From left, Keith Tyo, of the office of the president of SUNY Plattsburgh; Adirondack North Country Association Executive Director Kate Fish; Dan MacEntee director of communication at the office of Sen. Betty Little; and Plattsburgh city Mayor Colin Read sit on the panel at a cryptomining seminar at SUNY Plattsburgh Tuesday. (Enterprise photo — Griffin Kelly)

PLATTSBURGH — At this point, cryptomining is still an ambiguous subject with no clear benefit to some North Country officials.

The Adirondack North Country Association, the office of state Sen. Betty Little, the State University of New York at Plattsburgh and the City of Plattsburgh hosted a cryptomining informational seminar Tuesday at SUNY Plattsburgh.

Cryptomining is the process of acquiring digital cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Z-cash. These currencies are not recognized by any official governments, but at the moment a Bitcoin is worth about $7,500 U.S. dollars. The process requires operating computer drives, which generate plenty of heat and consume a lot of electricity.

Certain areas of the North Country — Plattsburgh, Malone, Tupper Lake, Lake Placid — are prime real estate for cryptomining because they have relatively cheap electric rates. However, cryptomining can use up a city’s allotment of cheap hydroelectric, meaning residents will have to pay more at the end of each month.

Following Plattsburgh’s lead, Lake Placid and the town of North Elba, as well as the New York Power Authority, placed a moratorium on cryptomining. The Lake Placid village board said it would take 18 months to research cryptomining, weigh the pros and cons and decide if the industry would fit in the community. At a previous village board meeting, Mayor Craig Randall said he isn’t aware of and doesn’t think there are any major mining operations in Lake Placid.

Plattsburgh Mayor Colin Read, the official who proposed his city’s moratorium, led the presentation Tuesday.

“Cryptomining is here to stay,” Read said.

He went over the basics of cryptomining — how it works, the energy and heat issues and how municipalities can possibly benefit from it.

The city of Plattsburgh gets its hydropower allotment each month from the state Public Service Commission. The state department created a regulation where if mines use up too much energy and cause rates to increase then the mines will pay that cost, not the general resident or consumer.

Overall, Read, a professor of economics at SUNY Plattsburgh, seemed quite excited by cryptomining and commended those who take initiative in new technologies.

“We don’t intend to have the moratorium last all 18 months,” he said.

At the end of the presentation, Read showed a picture of a heater in a living room that was powered by cryptomining drives. Read said people can not only heat their homes but make money while doing it.

About 50 people showed up to the seminar. The crowd was made up of students, teachers, miners, mine operators and two representatives of the village of Lake Placid — Trustee Art Devlin and Deputy Treasurer Mindy Goddeau.

While they thought the seminar was informative, Devlin and Goddaeu didn’t seem too swayed.

“I think there are a lot more factors that need to be determined within the village of Lake Placid because of how the village is laid out and the amount of people that visit,” Goddeau said. “We have a lot more tourism. Also, the village is NYPA regulated, whereas the city of Plattsburgh is PSC regulated.”

Devlin added, “It was the first time I heard that [cryptomining] was ‘here to stay.’ I figured it would be a fad.”

Devlin and Goddaeu also mentioned how the village’s allotted hydropower from NYPA is not a deal Lake Placid has forever. That agreement ends in 2025, so it’s unclear how cryptomining would affect village rates at that time.

The two appreciated the idea that mines generated plenty of heat, which can be recycled into homes and buildings during long winters. However, they figured all the heat wouldn’t be conducive to the summer months.

When asked if they could see any benefit to cryptomining in Lake Placid at this time, both Devlin and Goddaeu said no.