Dagestan under attack: 52 illegal mining farms eliminated, damage exceeds 129 million rubles
A large-scale crackdown on the shadow cryptocurrency mining sector in Dagestan has yielded impressive results. Since the beginning of 2026, specialists from the energy company "Rosseti Severny Kavkaz" have managed to detect and shut down 52 underground mining farms, seizing 968 pieces of equipment for digital asset mining. Five criminal cases have already been opened regarding electricity theft.
The numbers I see in this operation speak volumes about the scale of the problem. Illegal farms account for about 2.7 million kilowatt-hours of stolen energy resources. Notably, one of the cases has already received a court ruling, while the rest are under investigation together with the republic's law enforcement agencies.
Damage to grids exceeds 129 million rubles
During monitoring, specialists from the "Dagenergo" branch recorded 952 cases of unmetered electricity consumption. The total volume exceeded 20.1 million kilowatt-hours, and damage to the region's power grid complex amounted to more than 129 million rubles. Notably, mining accounts for over 13% of the total stolen energy resources — a significant indicator of how deeply shadow mining has penetrated the energy system.
Energy workers emphasize that electricity theft creates not only financial losses but also a direct security threat: voltage fluctuations, breakdown of household appliances, technical disruptions, and fires. The main risk is the possibility of serious electrical injury or loss of life.
It is worth recalling that unauthorized connection to grids carries a fine of up to 15,000 rubles for individuals and up to 200,000 for legal entities. In case of repeat violations, the amounts increase significantly, and criminal liability for electricity 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 of 90 devices with a total capacity of about 315 kW in the village of Maydanskoye — the equipment was hidden under a false floor and connected to the grids without a contract.
Similar schemes operate across the country. In the Irkutsk region, police discovered 12 pieces of equipment in a forest area under a camouflage net, connected directly to a power line pole. Damage to the region's energy system there exceeded 2.5 million rubles. Meanwhile, a resident of the Tyumen region found a crypto farm on her dacha plot, mistaking the equipment for beehives due to the characteristic appearance of the enclosures.
The logic of violators remains unchanged: electricity costs determine mining profitability, so underground operators seek connection points away from metering. Legal sites lose on cost efficiency.
Energy workers continue raids together with the police, and the number of detected facilities in less than eight months shows that the scale of the problem in the republic persists.
My view: Dagestan is just the tip of the iceberg. As long as electricity costs for the population remain subsidized and connection oversight is imperfect, shadow mining will thrive. The solution lies not only in intensifying raids but also in creating transparent tariff conditions for legal miners.