Iran’s challenge from increasing electricity consumption has reached new heights, prompting the country to stop electricity exports.

Abuzer Salihi, General Manager of the Iranian electricity supplier Tevanir, announced on state television that electricity exports would be reduced to zero “so that there would be no problems with the domestic electricity supply”. He said the power supply to Afghanistan’s Herat province, which imports 70% of its electricity from Iran, has been completely cut off to meet domestic needs.

According to the figures shared by Tevanir, the daily electricity production reaches more than 65,000 megawatts, while the output is around 54,000 megawatts. In addition to the summer heat, domestic bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrency mining – known for its substantial electricity subsidies to local industries – were cited as one of the causes of the high electricity demand.

Iran legalized cryptocurrency mining in 2019 to license and regulate mining companies in the country. But the country has also seen a surge in unlicensed mining operations, with many unlicensed miners using the internal grid to power mining facilities.

Iran’s first move this year is to punish cryptocurrency miners for using household energy.

Then there was a mining ban until the hot summer months were over. The ban on the mining of cryptocurrencies announced in May by President Hassan Rouhani will last until September in order to guarantee electricity access for domestic consumption. Rouhani also claims that 85% of mining in Iran is unlicensed.

Related: Proposed Bill In Iran Could Ban All Foreign Cryptocurrencies

As a last resort before stopping electricity exports, the country is also calling on all legally operating cryptocurrency miners to cease operations. Eshaq Jahangiri, the first Iranian Vice President under Hassan Rohani, announced this at a meeting with representatives from the Ministry of Energy. “We will make sure that the electricity is not turned off in important and important places,” he said.

Meanwhile, Iran continues to crack down on illegal mining activities. Last month, authorities seized more than 7,000 mining platforms from an operating farm in the capital, Tehran