PANews reported on October 31 that according to The Block, Bitcoin mining company Riot Platforms announced a sharp loss in the third quarter, mainly due to rising costs and unrealized investment losses. The company also lowered its computing power targets for 2024 and beyond.
For the quarter ended September 30, the company had total revenue of $84.8 million, of which $67.5 million came from Bitcoin mining. Gross profit from Bitcoin mining, excluding depreciation, was $28.4 million, with a gross margin of 42%, well below the 181% in the same period last year. Rising electricity, labor and insurance costs were responsible for the difference. The company had a net loss of $154.4 million, compared with a net loss of $84.4 million in the second quarter. The third-quarter loss included $38 million in unrealized losses on available-for-sale equity securities, $30.6 million in non-cash equity incentive expenses, and $60 million in depreciation and amortization expenses.
Despite the halving event in April and increased network difficulty, Riot Platforms produced 1,104 bitcoins in the quarter, which is not much different from the 1,106 bitcoins mined in the same period last year, and the company's previous quarter was down 52% year-on-year. "Riot still maintained a solid balance sheet strength at the end of the quarter, with approximately $1.3 billion in cash, restricted cash, marketable equity securities and 10,427 bitcoins," CEO Jason Les said in the announcement. Riot Platforms expects to reach 34.9 EH/s of self-mining power by the end of 2024, lower than the previously set target of 36.3 EH/s. Riot also lowered its 2025 target from 56.6 EH/s to 46.7 EH/s.
