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The Manitoba government is temporarily halting any new connections of cryptocurrency operations to the hydroelectric grid.
Finance Minister Cameron Friesen, the minister responsible for Crown-owned Manitoba Hydro, says there will be an 18-month pause pending a review of the industry's energy demands.
The technology that underpins cryptocurrencies — blockchain — requires a large amount of electricity to run complex financial transactions.
The move will not affect the 37 current operators in the province, which Friesen says use a relatively small amount of power.
He says there have been recent requests from another 17 operators that would require 371 megawatts of power — more than half the power generated by the recently completed Keeyask generating station.
Hydro-Québec announced earlier this month that it would ask regulators to suspend its energy allocation process to the blockchain industry.
