Dagestan under attack: 52 illegal mining farms eliminated, damage to power grids exceeds 129 million rubles
A large-scale operation to clean up the shadow cryptocurrency mining sector in Dagestan has yielded impressive results. Since the beginning of 2026, specialists from the energy company "Rosseti North Caucasus" have managed to identify and neutralize 52 illegal mining farms. During the raids, 968 units of digital asset mining equipment were seized, and five criminal cases were opened over electricity theft.
The scale of the damage is striking: underground farms account for about 2.7 million kilowatt-hours of stolen energy resources. This is just the tip of the iceberg—the total volume of unaccounted consumption in the region, recorded by the "Dagenergo" branch, exceeded 20.1 million kilowatt-hours. The total damage to the republic's power grid complex amounted to more than 129 million rubles, with mining accounting for over 13% of total thefts. One case has already received a court ruling, while the rest are under investigation together with law enforcement agencies.
Shadow Mining: From Forest Areas to Garden Plots
Dagestan remains one of the most problematic regions for underground mining. In June, energy workers shut down a farm in the village of Maydanskoye, where 90 devices with a total capacity of about 315 kW were hidden under a false floor and connected to the grid without a contract. Similar schemes thrive across the country: in the Irkutsk region, police found 12 units of equipment in a forest area, camouflaged under netting and connected directly to a power line pole. The damage there exceeded 2.5 million rubles.
A resident of the Tyumen region showed particular ingenuity when she discovered a crypto farm on her garden plot. The distinctive appearance of the enclosures initially misled her—she mistook the equipment for beehives. The regional police department is currently conducting a check into this incident.
The logic of the violators is simple and cynical: the cost of electricity directly determines the profitability of mining, so operators look for connection points as far away from metering as possible. Legal sites lose on cost-effectiveness, which pushes miners into the shadows.
Energy workers continue raids together with the police, and the number of identified facilities in less than eight months shows that the problem remains significant. Unauthorized connection carries a fine of up to 15,000 rubles for individuals and up to 200,000 for legal entities, while repeat violations and energy theft can lead to criminal liability with imprisonment of up to two years.
My analysis: the situation in Dagestan is a clear indicator of a systemic crisis in mining regulation. As long as tariffs for the population remain subsidized and connection control remains formal, shadow mining will thrive. Legalizing the industry is impossible without strict technical audits of the grid and economic incentives for honest operators.