licensed miners benefit from government-backed subsidies, securing electricity at competitive rates. These incentives have turned these regions into prime destinations for institutional-scale mining. Meanwhile, in areas where industrial power costs often exceed $0.1 per kWh, miners face shrinking margins, forcing a migration toward more cost-efficient locations. Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia have emerged as key battlegrounds in this race, offering the energy arbitrage opportunities miners need to survive.

The 2024 halving has reinforced the necessity of efficiency in Bitcoin mining. The industry is shifting toward leaner, more optimized operations, where only the most power-efficient miners can thrive. The rise of AI computing, global regulatory shifts, and ongoing hardware advancements will continue to shape the sector over the next 12–18 months. Cointelegraph Research’s Bitcoin mining report provides a data-driven breakdown of the key forces shaping mining profitability, infrastructure investments, and strategic decision-making.