Dagestan under attack: 52 illegal mining farms eliminated, damage to power grids exceeds 129 million rubles
A large-scale crackdown on shadow mining in Dagestan has yielded impressive results: since the beginning of 2026, energy workers and law enforcement have identified and shut down 52 illegal cryptocurrency mining farms. During the raids, 968 pieces of equipment were seized, and five criminal cases were opened for electricity theft.
The figures I see in the reports point to the systemic nature of the problem. Underground miners account for about 2.7 million kWh of stolen energy resources—more than 13% of the total volume of unmetered consumption in the region. One case has already reached court, where a guilty verdict was handed down, while the remaining materials are currently being processed jointly with the republic's law enforcement agencies.
Damage That Hits Everyone's Wallet
The total damage to the region's power grid complex has exceeded 129 million rubles. Specialists from the Dagenergo branch have recorded 952 cases of non-contractual electricity consumption since January, amounting to more than 20.1 million kWh. These are not just abstract losses—they are direct losses for legal consumers and destabilization of the entire energy system.
Energy workers emphasize: electricity theft leads to voltage fluctuations, breakdowns of household appliances, technical disruptions, and fires. The most terrifying threat is the risk of sustaining a serious electrical injury or death. For unauthorized connection to the grid, individuals face fines of up to 15,000 rubles, and legal entities up to 200,000 rubles. For repeat violations, the amounts increase significantly, and criminal liability for energy theft provides for up to two years of imprisonment.
Miners Move to Forests and Apiaries
Dagestan remains one of the most problematic regions for underground mining. In June, energy workers eliminated a farm in the village of Maydanskoye consisting of 90 devices with a total capacity of about 315 kW—the equipment was hidden under a false floor and connected to the grid without a contract.
Similar schemes thrive across the country. In the village of Stolbova, Irkutsk district, police discovered 12 pieces of equipment in a forested area under a camouflage net, connected directly to a power line pole. The preliminary damage to the energy system there exceeded 2.5 million rubles. The ingenuity of violators knows no bounds: a resident of the Tyumen region discovered a crypto farm on her dacha plot, mistaking the equipment for beehives due to the characteristic appearance of the housings. The regional police department is conducting a check into this incident.
The logic is the same: electricity costs determine the profitability of mining, so underground operators seek connection points away from metering. Legal sites lose on cost efficiency.
Energy workers continue raids jointly with the police, and the number of detected facilities over less than eight months shows that the scale of the problem in the republic persists.
My view: the fight against shadow mining is not only an economic issue but also a safety issue. As long as electricity costs for industrial miners remain high and oversight is not strict enough, underground farms will migrate to regions with low supervision. Legalization and transparent tariffs are the only way to bring the industry out of the shadows.