Tether Abandons $120M Bitcoin Mining Project In Uruguay After Contract Dispute

Tether, the company behind the world’s largest stablecoin, has halted a roughly $120 million Bitcoin mining project in Uruguay, according to a report from The Block. The initiative, once viewed as a strategic entry point into South America’s cryptocurrency mining sector, collapsed amid a contractual disagreement with Uruguay’s state-owned power company, UTE.

Root of the Disagreement

At the center of the dispute was the interpretation of electricity supply terms in the contract. Tether understood the agreed power volume as a minimum threshold that could be increased later to support expanded operations. UTE, however, treated the same figure as a hard ceiling that could not be exceeded. This fundamental difference in reading the contract prevented the two parties from moving forward.

Efforts to revise the contract terms were made, but those attempts ultimately failed. According to the report, Tether representatives did not attend the signing meeting for the amended contract, effectively ending the project. The halt marks a notable setback for Tether’s broader ambitions in Latin America, where it had signaled interest in building out energy-intensive Bitcoin mining infrastructure.

Implications for Tether’s Mining Strategy