Riot to Constitute Advisory Board; Will Feature Former ERCOT Interim-CEO Brad Jones
Castle Rock, CO, May 23, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT) (“Riot” or “the Company”), an industry leader in Bitcoin mining and data center hosting, announced today that it is constituting an Advisory Board, which will reflect Riot’s commitment to having world-class talent provide advisory services to its executive leadership team and Board of Directors.
Riot’s first Advisory Board member will be Brad Jones, the former Interim President and CEO of the Energy Reliability Council of Texas (“ERCOT”), which manages ninety percent of the state’s power supply, monitoring over 50,000 miles of transmission lines and over 1,100 power generation units.
“We are honored to welcome Brad Jones to the Riot Platforms team,” said Jason Les, CEO of Riot. “Brad’s expertise and distinguished career in the energy sector are unmatched. We are confident that Brad will not only help our business compete and thrive, but also maximize our demand response activities to help stabilize the grid for the benefit of all Texas ratepayers.”
“I am thrilled to become a member of Riot’s Advisory Board because Riot is an industry leader in Bitcoin mining, and I am pro-Bitcoin,” said Brad Jones. “Riot and Bitcoin mining provide tremendous benefits to the ERCOT grid. Bitcoin miners purchase and utilize excess generation and create market-driven conditions for investment in further generation, much of which is increasingly renewable, such as wind and solar. In addition, due to their ability to power down quickly, they are also ideal participants in demand response programs, which are designed to help stabilize the grid during periods of high demand and extreme weather events. I am excited to help the Company capitalize on its strong potential.”
Mr. Jones led ERCOT from May 2021 to November of 2022 following a winter storm which caused widespread power outages. During his eighteen months leading ERCOT, grid reliability dramatically improved, with ERCOT successfully completing nearly sixty major initiatives. He previously served as President and CEO of the New York Independent System Operator and held several leadership positions with Luminant (formerly TXU).
Mr. Jones has over thirty years of experience in the competitive electricity industry, including growing, developing, restructuring, and optimizing competitive electricity businesses; designing electricity markets; and operating electricity grids. Additionally, he has received the Commissioners’ Award from the Public Utility Commission of Texas, as well as recognition from the Governor, Senate, and House of Representatives for his service to the state of Texas.
Riot continues to conduct a thorough review process to engage additional Advisory Board members with expertise in the fields of electrical grid and power management, power generation development (including renewable energy), legislative and regulatory processes, financial services, and capital markets.
About Riot Platforms, Inc.
Riot’s (NASDAQ: RIOT) vision is to be the world’s leading Bitcoin-driven infrastructure platform.
Our mission is to positively impact the sectors, networks, and communities that we touch. We believe that the combination of an innovative spirit and strong community partnership allows the Company to achieve best-in-class execution and create successful outcomes.
Riot is a Bitcoin mining and digital infrastructure company focused on a vertically integrated strategy. The Company has data center hosting operations in central Texas, Bitcoin mining operations in central Texas, and electrical switchgear engineering and fabrication operations in Denver, Colorado.
For more information, visit www.riotplatforms.com.
Safe Harbor
Statements in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements that reflect management’s current expectations, assumptions, and estimates of future performance and economic conditions. Such statements rely on the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Because such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “plans,” “expects,” “intends,” “will,” “potential,” “hope,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about the benefits of acquisitions, including financial and operating results, and the Company’s plans, objectives, expectations, and intentions. Among the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed in forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: unaudited estimates of Bitcoin production; our future hash rate growth (EH/s); the anticipated benefits, construction schedule, and costs associated with the Navarro site expansion; our expected schedule of new miner deliveries; the impact of weather events on our operations and results; our ability to successfully deploy new miners; the variance in our mining pool rewards may negatively impact our results of Bitcoin production; M.W. capacity under development; we may not be able to realize the anticipated benefits from immersion-cooling; the integration of acquired businesses may not be successful, or such integration may take longer or be more difficult, time-consuming or costly to accomplish than anticipated; failure to otherwise realize anticipated efficiencies and strategic and financial benefits from our acquisitions; and the impact of COVID-19 on us, our customers, or on our suppliers in connection with our estimated timelines. Detailed information regarding the factors identified by the Company’s management which they believe may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements in this press release may be found in the Company’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed under the sections entitled “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, as amended, and the other filings the Company makes with the SEC, copies of which may be obtained from the SEC’s website, www.sec.gov. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release, and the Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that subsequently occur, or of which the Company hereafter becomes aware, except as required by law. Persons reading this press release are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.
