64-hectare property in Ballangen, Norway offers excellent access to renewable hydroelectricity
The Kolos property is located in a natural corridor surrounded by mountainous terrain and water, providing a physical security barrier for the proposed data centre and natural cooling of computing equipment. (CNW Group/HIVE Blockchain Technologies Ltd.)
Vancouver-based
HIVE Blockchain Technologies Ltd. (“HIVE”:
V.HIVE) and
Kolos Norway AS (“Kolos”) have entered into a series of milestone agreements. HIVE has agreed to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Kolos. The multi-million-dollar deal, through the acquisition of another Norwegian entity, will transfer 4,750,000 common shares and 1,250,000 warrants to HIVE.
“This is another major milestone in our continuing global expansion as a leading blockchain and cryptocurrency infrastructure company,” said Harry Pokrandt, CEO and Director of HIVE.
Mr. Pokrandt went on to say, “Kolos will be a flagship data centre project for HIVE for years to come and has the potential to expand to more than 1.0 GW, or 1,000 MW, of green hydroelectricity consumption dedicated to blockchain infrastructure. For context, our advanced mining operations in Iceland and Sweden will collectively represent 44.2 MW of consumption – also from green sources. This acquisition provides HIVE with significant flexibility for long-term growth. Our vision is to scale the project in phases to be among the largest and most energy-efficient data centres in the world. We continue to explore non-dilutive financing alternatives to commence the build-out as soon as possible.”
HIVE is a world leader in building a clean energy for the blockchain industry. According to HIVE, the Kolos project is a major undertaking demonstrating their commitment to run on 100% green, renewable power. Kolos' primary asset is a 64-hectare property located in
Ballangen, Norway, approximately 225 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle, and ideally situated for the construction of a large-scale, climate-cooled data centre. The property is in close to all necessary infrastructure, with excess capacity to provide HIVE with a supply of more than 1.0 gigawatt ("GW"), or 1,000 megawatts ("MW") of hydroelectricity. HIVE says this will be accomplished with highly-competitive rates hydroelectric rates, and access to reliable, high-speed internet service.
HIVE and its strategic partner,
Genesis Mining Ltd. (“Genesis”), are developing a plan to construct an initial facility on the property accessing 30 MW of this capacity, available to HIVE immediately. It is expected that 120 MW of the total capacity will be available to HIVE within a year. Kolos has completed preliminary permitting with the local municipality, which strongly supports the project.
Closing of the Norway Acquisition is subject to a number of customary closing conditions, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange, and must close within 60 days. Securities of the Company issued pursuant to the Norway Acquisition are subject to a hold period of four months plus one day from the date of issuance.
Appointment of Additional Director
HIVE is pleased to announce the appointment of
Marcus New as an additional member of the Board of Directors of the Company. Mr. New is an entrepreneur who has been involved in building a number of businesses disrupting the capital markets over the past 20 years. He is the founder and chairman (and previously the CEO) of Stockhouse Publishing, Canada's leading financial community and a global hub for affluent investors, with over 1 million unique monthly visitors. Prior to launching Stockhouse, Marcus founded and built Stockgroup Media, an online information company whose client base consisted of 13 of the top 25 Canadian brokerage firms, 14 of the top 15 global institutional sales desks, and over 200 hedge funds. In 2014, Mr. New became Chairman of Stockhouse to become Chief Entrepreneur of
Investx Capital Ltd, the first cross border global online private equity and venture capital platform. Mr. New has a bachelor's degree in Business from Trinity Western University and has graduated from the Birthing of Giants program at MIT.
In connection with Mr. New's appointment, he has been granted an aggregate of 250,000 incentive stock options of the Company exercisable at a price of $2.00 per share for a period of 10 years, subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.
Following this addition, the Board of Directors is comprised of Frank Holmes (Independent Non-Executive Chairman), Harry Pokrandt, Olivier Roussy Newton, Bjoern Arzt, Tobias Ebel, and Marcus New.