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Derivative Asset
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2024
Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities Disclosure [Abstract]  
Derivative Asset

NOTE 4. DERIVATIVE ASSET

Luminant Power Agreement

On June 23, 2021, the Company entered into a power purchase agreement with Luminant ET Services Company LLC (“Luminant”), which was subsequently amended and restated on July 9, 2021, and further amended on February 28, 2022, August 26, 2022 and August 23, 2023 (as amended, the “Luminant Power Agreement”), for the supply of a fixed amount of electric power to the Odessa Facility at a fixed price for a term of five years, subject to certain early termination provisions. The Luminant Power Agreement provides for a subsequent automatic annual renewal unless either party provides written notice to the other party of its intent to terminate the agreement at least six months prior to the expiration of the then current term. Starting from July 1, 2022, and prior to the receipt of interconnection approval from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (“ERCOT”), under the take or pay framework of the Luminant Power Agreement and pursuant to the ramp-up schedule agreed to between Luminant and Cipher, Luminant began sales of the scheduled energy in the ERCOT market.

Because ERCOT allows for net settlement, the Company’s management determined that, as of July 1, 2022, the Luminant Power Agreement met the definition of a derivative under ASC 815, Derivatives and Hedging (“ASC 815”). Because the Company has the ability to sell its electricity in the ERCOT market rather than take physical delivery, physical delivery is not probable through the entirety of the contract and therefore, the Company’s management does not believe the normal purchases and normal sales scope exception applies to the Luminant Power Agreement. Accordingly, the Luminant Power Agreement (the non-hedging derivative contract) is recorded at its estimated fair value each reporting period with the change in the fair value recorded in change in fair value of derivative asset in the consolidated statements of operations. See additional information regarding valuation of the Luminant Power Agreement derivative in Note 17. Fair Value Measurements.

Depending on the spot market price of electricity, the Company may opportunistically sell electricity in the ERCOT market in exchange for cash payments, rather than utilizing the power to mine for bitcoin at the Odessa Facility during peak times in order to most efficiently manage the Company’s operating costs. The Company earned approximately $1.2 million and $0.1 million, from power sales for the three months ended March 31, 2024, and 2023, respectively, and recorded this amount in power sales within costs and operating expenses (income) on the unaudited condensed consolidated statement of operations, with the corresponding cost of the power sold recorded in cost of revenue. See Note 1. Organization for information regarding the out-of-period adjustments recorded during the three months ended March 31, 2023, which affected cost of power, power sales, net operating loss and net loss on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated statement of operations.