Bitcoin’s supply is limited to 21 million BTC, with approximately 19.6 million mined as of May 2025, leaving about 1.4 million yet to be created. The mining process follows an exponential issuance schedule defined by block rewards that halve every four years. This structure results in over 87% of Bitcoin being mined by the end of 2020 and the remainder taking over a century to mine due to diminishing rewards. Estimates suggest that 99% of Bitcoin could be mined by 2035, with the last coins produced around 2140. Despite a large portion being considered lost due to permanent unavailability, around 3.0 million to 3.8 million BTC may never circulate again. The adaptability of Bitcoin’s mining and security protocols means that as rewards diminish, miners will adjust operations accordingly, maintaining network function. Additionally, the push for efficient energy use prevails, especially following the mining ban in China, with a significant portion of operations now utilizing renewable energy sources, indicating that Bitcoin mining's energy consumption is driven more by profitability than by price fluctuations.

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