U.S. Senate Proposes Clean Cloud Act of 2025
The U.S. Senate recently introduced a proposal named the “Clean Cloud Act of 2025,” co-sponsored by Democratic Senators Sheldon Whitehouse and John Fetterman. The bill aims to strictly limit carbon emissions from cryptocurrency mining companies and artificial intelligence (AI) data centers, establishing a clear timeline with the ultimate goal of achieving zero emissions by 2035. Facilities that continue to use non-renewable energy sources will face fines.
Core Mechanism of the Bill: Regional Emission Caps and Annual Reductions
According to the contents of the draft, the bill will amend the existing Clean Air Act. In the future, any data center with an energy capacity exceeding 100 kilowatts (kW)—including cryptocurrency mining facilities and AI computing centers—must comply with regional emission caps.
The standards for these caps will be based on the characteristics of different electrical regions defined in the U.S. Department of Energy’s “National Transmission Demand Study.” This means that facilities in different regions will face varying pressure to reduce emissions, considering the differences in energy structures and power grids across regions.
The bill stipulates that the specific emission limits for each region will be established by the end of 2025. Thereafter, the limits will be reduced by 11% each year until zero emissions are reached by 2035. For companies that fail to meet the emission caps, fines will be imposed based on the amount of excess emissions, adjusted for inflation.
Notably, the draft also explicitly prohibits related companies from passing on these fines to their customers, ensuring that the companies themselves bear the environmental responsibility.
Strict Reporting Obligations and Responsibility Allocation
In addition to requiring relevant facilities to submit detailed annual reports—including key data such as total electricity consumption and the proportion of electricity sourced from renewable versus fossil fuels—the bill assigns the responsibility for paying fines to “tenants of leased facilities” rather than facility owners. This means that even individuals or companies renting server space for mining or AI computing could be subject to reporting requirements and potential fines, thereby broadening the applicability of the bill.
On a positive note, if the bill passes, it will encourage cloud service providers and data center operators to actively seek green power solutions to attract customers sensitive to environmental regulations. However, for smaller operators, this may pose a greater challenge, as they may lack the resources that larger companies have to undergo energy transitions or comply with complex regulatory requirements.
Cryptocurrency Mining Industry Has Adopted Renewable Energy
According to statistics from the end of last year, over 50% of the energy used by the global Bitcoin mining network actually comes from renewable sources such as hydropower, wind power, and solar energy. Regions like Iceland and Quebec in Canada, which boast abundant and inexpensive green energy, have become popular options for miners.
If the Clean Cloud Act is indeed passed in the future, mining companies and AI computing centers will undoubtedly accelerate their adoption of renewable energy and may phase out those unable or unwilling to adapt.
Overall, the draft represents a rather aggressive emissions reduction timeline, forcing relevant companies to plan their energy transition strategies early. However, in the context of Trump’s administration, which has repeatedly suggested that global warming and carbon emissions are irrelevant, the bill is likely to face resistance from Republicans in Congress (who may argue that overly stringent environmental regulations will stifle innovation and weaken the U.S.’s competitiveness in the cutting-edge fields of cryptocurrency and AI). Whether it will pass remains highly uncertain.
