Tether abandons $120 million Bitcoin mining operation in Uruguay after power dispute

Tether has abandoned its $120 million Bitcoin mining operation in Uruguay following a contract dispute with state utility UTE over electricity allocations. Tether's local entity, Microfin, stopped paying its bills in May 2025 and terminated its contracts after UTE refused to increase power limits. The dispute was compounded when a new left-leaning government took office in March 2025. UTE cut power to the sites in July 2025, and Tether laid off its staff in November 2025, shifting its regional focus to Brazil.

Tether Uruguay mining abandonment

• ▪Tether told Uruguay's labor authorities on November 25, 2025, that it would cease operations and lay off most of its staff
• ▪Tether abandoned its plans to build and operate two Bitcoin mining sites in the department of Florida, Uruguay, after investing an estimated $120 million
• ▪Tether's local legal entity Microfin notified state utility UTE in June 2025 that it would terminate its contracts, and UTE subsequently cut power to the mining sites on July 25, 2025

UTE electricity contract dispute

• ▪Tether and state utility UTE disagreed over electricity supply, with Tether viewing a contract clause as a minimum power level to be increased and UTE viewing it as a maximum allocation
• ▪Tether representatives failed to attend the signing of a revised contract and memorandum of understanding approved by the UTE board to salvage the deal
• ▪Microfin stopped paying its electricity bills in May 2025, leaving about $5 million in outstanding bills before settling the debt in December 2025
• ▪A left-leaning Uruguayan government took office in March 2025 and appointed new directors at UTE who took a harder line on renegotiating the energy supply contract with Tether

Bitcoin mining hypermobility

• ▪Bitcoin mining profitability has declined globally due to a pre-programmed halving of rewards in April 2024 and a sharp drop in bitcoin's price from a peak in 2025
• ▪Pete Howson of Northumbria University stated that Tether's quick exit from Uruguay illustrates the hypermobile nature of bitcoin mining, which rarely creates long-term local jobs

Tether investment portfolio expansion

• ▪Tether controls around $183 billion-worth of stablecoin and has built a $20 billion investment portfolio including data centers, brain-chip implants, and a stake in Juventus football club
• ▪Tether announced a deal with agricultural producer Adecoagro in July 2025 to mine Bitcoin using renewable power in Brazil
• ▪Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino stated that the company has invested more than $2 billion globally in energy production and bitcoin mining

Uruguay renewable energy infrastructure

• ▪Crypto mining expert Nicolas Ribeiro stated that Uruguay is not viable for bitcoin mining due to relatively high power costs, making its grid better suited for AI data centers
• ▪Tether initially selected Uruguay for its bitcoin mining launch in May 2023, citing the country's abundant renewable energy, robust grid, political stability, and favorable tax conditions

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