May Marathon Digital Holdings be in exploratory talks with Exxon Mobil and Saudi Aramco to colocate Bitcoin mining models at oilfields, immediately tapping flare-gas for energy?
Crypto Twitter thinks it’s possible, and if confirmed, the partnership may turbocharge the dimensions and legitimacy of gas-to-Bitcoin operations, turning waste methane right into a monetized digital asset whereas addressing ESG issues.
Marathon inventory pumper Cryptoklepto thinks, “It’s extra probably than not that not less than certainly one of these eventualities performs out within the subsequent 6 to 12 months for $MARA.”
Whereas not one of the firms have formally introduced a deal, Marathon CEO Fred Thiel hinted at “discussions with among the largest vitality firms on the earth” on May’s earnings call, including that “chunks of flare-gas era” will quickly come on-line the place we’re capable of deploy our Bitcoin mining operations.
The timing aligns with Aramco’s Could 2025 announcement of 34 new MoUs with U.S. companies and follows Exxon’s earlier pilot with Crusoe Power in North Dakota.
Pilot-Confirmed, Able to Scale
Marathon isn’t ranging from scratch. In late 2024, it launched a 25-megawatt pilot in Texas utilizing stranded shale gasoline, avoiding grid competitors whereas qualifying for methane abatement credit. “The AI guys are ready to pay virtually any worth for vitality,” Thiel informed Reuters. “Bringing crypto-mining to the uncooked energy provide lets us keep away from that battle.”
The corporate’s cellular, plug-and-play infrastructure is tailored for oilfields. These transportable modules convert in any other case flared methane into electrical energy, which is then used to mine Bitcoin, a course of that Exxon and Crusoe demonstrated at scale by diverting 18 million cubic ft of gasoline monthly and slicing CO₂-equivalent emissions by as much as 63%.
Saudi Aramco has beforehand denied any intention to mine Bitcoin. In 2021, the corporate labeled such reviews “false and inaccurate.”
Nonetheless, Marathon’s Thiel just lately claimed the agency has 4–5 gigawatts of extra capability, a scale that would energy tens of 1000’s of mining rigs. If even a small portion have been redirected, it might surpass the overall output of many standalone crypto amenities.
Exxon, in the meantime, has the institutional reminiscence and knowledge from its two-year Crusoe pilot, which may make fast-tracking a brand new enterprise with Marathon much less speculative than it appears.
Why Now? A Confluence of Stress and Alternative
Behind the scenes, regulatory momentum is constructing. A U.S. methane emissions charge underneath the Inflation Discount Act kicks on this 12 months, pushing oil producers to seek out methods to cut back or monetize their emissions. Flare-gas mining provides a low-capex, high-upside path to compliance, significantly when paired with carbon offset markets.
Additional, payments have been accepted in Texas specifically to encourage Bitcoin mining utilizing flare gasoline.
On the identical time, Bitcoin miners are grappling with compressed margins following the April 2025 halving. Marathon, one of many trade’s largest listed gamers, produced 950 BTC in Could however should now aggressively pursue sub-$0.03/kWh vitality sources to stay aggressive. Flare-gas, as soon as a fringe vitality enter, may change into a post-halving lifeline.
Skepticism stays warranted. No SEC filings, public agreements, or official feedback verify the Exxon or Aramco partnerships. Given Aramco’s previous denial, any shift in stance would probably contain months of allowing, infrastructure build-out, and reputational calculus.
If oil majors greenlight Bitcoin mining on the wellhead, the flare-gas dialog will shift from “can it work?” to “how briskly can it scale?” Marathon, with its turnkey modules and Wall Road footprint, could also be first in line.
What to Watch
- Public filings or MoUs from Exxon, Aramco, or Marathon confirming pilot collaborations.
- Power regulator responses to flare-gas mining amid the methane charge rollout.
- Q3 manufacturing updates: Marathon’s vitality prices and BTC yield per website.
- Group pushback round noise and emissions from Marathon’s Texas flare website.
“You’re going to seek out is a mixture of thermal, a mixture of wind, photo voltaic and a few flare gasoline. It actually relies upon available on the market and the accomplice.
We’re in discussions with among the largest vitality firms on the earth which have a mixture of all these vitality sources and nuclear.
With reference to flare gasoline, there are plenty of gasoline belongings world wide which can be very relevant to this technique…
And what I feel you’ll see us doing increasingly sooner or later is as we proceed to work with particularly oil and gasoline producers, you’ll see chunks of this flare gasoline sort era come on-line in numerous components of the world the place we’re capable of deploy our Bitcoin mining operations, as a option to monetize that stranded gasoline. And we’re tremendous enthusiastic about these alternatives.”
—Fred Thiel, Marathon CEO
This story is growing. CryptoSlate will replace as extra particulars emerge.
