Marathon plans to increase Bitcoin mining capacity by 2024 with a twofold expansion.
Marathon Digital, a prominent player in the Bitcoin mining industry, has announced an upward revision of its 2024 hash rate goal. Previously set at 35-37 exahashes per second (EH/s), the new target is now 50 EH/s. This revised goal comes as a result of recent acquisitions that have expanded Marathon’s mining capacity.
Marathon’s CEO, Fred Thiel, stated in a press release on April 25 that the company has the potential to double its mining scale by 2024 due to the added capacity. Thiel also confirmed that the new target would be “fully funded,” eliminating the need to raise additional capital.
The company’s recent acquisitions include a 200-megawatt Bitcoin mining facility purchased from Digital Applied for $87.3 million in March, as well as two additional sites with a combined capacity of 390 megawatts acquired from Generate Capital for $179 million in December.
Currently, Marathon’s operations achieve a hash rate of 24.7 EH/s, surpassing competitors Core Scientific and Riot Platforms, which have hash rates of 16.9 EH/s and 12.4 EH/s respectively, according to Hashrate Index. If Marathon succeeds in reaching its 50 EH/s target, it will have more than doubled its hash rate since the beginning of 2024.
Following the announcement, Marathon’s stock, listed as MARA, initially experienced a slight decline of 0.42% to $19.01 on April 25 but later rallied with a 3.05% increase in after-hours trade, according to Google Finance.
Marathon’s positive market performance aligns with the trend observed in the mining sector after the fourth Bitcoin halving event occurred at block 840,000 on April 20. Since then, Marathon’s stock has climbed by over 15%, a trend shared by other miners in the industry.
The surge in demand following block 840,000 was primarily driven by memecoin and nonfungible token enthusiasts competing to inscribe and etch “rare satoshis” using the Runes protocol. Despite this spike in activity, transaction fees dropped to $28.20 by April 24, as reported by YCharts.
As the crypto mining sector continues to experience robust growth, other Bitcoin mining firms such as Riot Platforms are also seeing significant market movements. On April 23, Riot’s shares surged by over 20% due to optimistic evaluations from analysts who anticipate substantial growth in the company’s financial performance.
In a related prediction, Marathon Digital’s CEO forecasts a $43,000 Bitcoin break-even point post-halving, showcasing the company’s optimistic outlook for future profitability.
