It’s a complicated time for the world of crypto mining. Companies in the space have long faced criticism for their power usage. Now, parts of the U.S. are facing a looming heating crisis due to the impending winter storm. Companies such as Riot Blockchain (NASDAQ:RIOT) have responded by powering down operations in an attempt to help states conserve energy. Therefore, this might seem like an odd time for crypto mining companies to be expanding operations. That’s just what Sphere 3D (NASDAQ:ANY) is doing, though. ANY stock is rising steadily this morning following news that the Toronto-based crypto miner has secured a deal to expand its Bitcoin (CCC:BTC-USD) mining capacity.
What’s Happing With ANY Stock
Just how is Sphere 3D expanding? According to a statement released by the company yesterday afternoon, it has entered into an agreement to acquire 60,000 next-generation NuMiner Bitcoin miners. These new additions will operate at 440 TH/s for a total capacity of 26.4 EH/s. All new units have been purchased from NuMiner Global.
As can be expected, ANY stock is reacting well to the news. It rose nearly 17% in pre-market trading today, and despite some early turbulence, it has remained in the green. As of this writing, it has risen by more than 16% since markets opened and shows no signs of slowing down. Despite being in the red for the month, today’s gains have put ANY stock up by more than 39% for the week.
Why It Matters
The past quarter was an interesting time for Sphere. When it was announced in November 2021 that the company was merging with Gryphon Digital, shares fell in anticipation. ANY stock continued declining throughout the following months, only picking up back with news of the recent deal. The company was already expecting to see substantial growth in 2022. Previously, it had contracted to purchase 60,000 ANTMINER S19j Pro miners totaling 6.0 EH/s to be delivered in 2022.
After deploying the newly acquired miners, though, Sphere will be among the word’s largest carbon neutral Bitcoin miners. This bodes well for the company’s goal of “becoming the leading carbon neutral Bitcoin mining company operating at enterprise scale.” ANY stock has seen the type of volatility that tends to spook some investors. However, such trends can be expected when a stock has this type of exposure to crypto.
As InvestorPlace’s Louis Navellier has laid out, though, the company’s move away from software and into Bitcoin has served it well. It led to the price increase of early fall 2021 before it began to slump. If Bitcoin’s attempted comeback is successful, other cryptos will follow. And as overall markets improve, Sphere will be well positioned, particularly as energy concerns fade with warmer temperatures. While there remains some question as to the timeline, there’s plenty of reason to suspect that ANY stock could experience further growth in the quarters ahead.
What It Means
Despite looming energy concerns, this has been a good day for crypto mining stocks overall. Riot’s powering down news hasn’t kept it from rising. Both Greenidge Generation Holdings (NASDAQ:GREE) and Marathon Digital Holdings (NASDAQ:MARA) are in the green as well.
Any investors considering a bullish play on crypto miners should absolutely be keeping a close eye on Sphere. The company is well positioned to continue growing in 2022. It has done the right thing by shifting to a more crypto-centric business model. This will pay off nicely for investors who have been patient with ANY stock.
