What happened

It's been another rocky week in the world of cryptocurrency mining. 

As of 12:30 p.m. ET today, shares of CleanSpark (CLSK -3.24%) and Hut 8 Mining (HUT) have dropped 6% and 2.6%, respectively, from last Friday's close. These moves come amid a series of macro headwinds that proliferated this past week. 

Kazakhstan, still an important country in the world of Bitcoin (BTC -1.11%) mining, announced a new set of tax laws aimed at inhibiting domestic crypto mining. Prices for Bitcoin mining rigs have also reportedly dropped to 2020 pandemic lows, amid a slowdown in global activity and fire sales tied to recent bankruptcy-related news. And most notably, Texas power grid operators have requested all Bitcoin miners shut down operations to help ease the burden on an already-stretched power grid.

Interestingly, Riot Blockchain (RIOT -1.26%), which was previously negative on the week, has shot into the green on news the company will comply with requests to curtail energy consumption. Despite the company having significant operations in Texas, it appears investors are viewing today's rising Bitcoin price as a more promising catalyst over the medium term.

So what

It's undoubtedly a bearish environment for crypto miners right now. Whether it's environmental concerns, or simply stretched power grids in many regions that invited crypto mining activity, regulatory headwinds remain strong for this sector. This situation may remain in place for some time, particularly given the extent to which geopolitical concerns have impacted the energy security of various regions.

That said, crumbling mining rig prices and a higher Bitcoin price do bode well for miners with existing operations looking to expand. Bitcoin mining may still be portable, if the price of mining equipment drops enough. And those crypto miners with the ability to ramp up production in other regions may yet see higher near-term profits.

Now what

The key determining factor that drives the profitability of crypto mining operations is the price of Bitcoin. Today's move higher for Bitcoin appears to be overshadowing a rather dim outlook overall for this sector. Whether investors are too easily brushing off regulatory concerns or not will be determined over time. However, this week's price action in this sector has been intriguing to watch, for sure.