ANHUI, in eastern China, has become the latest province to announce a sweeping ban on cryptocurrency mining, saying the move will help ease an acute power shortage over the next three years.

Anhui will close all crypto mining projects in a cleanup aimed at reducing power consumption, as the province faces a “grave” supply shortage of electricity, according a news portal operated by Hefei Media Group.

China vowed to crack down on Bitcoin mining and trading in late May, citing underlying financial risks.

Major Chinese mining hubs, including Sichuan, Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang, have all issued detailed measures since to root out the business. Before the clampdown, China accounted for roughly 70 percent of global Bitcoin production.

Anhui is not a big crypto mining province, but the latest edict underscores an ongoing squeeze on Chinese miners.

Some are shutting down or looking to move out, seeking low temperatures lest machines overheat and cheap electricity, ideally surplus power from hydro plants or oil fields that would be wasted.

In the crypto mining business, miners use specially-designed, high-power computers to solve complex math puzzles in a process that create new virtual currencies. (SD-Agencies)