Fortitude said on October 5 that a subsidiary had signed a non-binding letter of intent with BITMAIN for priority allocation of next-generation Zcash mining equipment, carrying an indicative purchase commitment of up to $100 million. The machines have not yet been commercially released, making the agreement a claim on future capacity rather than a completed hardware purchase.
The proposed allocation would deepen Fortitude’s planned exposure to Zcash mining hardware. But key commercial details—including final machine specifications and pricing—have yet to be released, and the purchase will require a binding agreement before the order can proceed.
The Bitmain LOI reserves priority for unreleased Zcash hardware
Fortitude’s announcement describes the arrangement as priority access to BITMAIN’s next generation of Zcash miners. The up-to-$100 million figure is an indicative commitment under the letter of intent, not a definitive order, according to Fortitude Mining.
The equipment is expected to ship in the second quarter of 2027. That timetable remains contingent on BITMAIN releasing final specifications and pricing, after which the parties would need to execute a binding purchase agreement, as Investing.com reported, citing Fortitude’s announcement.
That sequencing matters because neither the exact machines nor their eventual unit economics are specified in the disclosed terms. For now, the LOI establishes Fortitude’s intended place in the allocation process for hardware that BITMAIN has yet to bring to market commercially.
A $20 million refundable deposit ties the order to DCG financing
The LOI calls for a refundable deposit equal to 20% of the proposed commitment, or $20 million. Fortitude said Digital Currency Group, or DCG, would fund the planned draw in ZEC, which would then be liquidated to provide the deposit.
The arrangement links the immediate payment requirement to Fortitude’s borrowing relationship with DCG rather than describing a cash-funded deposit. It also means the planned ZEC draw and subsequent liquidation are part of the disclosed mechanism for meeting the 20% requirement, rather than a final purchase payment.
Alongside the LOI, Fortitude increased its DCG credit facility to $70 million from $50 million. The company had approximately $42.7 million of remaining borrowing capacity after the increase, according to The Block.
The facility expansion is smaller than the headline maximum equipment commitment, while the disclosed deposit is limited to one-fifth of that figure. The ultimate scale of any procurement therefore remains dependent on the final agreement and the terms BITMAIN sets once it discloses the new equipment’s specifications and pricing.
Fortitude mining-facility operations image showing ASIC mining equipment and a technician. — Source: Fortitude Mining
The proposed order extends Fortitude’s 9,000-unit Z15 Pro expansion
The proposed future allocation follows a separate July agreement in which Fortitude purchased 9,000 BITMAIN Antminer Z15 Pro units. That order was priced at $3,499 per machine, or approximately $31.5 million in total.
Fortitude said the Z15 Pro purchase was expected to add 7.56 GSol/s of Equihash hashrate. Those are currently identified machines with disclosed unit pricing, in contrast to the latest LOI, which concerns unreleased equipment and leaves both the final model specifications and price outstanding.
The July purchase provides the clearest disclosed benchmark for the company’s existing Zcash-focused buildout. A Nasdaq-hosted Business Wire release put the earlier order’s expected Equihash addition at 7.56 GSol/s, while no comparable hashrate figure has been disclosed for the proposed next-generation allocation.
If a binding deal is reached, the expected second-quarter 2027 shipment would mark the next stated delivery milestone for Fortitude’s hardware expansion. Until BITMAIN releases the outstanding specifications and pricing, the $100 million commitment remains an indication of intended procurement capacity rather than a fixed equipment deployment plan.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
Source: Crypto Daily