Tether Ditches Uruguay Mining Project Amid Power Dispute

Tether's ambitious Bitcoin mining project in Uruguay has been shut down after a power supply dispute between the company and state utility UTE. The $120 million investment across two facilities was intended to be the first major Bitcoin mining venture in South America.

The conflict centered on electricity allocations, with Tether interpreting its contract as setting a minimum power allocation that could later be increased, while UTE saw it as the maximum available under the agreement.

As demand at the facilities grew, the difference became critical. The sites sometimes lacked enough electricity to operate for days at a time. Despite attempts to resolve the issue, Tether eventually terminated its contracts with UTE in June 2025 and paid off an outstanding debt of around $5 million.