Key Takeaways
- Newport landfill site, where 8,000 Bitcoin may be buried, will close by 2026.
- James Howells' legal battle to retrieve the Bitcoin ended in January after a judge dismissed his case.
- The council denied excavation due to environmental concerns.
Newport landfill site details
A landfill site in Newport, Wales, where an IT worker claims he accidentally discarded a hard drive containing 8,000 Bitcoin in 2013, is scheduled to close, according to a BBC News report on Feb. 9.
A Newport council spokesperson stated that the site has been in use since the early 2000s and is now…
…coming to the end of its life.
The site is scheduled to be closed and capped over the next two years.
Part of the land has already been approved for a solar farm project.
Lost Bitcoin value
James Howells, the IT worker in question, mined 8,000 BTC in 2009 but lost access when the hard drive was mistakenly thrown away.
The Bitcoin is currently valued at approximately $768 million.
Legal battle
For years, Howells fought Newport Council in court, seeking permission to excavate the site in hopes of recovering the hard drive.
He offered the council a share of the recovered Bitcoin or compensation for his loss.
However, in January, a judge dismissed his case, stating he had “no realistic prospect” of success.
Environmental concerns
Howells proposed using AI experts to locate the hard drive at no cost to the council, but officials rejected the plan, citing environmental concerns.
The council stated in October that excavation was not possible due to the…
… huge negative environmental impact on the surrounding area.
