Gridless has established the first of its kind: a biomass waste powered Bitcoin mining operation in Kenya
Partnering w/ one of the largest sisal producers, @GridlessCompute was instrumental in helping commission a 1.7MW waste biomass power plant at the sisal plantation
Sisal is a natural fiber derived from the sword-shaped leaves of the Agave sisala plant. Sisal is strong & durable natural fiber used to make rugs, mats, ropes, twine, & brushes, as well as in agricultural & industrial products like sacks & reinforcement materials
The leaves are harvested, crushed & scraped to separate fibers from pulp. The fibers are washed, sun-dried, brushed, & graded before being bundled. The sisal plants die after ~10yrs, leaving behind a large bulb. In the past, these redidues were collected & burned in the field
The plantation sought to commission a 1.7MW plant that would use the biomass. But due to covid related delays & the gov canceling a PPA that would permit excess power to feed into the grid, commissioning the plant became uneconomical as it would run at low power & inefficiently. Given that commissioning costs were the same, regardless of generation power, the power plant stood idle & the sisal bulbs were burned in fields, their biofuel potential wasted
Gridless identified the stranded power opportunity & partnered w the sisal production facility, consuming the unused power to run up to 1.1MW of Bitcoin miners. By providing an end use for excess power, Gridless Compute made it economically feasible to commission the powerplant
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Cx7k9wZPrFYK1rGJ7
The power plant is fueled by dry sisal bulbs that would be wasted by field burning. The sisal bulbs are dried, transported to the site, & crushed. Biomass is fed to a vertical suspension boiler via a conveyor system & the boiler produces steam to run a turbine & generate power
Before the power generation facility was commissioned, the plantation faced several challenges. The sisal fiber production facility uses 500kW, but their demand has large peaks, fluctuating between 200 and 800kW. The electricity supplied by the national grid is intermittent, with up to 4 power cuts a day. During outages, expensive diesel generators are needed to supply electricity to the factory & time is lost restarting machines after a power outage
Bitcoin miners are power problem solvers. They're the perfect demand response tool & can locate directly at stranded power, incl waste biofuel. Miners also provide a demand response service as the sisal production facility ramps up/ down to balance the load on the power plant
The beauty of this project is that Gridless Compute supported renewable generation in Kenya, & the 1st of its kind at that. Another incredible case study of Bitcoin miners presenting a novel way to identify stranded power & support electricity infrastructure in a far corner of the world
Lastly this project is close to my heart: my Masters thesis focused on biomass supply availability (for biofuels) & I helped shape biofuel policy in Canada before I joined this industry. So I jumped at the chance to come full circle & visit this biofuel Bitcoin mining site
A big thank you to the Gridless Compute team for being incredible hosts & taking us on a tour of the mining site & power plant & facilitating a tour of the sisal production facility. Thank you nostr:nprofile1qqsq87lh6t4wx9e85snh80v4lhskefmwdagnjf3z4amwgu699yjx0asprpmhxue69uhhyumnd3shjtnxd9shg6npvchxxmmdqyvhwumn8ghj7mn0wd68ytn6v43x2er9v5hxxmr0w4jqz8rhwden5te0dehhxarj9e3xjarrda5kuetj9eek7cmfv9kqwh8984 nostr:nprofile1qqsymsrgsk4tf8ant58hk5a59guucq9l8r7tkd6gazq0cefje7fyvqqpz4mhxue69uhkkattddejummjvuhkummnw3eqzrthwden5te0dehhxtnvdakqzxthwden5te0vfhhxarj9ehx76m0w3shymewwahhy6cq6ea0n Janet & Florah for a memorable trip!
nostr:nprofile1qqsvdrn79csgpdydwez4wrn6hqm42a4arvcjp7fnx8x6dj7n3zvn2kspzfmhxue69uhhqatjwpkx2urpvuhx2ucpr3mhxue69uhkummnw3ezucnfw33k76twv4ezuum0vd5kzmqpzpmhxue69uhkummnw3ezuamfdejsh2z9k3 nostr:nprofile1qqsq04ppqc5dzfk5p86fg08xu2stpnnhtzfu6fh9vv0vgp43qg8jvucpr4mhxue69uhkummnw3ezucnfw33k76twv4ezuum0vd5kzmp00wjpr0 nostr:nprofile1qqsw4eldlh9hnu3327s6lyv5j4ryujd2w63zukjkvu2g72tvzkz6s7gprpmhxue69uhhqun9d45h2mfwwpexjmtpdshxuet5qy2hwumn8ghj7mn0wd68yetvd96x2uewdaexwqgmwaehxw309aex2mrp0yhxy6t5vdhkjmnsv9exktnrdaksp5ek8n nostr:nprofile1qqs8aa03k9tw5hn7n7dhslme2xedzq0h0qrpv75dgjc3g69ppc8u6fcpz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduhsz8mhwden5te0dehhxarj95crxtnydaexzenpvd6x7une9ehhyee0qy0hwumn8ghj7mn0wd68ytfsxghxgmmjv9nxzcm5dae8jtn0wfnj7cmj708
Today, our Proof of Workforce team made history in Kenya. We presented the Kenya National Fire Brigades Association (KENFIBA) with a Bitcoin donation at the nostr:nprofile1qqsfk3f6qyvcx589gaqxe4lv8lxukn93jp25gl89zgz7c49ppy4eddgpz4mhxue69uhkummnw3ezummcw3ezuer9wchs96q2hd, helping the union get off of zero. Our goal is to help the Association with their emergency response, membership, & recruitment efforts by placing Bitcoin on their balance sheet
This trip, we met with the CEO & Sec. General of the Kenya Fire Brigades Association, & learned about their work in supporting & unifying the Kenyan Firefighters, & enhancing the fire service in Kenya. We also discussed Bitcoin & its benefits as a tool for unions & wage earners. Kenya, a nation of 56 million people, has ~1,400 Firefighter - for perspective, Toronto, with 3 million, has 3,200 uniformed personnel. Firefighters make $150/month & have no pension (unlike police), so one of the unions goals is to advocate for a better future
Following this historical step, the KENFIBA leadership will have access to visionary Bitcoin builders in Kenya, nostr:nprofile1qqsfw9g8z7f7e3j6s68wa7cjxkzhmutvc6hvfaenvk7dacq77jp22qgprpmhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuumwdae8gtnnda3kjctvqyxhwumn8ghj7mn0wvhxcmmvqyg8wumn8ghj7mn0wd68ytnhd9hx2u0ay3q & Jodom, both local Kenyans building in the Bitcoin ecosystem, in providing the union & its members with tools, education, & resources
As a volunteer firefighter in Canada, sharing a tool of hope with Kenyan firefighters is especially meaningful to me. Their success as a union, translates into success for the people of Kenya, & the emergency responders & firefighters they rely on in life or death situations
#ABC24. Thank you nostr:nprofile1qqsvdrn79csgpdydwez4wrn6hqm42a4arvcjp7fnx8x6dj7n3zvn2kspzfmhxue69uhhqatjwpkx2urpvuhx2ucpr3mhxue69uhkummnw3ezucnfw33k76twv4ezuum0vd5kzmqpzpmhxue69uhkummnw3ezuamfdejsh2z9k3 for bringing this together!
Omg, free speech is so terrible 🤦🏼♀️ They don't understand their privilege
So if someone decides to go to bluesky, they will see your nostr posts? Or they will need to use a 3rd party app where both are merged? Thanks in advance
Yeah, in 2 weeks they will return cause no one is there
NOSTR doesn't try to replace social media; we created an ecosystem of apps. With your private key, you can log into a Twitter like thing & your social graph follows. You can go to work on code at github equivalent, go to Google sheets like app & you take your identity. You own, it & they can't shut it down. You hold your data. This allows for creativity
NOSTR moves faster than Twitter wrt development. And no one is asking for permission for themselves. And with each open source success, we gain more confidence
- nostr:nprofile1qqsgydql3q4ka27d9wnlrmus4tvkrnc8ftc4h8h5fgyln54gl0a7dgsprpmhxue69uhhqun9d45h2mfwwpexjmtpdshxuet5qy28wumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyv9kh2uewd9hszrthwden5te0dehhxtnvdakqc267ea #ABC24 nostr:nprofile1qqsfk3f6qyvcx589gaqxe4lv8lxukn93jp25gl89zgz7c49ppy4eddgpz4mhxue69uhkummnw3ezummcw3ezuer9wchs96q2hd
I don't understand the folks in my X feed are announcing moving to Bluesky. It offers nothing of value (except maybe the mistaken feeling of a safespace). Its not censorship resistant nor does it offer freedom of speech). It's also not where the momentum/people are (vs X). Nor does it provide value for value like NOSTR (ie ability to get paid), plus all this below
What is this? Why would you join a lame ass permissioned social media?
Help us make Kenyan Bitcoin history tomorrow at the nostr:nprofile1qqsfk3f6qyvcx589gaqxe4lv8lxukn93jp25gl89zgz7c49ppy4eddgpz4mhxue69uhkummnw3ezummcw3ezuer9wchs96q2hd!
Show don't tell (vs talk), build it & have others feel it & if it's electric, it will spread. The real work is spreading the networks
What future do want your kids to have? Do they own it? Do you want government to control it? It's work, it's a choice
We fix everything with Bitcoin & permissionless things
NOSTR doesn't try to replace social media; we created an ecosystem of apps. With your private key, you can log into a Twitter like thing & your social graph follows. You can go to work on code at github equivalent, go to Google sheets like app & you take your identity. You own, it & they can't shut it down. You hold your data. This allows for creativity
NOSTR moves faster than Twitter wrt development. And no one is asking for permission for themselves. And with each open source success, we gain more confidence
- nostr:nprofile1qqsgydql3q4ka27d9wnlrmus4tvkrnc8ftc4h8h5fgyln54gl0a7dgsprpmhxue69uhhqun9d45h2mfwwpexjmtpdshxuet5qy28wumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyv9kh2uewd9hszrthwden5te0dehhxtnvdakqc267ea #ABC24 nostr:nprofile1qqsfk3f6qyvcx589gaqxe4lv8lxukn93jp25gl89zgz7c49ppy4eddgpz4mhxue69uhkummnw3ezummcw3ezuer9wchs96q2hd
It's not just the money, the media... now intelligence is centralized. Everything we're doing with Bitcoin, & social media, we need to do with intelligence. If not, YOU are the product doing free work & you will be displaced, your contribution will be irrelevant. And that's scary
We need to create bias towards solutions that no government can corrupt, we need to build something of value
- nostr:nprofile1qqsgydql3q4ka27d9wnlrmus4tvkrnc8ftc4h8h5fgyln54gl0a7dgsprpmhxue69uhhqun9d45h2mfwwpexjmtpdshxuet5qy28wumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnyv9kh2uewd9hszrthwden5te0dehhxtnvdakqc267ea #ABC24 nostr:nprofile1qqsfk3f6qyvcx589gaqxe4lv8lxukn93jp25gl89zgz7c49ppy4eddgpz4mhxue69uhkummnw3ezummcw3ezuer9wchs96q2hd
This is not about Bitcoin, it's about permissionless tools. You can build something without permission. Whether that's code, a company, or education. Each individual has skills & something to give that has impact
#ABC2024
Who wore it better?
Mining in the wild! We set up a #Bitaxe off of Starlink, & powered them with a Land Cruiser. This is now an African mining safari 🦓 🐘 🦒 ⛏️
https://photos.app.goo.gl/RorQQYHrNm4TX3Kn6
This is it ladies & gentlemen!
A new era kicks off today
An honor being deep in the trenches with you 🫡🎊🥂
It was the friends you made along the way that makes 100k more special 🧡
