According to Bloomberg, Bitcoin mining and digital asset infrastructure firm NYDIG is in advanced negotiations to acquire Alcoa Corp.’s idled Massena East aluminum smelter in upstate New York. The transaction, if completed, would convert the 435-megawatt hydropower site into a fully owned Bitcoin mining campus. Alcoa CEO Bill Oplinger confirmed the discussions in an interview on April 17, 2026, stating that the deal is expected to close around mid-2026.
From Aluminum Smelting to Bitcoin Mining
The Massena East facility was originally shuttered in 2014 due to high energy costs and global competition. In 2018, Alcoa signed a 10-year lease with Coinmint, which repurposed the site into a Bitcoin mining operation. The campus currently hosts approximately 54,000 Bitcoin mining units across six former aluminum potlines, consuming about 166 MW of the certified 435 MW capacity. NYDIG made a strategic investment in Coinmint in October 2024, gaining the ability to deploy its own mining hardware at the site.
Infrastructure Advantage Drives Interest
The site receives power from the New York Power Authority via the Moses-Saunders hydroelectric dam on the St. Lawrence River. Former aluminum smelters are highly attractive to Bitcoin miners and data center operators because they were built for continuous high-voltage industrial loads, leaving behind dedicated substations and transmission lines that bypass years-long grid interconnection queues. The Massena East property spans approximately 1,300 acres and retains all the electrical infrastructure built for industrial-scale aluminum production.
NYDIG’s Expansion Strategy
The acquisition is part of NYDIG’s consistent drive to expand its physical Bitcoin mining capacity. In March 2025, the company agreed to acquire Crusoe Energy’s Bitcoin mining operations, adding over 270 MW of operational capacity. Combined with other North American mining assets acquired in 2024, taking full ownership of Massena East would give NYDIG direct control of a site where it has been operating for over a year. The current mining activity at Massena employs about 85 full-time workers across Massena and Plattsburgh, and expansion under NYDIG ownership is expected to increase that workforce. The city of Massena has already updated local regulations to accommodate cryptocurrency and data mining operations.
Industry Trend: Repurposing Industrial Assets for Crypto
The deal follows a similar move by Century Aluminum, which sold its Hawesville, Kentucky smelter to TeraWulf for approximately $200 million in cash and equity for digital infrastructure use. Alcoa plans to monetize about 10 idled smelter sites in the U.S., offering them to data center and crypto miners seeking large, pre-wired industrial spaces with on-grid access. By routing existing hydropower capacity, the conversion avoids building new power plants—a feature that appeals to ESG-focused operators aiming for carbon-free digital infrastructure.
Alcoa reported strong Q1 2026 results alongside the deal news, with net income of $425 million and adjusted EBITDA of $595 million, driven by aluminum prices.