Why Go Green? Kevin O’Leary Explains Paradigm Shift in Bitcoin Mining: Interview

As Bitcoin continues to breach all-time highs, the debate over Bitcoin mining’s environmental impact grows louder. A Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance study found that 52.4% of Bitcoin mining now relies on sustainable energy. Among the firms pushing this transition is Bitzero, backed by Shark Tank investor and entrepreneur Kevin O’Leary aka “Mr Wonderful”.

In an interview with Cryptonews, O’Leary and Bitzero CEO Mohammed Bakhashwain outlined why the company is betting on power infrastructure, not price, to shape the future of both Bitcoin mining and AI data centers.

“Bitzero started as an idea at the end of 2020,” Bakhashwain recalled. “Our core business is power. The more power we can bring online, the more flexibility we have to allocate it – whether for Bitcoin, AI, or HPC.”

He pointed to the company’s large-scale sites in Scandinavia, including one in Finland, that could scale to roughly 1 gigawatt over the next five to six years, and another in Norway with capacity for 300 megawatts. Asked whether BitZero leans more toward Bitcoin mining or AI, Bakhashwain described the company as fundamentally “agnostic.”

“Our assets are power envelopes. Right now, AI demand is strongest, and with traditional tech hubs facing shortages, we’re seeing rising interest in remote regions like ours.”

For Kevin O’Leary, who invested early in Bitzero, that philosophy was key.

“My investment strategy in any asset class is to own the infrastructure as well as the asset itself. If you’re going to own Bitcoin, why not own the picks and shovels that make it happen? That’s power, that’s energy, that’s data centers. Bitzero checks all those boxes.”

As the industry sees more pressure to go greener, according to Kevin O’Leary, institutions will accelerate that shift. “Some institutions prefer, or demand, that the Bitcoin they buy be mined sustainably,” he explained. “That’s difficult because tagging coins is complex, but the real driver is efficiency. Miners want the most efficient equipment possible for economic reasons, and that forces sustainability forward.”

He argued that Bitcoin mining has had a net benefit in driving energy efficiency.

“When a coin is created from surplus electricity, as in Bitzero’s Norway site, it’s capturing the value of that energy in perpetuity. It’s pushing compute forward and making it more efficient for everybody.”

Bakhashwain added that Bitzero carefully selects sites with surplus power to avoid affecting local communities.

“We want to be as people-friendly as possible. That’s why we focus on areas where our consumption doesn’t raise household costs.”

O’Leary noted that while nuclear power may eventually play a role, natural gas is driving much of the immediate demand, especially in the U.S. “You can’t just add one gigawatt of demand to a grid and raise everyone’s bills by 25%,” he said. “That’s politically impossible. The solution right now is natural gas.”

The cyclical halving of Bitcoin reduces rewards and raises questions about mining profitability. Bakhashwain noted, “even now, we have equipment predating the last halving still running profitably,” he said. “It’s about constantly upgrading, optimizing, and managing operations smartly. Efficient sites remain profitable.”

O’Leary added that the industry has matured since the 2022 bear market, when many miners faced existential threats. “Back then, they loaded up on leverage with floating rate debt. It wasn’t Bitcoin’s fault – it was poor management. Those “idiot managers” got wiped out, and better managers took over. That’s healthy. It’s the same thing I’ve seen in real estate my whole career.”

For O’Leary, Bitcoin’s long-term future is tied to institutional adoption. “Right now, 95% of institutions haven’t allocated to crypto at all,” he said. “And those that have, are allocated through ETFs or treasury stocks.”

“If crypto becomes just another alternative asset class like gold, why wouldn’t institutions put 5% of their portfolios in it? The demand could be massive.”

That demand is what drives his investment in infrastructure of this asset class. “Energy, permits, fiber, real estate, people – putting it all together is incredibly difficult. Bitzero has proven it can,” O’Leary said.

When it comes to his own crypto portfolio, O’Leary sticks to discipline. “I cap my crypto exposure at 20% of my portfolio which is full allocation” he revealed. “We actually had to sell down recently because the run-up pushed us over. That’s our mandate.” Within that allocation, Bitcoin is the cornerstone. “Bitcoin is my granddaddy position – it’s a perpetual holding. Three to five percent is the right allocation for most investors. But Bitcoin doesn’t pay dividends, and that’s what I’m solving for now; finding ways to create yield on my Bitcoin holdings.”

He added that new regulations, like the recently passed Genius Act and the upcoming Infrastructure Act, will open the door for new financial products. “There’ll be opportunities to generate “royalties” on Bitcoin.”

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