Bitcoin’s network hashrate dipped sharply over the weekend as a powerful winter storm swept across the United States, pushing major mining operations to temporarily curtail activity in order to stabilize regional power grids.
Data from CoinWarz shows the hashrate began falling on Friday and slid to around 663 exahashes per second by Sunday, marking a decline of more than forty percent in just two days. This pullback returned network computing power to levels last observed in mid 2025.
By Monday, the network had already staged a partial recovery, hovering near 854 exahashes per second as miners gradually reconnected capacity.
The disruption coincided with extreme weather impacting more than three dozen states, triggering heavy snow, ice accumulation, and widespread power outages. Utilities prioritized residential and critical infrastructure demand, leaving energy intensive industries to scale back consumption.
Abundant Mines estimated that roughly forty percent of global mining capacity temporarily went offline as operators reduced load to relieve stress on regional grids.
The event underscored the United States’ outsized role in Bitcoin mining, with the country contributing nearly thirty eight percent of global hashrate. Because of this concentration, weather related disruptions in the US can quickly influence global network metrics.
Industry observers noted that the storm highlighted a core feature of large scale Bitcoin mining, demand response flexibility. By shutting down during peak demand and restarting when conditions normalize, miners can support grid stability rather than compete with households.
While daily Bitcoin production temporarily slowed at several firms, analysts expect output and hashrate to normalize as weather conditions improve. Historically, similar storms have caused short lived volatility without undermining the network’s long term security or resilience.
This episode reinforces how Bitcoin mining has become intertwined with energy markets, especially in the United States, where flexible load management is increasingly viewed as a strategic advantage during periods of extreme weather stress on grids nationwide. @Bitcoin $BTC
