Curtis Doran, treasurer of the Lab West Chamber of Commerce and a veteran of both traditional and crypto mining, leveraged Labrador’s plentiful low cost hydro power to expand Block Lab from a single garage rig in 2016 into Newfoundland and Labrador’s largest 14 MW Bitcoin mining operation. He later launched Hestia, which captures the miners’ waste heat to warm local homes and businesses, an especially valuable benefit in the province’s harsh climate where electric heat is common. Despite financing hurdles, custom equipment demands, the lingering stigma of failed predecessor Great North Data, and provincial rules that favor exporting energy, Doran argues his ventures create jobs, boost community development, and provide a flexible grid friendly electrical load that should influence future energy policy.