Alcoa, the largest U.S. aluminum producer, is in advanced negotiations to sell its idle Massena East smelter in upstate New York to Bitcoin firm New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG). CEO Bill Oplinger indicated the deal is expected to close mid-year.
The Massena East site, shut down in 2014 due to high costs, offers significant power infrastructure, including dedicated substations and transmission lines. This is attractive to Bitcoin miners and data center developers, who can leverage the existing setup to expedite grid access.
The location also benefits from hydropower supplied by the New York Power Authority, appealing to firms seeking low-cost, carbon-free energy. This transaction follows a trend of industrial sites being repurposed for digital infrastructure, such as Century Aluminum's sale of a Kentucky smelter to TeraWulf for a high-performance computing and AI campus.