Bitfarms Ltd. (Nasdaq/TSX: BITF) (“Bitfarms” or the “Company”), a
global vertically integrated Bitcoin data center company, today
announced the following enhancements to its Operations teams.
Effective immediately, Alex Brammer has been appointed Senior Vice
President of Global Mining Operations and Benoit Gobeil, currently
serving as Executive Vice President of Operation &
Infrastructures, has been promoted to Chief Infrastructure Officer.
In conjunction with these appointments, Bitfarms Mining Operations
will now be split into two divisions, Mining Operations and
Infrastructure, with Mr. Brammer and Mr. Gobeil heading up the
divisions, respectively.
The Mining Operations and Infrastructure
divisions will deliver greater scalability and accountability in
data center construction, maintenance and operations and lay the
foundation for the establishment of HPC/AI operations. Mr. Brammer
will lead the Mining Operations team, responsible for miner
performance, upgrades and hashrate. He will be responsible for
leading all operational aspects of Bitfarms' rapidly expanding
global portfolio of mining assets spanning four countries across
two continents. In close partnership with Mr. Brammer, Mr. Gobeil
will lead the Infrastructure team, responsible for construction,
expansion, upgrades, and maintenance. Both will report directly to
Ben Gagnon, Chief Executive Officer of Bitfarms.
Mr. Brammer brings 20 years of international
operations expertise and deep mining industry relationships to
Bitfarms. He most recently led a premier U.S. independent power
producer’s entry into Bitcoin mining. In this role, he conducted
fleet-wide asset feasibility studies for mining and led the
technical project management and commissioning of the world’s first
and only hyperscale Bitcoin mine powered entirely by nuclear
energy. Prior to this, Mr. Brammer led business development efforts
at Luxor Technology Corporation, where he played a key role in
building several managed services offerings, establishing an ASIC
trading desk, and contributed to the early ideation of the
company's firmware and hashrate derivatives product suites. Since
2022, Alex has also served as a Board Director and Treasurer for
the Bitcoin Today Coalition, a U.S. Internal Revenue Code 501(c)(4)
non-profit focused on Bitcoin policy advocacy and education at the
federal level.
Prior to entering the mining industry, Mr.
Brammer served for 16 years in the U.S. Army. His military career
began as an operator in the 75th Ranger Regiment, where he deployed
three times to Iraq during the Surge. He later deployed to
counter-ISIS in Mosul, Iraq as a platoon leader, served as Chief of
Plans for a Brigade Combat Team of 3,700 personnel, and ultimately
retired as a company commander of a 151-member Stryker Rifle
Company.
Mr. Brammer holds a Bachelor of Science in
Economics from the United States Military Academy at West Point. He
completed a Ph.D. in the politics of counterinsurgency and civil
conflict from Queen’s University in Belfast, Ireland as a 2014
Marshall Scholar and is nearing completion of his MBA from the
University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
“I am confident that Alex’s mining and power
expertise in Pennsylvania and PJM as well as his extensive
leadership and management experience will be instrumental in
driving the continued growth and success of the Company's global
mining operations,” stated Ben Gagnon, Bitfarms CEO. “We are on a
path to double our operating capacity next year and Alex’s proven
management abilities will be integral to leading the mining
operations team to bring online 35 EH/s+ in 2025.”
Mr. Brammer’s responsibilities will include
spearheading post-M&A asset development and integration,
technological innovation, systems integration and standardization,
employee safety and optimizing operational costs across all
Bitfarms data centers. Additionally, Alex will play a critical role
in scaling Bitfarms' IT and operations teams to enhance global
efficiency.
“I am excited to be joining the Bitfarms team at
such a pivotal time for the Company,” stated Alex Brammer.
“Bitfarms is poised to deliver record hashrate growth and
efficiency improvements in 2024, and I look forward to working with
the operational teams to ensure this impressive growth continues
into 2025 and beyond.”
Additionally, Bitfarms is pleased to announce
the promotion of Benoit Gobeil to Chief Infrastructure Officer. Mr.
Gobeil has been with the Company since 2018 and has played an
important role in executing Bitfarms’ transformational growth plan,
contributing cutting-edge industrial, electrical, and operational
experience that enables Bitfarms to stay at the forefront of
next-generation technologies and hardware.
About Bitfarms Ltd. Founded in
2017, Bitfarms is a global Bitcoin data center company that
contributes its computational power to one or more mining pools
from which it receives payment in Bitcoin. Bitfarms develops, owns,
and operates vertically integrated mining farms with in-house
management and company-owned electrical engineering, installation
service, and multiple onsite technical repair centers. Bitfarms’
proprietary data analytics system delivers best-in-class
operational performance and uptime.
Bitfarms currently has 12 operating Bitcoin data
centers and two under development situated in four countries:
Canada, the United States, Paraguay, and Argentina. Powered
predominantly by environmentally friendly hydro-electric and
long-term power contracts, Bitfarms is committed to using
sustainable and often underutilized energy infrastructure.
To learn more about Bitfarms’ events,
developments, and online communities:
www.bitfarms.com https://www.facebook.com/bitfarms/
https://twitter.com/Bitfarms_io https://www.instagram.com/bitfarms/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bitfarms/
Glossary of Terms
- HPC = High-performance computing
- AI = Artificial intelligence
- EH or EH/s = Exahash or exahash per second
- MW or MWh = Megawatts or megawatt hour
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains certain
“forward-looking information” and “forward-looking statements”
(collectively, “forward-looking information”) that are based on
expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news
release and are covered by safe harbors under Canadian and United
States securities laws. The statements and information in this
release regarding the benefits of recent leadership changes made by
the Company and the qualities of those candidates, the potential
for enhanced performance as a result of organizational changes,
projected growth, target hashrate, M&A growth opportunities and
prospects, , the benefits of merging HPC/AI with Bitcoin mining
operations, the advantages of PJM offerings and programs, and other
statements regarding future growth, and plans and objectives of the
Company are forward-looking information. Any statements that
involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations,
beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events
or performance (often but not always using phrases such as
“expects”, or “does not expect”, “is expected”, “anticipates” or
“does not anticipate”, “plans”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “forecasts”,
“estimates”, “prospects”, “believes” or “intends” or variations of
such words and phrases or stating that certain actions, events or
results “may” or “could”, “would”, “might” or “will” be taken to
occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may
be forward-looking information.
This forward-looking information is based on
assumptions and estimates of management of Bitfarms at the time
they were made, and involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties
and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance,
or achievements of Bitfarms to be materially different from any
future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by
such forward-looking information. Such factors include, among
others, risks relating to: receipt of the approval of the
shareholders of Stronghold Digital Mining, Inc. (“Stronghold”) and
the Toronto Stock Exchange for the Stronghold acquisition as well
as other applicable regulatory approvals; that the Stronghold
acquisition may not close within the timeframe anticipated or at
all or may not close on the terms and conditions currently
anticipated by the parties for a number of reasons including,
without limitation, as a result of a failure to satisfy the
conditions to closing of the Stronghold acquisition; the letter of
intent on the 10 MW is subject to entering into a definitive lease
agreement and TSX approval, none of which is assured; the power
purchase agreements and economics thereof may not be as
advantageous as expected; the inability of Bitfarms to operate the
plants as anticipated following consummation of the Stronghold
acquisition and assumption of operations at the Sharon mega-site
with access to up to 120 MW; the construction and operation of new
facilities may not occur as currently planned, or at all; expansion
of existing facilities may not materialize as currently
anticipated, or at all; new miners may not perform up to
expectations; revenue may not increase as currently anticipated, or
at all; the ongoing ability to successfully mine digital currency
is not assured; failure of the equipment upgrades to be installed
and operated as planned; the availability of additional power may
not occur as currently planned, or at all; expansion may not
materialize as currently anticipated, or at all; the power purchase
agreements and economics thereof may not be as advantageous as
expected; potential environmental cost and regulatory penalties due
to the operation of the Stronghold plants which entail
environmental risk and certain additional risk factors particular
to the business of Stronghold including, land reclamation
requirements may be burdensome and expensive, changes in tax
credits related to coal refuse power generation could have a
material adverse effect on the business, financial condition,
results of operations and future development efforts, competition
in power markets may have a material adverse effect on the results
of operations, cash flows and the market value of the assets, the
business is subject to substantial energy regulation and may be
adversely affected by legislative or regulatory changes, as well as
liability under, or any future inability to comply with, existing
or future energy regulations or requirements, the operations are
subject to a number of risks arising out of the threat of climate
change, and environmental laws, energy transitions policies and
initiatives and regulations relating to emissions and coal residue
management, which could result in increased operating and capital
costs and reduce the extent of business activities, operation of
power generation facilities involves significant risks and hazards
customary to the power industry that could have a material adverse
effect on our revenues and results of operations, and there may not
have adequate insurance to cover these risks and hazards,
employees, contractors, customers and the general public may be
exposed to a risk of injury due to the nature of the operations,
limited experience with carbon capture programs and initiatives and
dependence on third-parties, including consultants, contractors and
suppliers to develop and advance carbon capture programs and
initiatives, and failure to properly manage these relationships, or
the failure of these consultants, contractors and suppliers to
perform as expected, could have a material adverse effect on the
business, prospects or operations; the digital currency market; the
ability to successfully mine digital currency; revenue may not
increase as currently anticipated, or at all; it may not be
possible to profitably liquidate the current digital currency
inventory, or at all; a decline in digital currency prices may have
a significant negative impact on operations; an increase in network
difficulty may have a significant negative impact on operations;
the volatility of digital currency prices; the anticipated growth
and sustainability of hydroelectricity for the purposes of
cryptocurrency mining in the applicable jurisdictions; the
inability to maintain reliable and economical sources of power to
operate cryptocurrency mining assets; the risks of an increase in
electricity costs, cost of natural gas, changes in currency
exchange rates, energy curtailment or regulatory changes in the
energy regimes in the jurisdictions in which Bitfarms and
Stronghold operate and the potential adverse impact on
profitability; future capital needs and the ability to complete
current and future financings, including each of Bitfarms’,
Stronghold’s or the combined company’s ability to utilize an
at-the-market offering program (each, an “ATM Program”) and the
prices at which securities may be sold in each such ATM Program, as
well as capital market conditions in general; share dilution
resulting from an ATM Program and from other equity issuances;
volatile securities markets impacting security pricing unrelated to
operating performance; the risk that a material weakness in
internal control over financial reporting could result in a
misstatement of financial position that may lead to a material
misstatement of the annual or interim consolidated financial
statements if not prevented or detected on a timely basis;
historical prices of digital currencies and the ability to mine
digital currencies that will be consistent with historical prices;
and the adoption or expansion of any regulation or law that will
prevent any of Bitfarms, Stronghold or the combined company from
operating its business, or make it more costly to do so. For
further information concerning these and other risks and
uncertainties, refer to Bitfarms’ filings
on www.sedarplus.ca (which are also available on the
website of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC")
at www.sec.gov), including the MD&A for the year-ended
December 31, 2023, filed on March 7, 2024 and the MD&A for the
three and six months ended June 30, 2024 filed on August 8, 2024
and Stronghold’s filings on www.sec.gov, including the Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended 2023, filed on March
8, 2024, the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter
ended March 31, 2024, filed on May 8, 2024, the Quarterly Report on
Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2024, filed on
August 14, 2024, and subsequent reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K.
Although each of Bitfarms and Stronghold has attempted to identify
important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements,
there may be other factors that cause results not to be as
anticipated, estimated or intended, including factors that are
currently unknown to or deemed immaterial by Bitfarms or
Stronghold, as applicable. There can be no assurance that such
statements will prove to be accurate as actual results, and future
events could differ materially from those anticipated in such
statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on
any forward-looking information. Neither Bitfarms nor Stronghold
undertakes any obligation to revise or update any forward-looking
information other than as required by law.
Investor Relations Contacts:
BitfarmsTracy KrummeSVP, Head of IR & Corp. Comms. +1
786-671-5638tkrumme@bitfarms.com
Innisfree M&A IncorporatedGabrielle Wolf / Scott Winter+1
212-750-5833
Laurel Hill Advisory
Group1-877-452-7184416-304-0211assistance@laurelhill.com
Media Contacts:
U.S.: Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer KatcherDan Katcher or
Joseph Sala212-355-4449
Québec:Tact Louis-Martin Leclerc+1
418-693-2425lmleclerc@tactconseil.ca
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