Italy’s Energy-Bill Measures Offer No Defined Break for Bitcoin Miners

Italy and the European Commission reached a common understanding on temporary energy-bill measures Oct. 16, but Bitcoin miners have no defined relief while notification and EU state-aid review remain pending.

The temporary plan is intended to curb electricity-bill increases linked to gas costs for households and businesses. Italy still must notify them under EU state-aid rules, and the Commission plans to review them as a priority. The announcement does not specify eligible customers, a tariff or gas-price cap, expected savings or an effective date. It also does not name Bitcoin mining or establish that miners qualify.

That leaves miners without a defined power-cost benefit. Italy’s PUN Index, a day-ahead wholesale electricity benchmark, averaged about $243 per megawatt-hour from Oct. 5 to 11, up 7.8% from the prior week. The index provides market context, but does not show the contracted rate paid by any individual mine. A mine’s full break-even cost also includes operating expenses beyond electricity.

September’s gross energy-adjusted mining revenue benchmarks averaged about $137 per megawatt-hour for machines using less than 14 joules per terahash and $99/MWh for machines in the 14-to-19 J/TH category. These figures cover a different period from the Italian power index. They are revenue estimates per unit of electricity, not Italy-specific power rates or full operating break-even points.

Italy’s electricity prices were already among the highest in the European Union. In the first half of 2025, its retail rates ranked fourth-highest for households and sixth-highest for large businesses. Network competition also increased during September: Bitcoin’s seven-day average hashrate rose from 926 exahashes per second to 975 EH/s, while difficulty climbed 5.52% across two adjustments. Those changes can pressure revenue per unit of computing power.

The next step is Italy’s notification, followed by the Commission’s priority review. The measures’ final rules will determine whether any power-cost relief reaches miners; the common understanding does not establish that outcome.