Bitcoin mining trend in 2025: computing power hits a new high after the halving, and energy arbitrage drives the migration of mining companies
According to Cointelegraph, Bitcoin has entered the fifth era after the block reward halving in 2024, with the individual block reward dropping from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC. As of May 1, 2025, the computing power of the entire network reached 831 EH/s, an increase of 77% from the 2024 low of 519 EH/s, and the peak climbed to 921 EH/s.
Bitmain's Antminer S21+ achieves a ratio of 216 TH/s computing power to 16.5 J/TH, and MicroBT's WhatsMiner M66S+ energy consumption drops to 17 J/TH. TSMC and Samsung have introduced 3nm chip technology, and the 2nm process is about to be implemented, promoting the continuous improvement of mining machine efficiency.
Energy costs dominate the survival of mining companies, and the difficulty of the whole network has risen to a record high of 123T, and the daily revenue per TH/s (Hashprice) has decreased from $0.12 in April 2024 to $0.049 in the same period in 2025. Oman's government-subsidized electricity tariff remains at US$0.05–0.07/kWh, while the UAE's semi-official project tariff is as low as US$0.035–0.045/kWh, attracting institutional-grade mines. U.S. industrial electricity prices exceed $0.1/kWh, forcing miners to move to low-cost energy regions such as Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia.
According to a Cointelegraph research report, the growing demand for AI computing power, global regulatory adjustments, and breakthroughs in hardware technology will continue to impact the industry landscape over the next 12–18 months. Efficiency optimization has become a rigid need for survival, only leading mining companies can maintain competitiveness through energy arbitrage and equipment upgrades, and sovereign countries have adopted and institutional entry or reshaped Bitcoin's positioning in the global financial system.