Bitcoin Miner Argo Blockchain Borrows £70M to Purchase Equipment for Texas Site Popular Bitcoin miner Argo Blockchain has announced taking on additional debt under Argo’s equipment financing agreement from a subsidiary of New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG). Argo will use the proceeds to purchase mining equipment for its Helios plant in Dickens County Texas.
Argo Seeks Additional Equipment Financing from NYDIG
Argo will be able to borrow up $70.6 million from NYDIG for financing. The official press release stated that the interest rates were 12%. The loan will be available in allocations that run from April 2022 through July 2022. Peter Wall, Argo’s Chief Executive Officer, made the following comments: “We are delighted to secure this additional non-dilutive funding which will enable us to continue fitting out Phase 1 of our Helios site. NYDIG understands the financial requirements of large-scale bitcoin miners and we are excited to continue working with them to execute and deliver on the next phase of Argo’s growth.” This latest development comes less that two months after the Bitcoin miner had signed an equipment financing arrangement with the NYDIG subsidiary. It announced borrowing $26.66 million, at an 8.25% per annum interest rate and a term of four years, to recapitalize the purchase of electrical infrastructure equipment for the company’s flagship cryptocurrency mining facility in Texas. The focus was also on being able to “energize” the 200 megawatts (MW) Helios facility. Argo has borrowed over $97 million.
Argo’s Texas Facility
After being subject to harsh criticism for its energy-intensive mining equipment, the crypto mining sector has made a quick transition towards building power plants that are more environmentally friendly, even though it would take several years to complete the shift from renewable power. Argo’s new 126,000-square-foot facility in West Texas will also be fueled mostly by wind and solar energy, as claimed by its chief executive. Wall stated that 85% of power comes from renewables, and mainly wind, during the company’s latest earnings call. The mining operations at Helios will begin this month. Argo also disclosed that it raised approximately $40 million in unsecured debt in the third quarter of 2021 through the issuance senior notes on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. The company released the audited results for 2021, which demonstrated a revenue of $100 million, increasing 291% from the previous year largely due to a massive surge in Bitcoin’s hash rate. Its EBITDA rose by an amazing 594% to $71million by 2021.
