Japan’s GMO Internet has postponed the shipments of its two lines of 7nm bitcoin mining rigs. A representative of the company has clarified the situation to news.Bitcoin.com, noting that some refunds have already been issued. In addition, the company is planning to relocate its mining operations.
Also read: Yahoo! Japan Confirms Entrance Into the Crypto Space
Shipments Postponed
GMO Internet announced on Nov. 12 that it has postponed the shipments of its 7nm ASIC bitcoin mining equipment. The company has two lines of mining rigs: B2 and B3. The former was scheduled to start shipping at the end of October and the latter in November.
A representative of GMO revealed to news.Bitcoin.com on Tuesday that the shipments of both lines have been postponed, elaborating:
It is because the parts we need for our mining machines are actually very difficult to acquire right now … It is difficult to acquire some of the electronic components, such as resistors, due to the tight global supply-demand balance.
He added that the company has not decided whether any miners will be shipped this year.
GMO Internet launched the B2 line in June and the B3 line in July. In August, the company upgraded the B3 case shape design in order to improve its cooling performance and operational stability. Both B2 and B3 are priced at $1,999 and are sold out.
The representative also emphasized that refunds will be issued to any customers who ask for them, noting:
We asked our customers whether they wish us to refund at the time of delay announcement. So far, we have already completed issuing refunds to customers who demanded them.
Relocating Mining Operations
Through its Swiss subsidiary, GMO engages in three mining business areas: in-house mining; developing, manufacturing and selling mining machines; and cloud mining.
On Nov. 5, the company released the monthly report of its mining business, showing 595 BTC and 875 BCH were mined in October. Its hashrate increased to 674 PH/s during the month from 479 PH/s in the previous month.
In its quarterly earnings presentation, the company still says it aims “to become No. 1 in the field of cryptocurrency.”
The internet giant further detailed that the mining business recorded a loss during the third quarter even though the expansion of mining facilities progressed as planned. The company attributed the loss to a net sales increase of only 1.249 billion yen ($11 million) year-on-year “because of a decline in profitability due to the deteriorated macro environment including stagnant bitcoin price and an increase in hash rate,” reiterating:
Cryptocurrency mining business experienced a decline in profitability due to a downturn in the macro environment.
At the Nov. 12 press conference, GMO Internet’s founder and CEO, Masatoshi Kumagai, unveiled his company’s plan to relocate its mining operations in an effort to boost profitability by lowering electricity and production costs.
The GMO representative confirmed the plan to news.Bitcoin.com. However, he noted that the details of location and timeframe are “under consideration at this moment,” emphasizing that “we have not decided it yet.”
What do you think of GMO postponing the shipments of its 7nm bitcoin mining equipment? Let us know in the comments section below.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock and GMO Internet.
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