Bitcoin miners have leveraged their extensive energy infrastructure to support the burgeoning AI industry, resulting in a $33 billion surge in junk bond issuance. Miners, who have built substations, transmission interconnections, and long-term power supply agreements, are now selling this capacity to AI companies, which require robust power delivery systems. This shift allows miners to generate more stable margins compared to the volatile Bitcoin market.
Over the past year, companies like CoreWeave, Applied Digital, TeraWulf, and Cipher Mining have issued long-term senior notes with interest rates ranging from 6.125% to 9.25%. These rates reflect creditors' views on the predictability of cash flows from AI infrastructure compared to traditional utilities. While AI infrastructure companies have offtake agreements, creditors remain cautious due to potential demand fluctuations and client solvency risks.
The transition from mining to AI infrastructure is driven by the growing demand for compute capacity, as evidenced by Nvidia's significant earnings and revenue growth. However, the success of this business model hinges on the ability to refinance debt at lower rates and maintain long-term contracts, amidst potential challenges like rising energy prices and client migration to proprietary infrastructure.
Bitcoin Miners' Energy Infrastructure Fuels $33B AI Debt Surge
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