Malaysia's national energy company has revealed a 300% increase in electricity theft caused by illegal cryptocurrency mining.

On May 12, the Malaysian national energy company (Tenaga Nasional Berhad) released a statement on May 12, 2025, saying that between 2018 and 2024, the number of electricity theft cases related to illegal cryptocurrency mining in the country has skyrocketed from 610 to 2,397, an increase of 300%. These acts of stealing subsidized electricity by tampering with meters have had a serious impact on the stability of the power grid and caused the company to lose hundreds of millions of dollars.
Recently, Malaysian authorities have launched a joint law enforcement operation across the country to seize a number of illegal mining cases, including the seizure of 45 bitcoin mining machine dens in Bandar Alam City. In response to this problem, National Energy has deployed a network of smart meters to monitor abnormal electricity consumption in real time, and violations under the Electricity Supply Act can be punishable by up to 10 years in prison or a fine of $212,000.
Data show that some landlords have received electricity bills of up to $278,400 for their tenants' private mining rigs. Similar cases have emerged in countries such as Kuwait, which this week launched an investigation into 116 people following the investigation of more than 1,000 illegal mining sites last month. These activities have caused a sharp increase in pressure on the local power grid and caused widespread power outages.