Govt allocates 2,000MW of power for bitcoin mining, AI data centres

KARACHI: Pakistan has allocated 2,000 megawatts of electricity to support Bitcoin mining and artificial intelligence data centres, said a statement issued by the finance ministry on Sunday.

The move, led by the Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC), a Ministry of Finance-backed body, forms part of a broader push to attract foreign investment, create high-skilled jobs and build a sovereign digital asset economy.

In his interview with Geo.tv last week, CEO of the PCC Bilal Bin Saqib said that the government seeks to repurpose its underutilised energy capacity into a high-value digital infrastructure strategy.

According to the authorities concerned, the first phase of the initiative aims to capitalise on Pakistan’s idle power generation capacity by providing energy to compute-intensive operations such as AI processing and cryptocurrency mining.

Experts have also welcomed the decision. “Surplus capacity being redirected towards crypto mining and AI data centres is a welcome development. Also, using clean energy sources like wind and solar allows the government to offer competitive tariffs since the marginal cost of generation is essentially zero for these technologies. Our existing solar and wind plants are underutilised due to dispatch challenges, making this redirection economically sensible,” said Ahtasam Ahmad, Energy Finance Lead at Renewables First, a think tank for energy and environment in Pakistan.

With more than 20 million estimated crypto users and a population exceeding 250 million, Pakistan ranks among the world’s largest untapped digital markets. Officials believe the country’s geographical position -- linking Asia, the Middle East and Europe -- makes it well-suited as a hub for data traffic and cloud infrastructure.

“This marks a pivotal shift in Pakistan’s digital and economic outlook,” said Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, describing the initiative as a means to convert surplus electricity into “innovation, investment and international revenue.”

Several international firms have reportedly held exploratory discussions with the PCC, while further delegations are expected to visit following the announcement. The country’s appeal is bolstered by comparatively lower energy costs and available land -- factors that constrain scalability in markets such as India and Singapore.

But there is also need for caution, Ahmed added. “There is a geographical mismatch that could limit effectiveness. The majority of renewable capacity is installed in the south, while crypto mining and data centres require abundant water resources for cooling, which are primarily available in the north. This creates transmission bottlenecks that could result in limited off-take,” he explained.

The plan also coincides with improvements to Pakistan’s digital connectivity infrastructure. The recent landing of the Africa-2 submarine cable -- part of a 45,000km network linking 33 countries -- has expanded bandwidth capacity and reduced latency, a critical factor for large-scale data centre operations.

Longer-term plans include the development of AI and crypto infrastructure powered by renewable sources such as wind, solar and hydro, particularly in high-potential zones like the Gharo-Keti Bandar wind corridor. Officials are also weighing tax incentives, duty exemptions and other regulatory measures to attract investment.

“This energy-backed transformation gives Pakistan an opportunity to generate USD-denominated revenues through mining while laying the groundwork for domestic AI capacity,” said Bilal Bin Saqib, CEO of the PCC. He added that over time, the country could explore accumulating Bitcoin in a sovereign digital wallet, shifting from selling power in rupees to holding digital assets as a hedge.