A fire at Bitdeer Technologies Group's under-construction Bitcoin mining facility in Massillon, Ohio, has added fuel to the company's recent stock sell-off. The incident, which occurred on Tuesday, November 12, 2025, involved two of the 26 buildings being developed at the site.
According to Bitdeer, the local fire department responded swiftly and extinguished the fire. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. At the time of the fire, no mining equipment had been installed in the affected structures. Bitdeer has stated that the incident is not expected to impact its current operational hashrate. The cause of the fire is under investigation, with officials looking into whether construction activities may have been a factor. There were no signs of arson.
Bitdeer Chairman and CEO Jihan Wu confirmed the fire via social media, noting the collapse of two buildings but emphasizing the lack of injuries. He indicated that senior management is on-site to investigate further.
The fire follows a challenging period for Bitdeer, with shares already under pressure after the release of a disappointing Q3 earnings report on Monday. The company reported a net loss of over $266 million for the quarter, contributing to a more than 30% drop in stock value this week. This decline extends a month-long slide stemming from investor disappointment with the company's updates on its AI infrastructure plans.
Despite the recent setbacks, some analysts remain optimistic about Bitdeer's long-term prospects. Benchmark analyst Mark Palmer reaffirmed a "Buy" rating for the stock, arguing that the sell-off reflects inflated investor expectations rather than fundamental weaknesses in the business. Palmer pointed to Bitdeer's solid performance across self-mining, hosting, and cloud services, with revenue up 174% year-over-year to nearly $170 million and adjusted EBITDA swinging to $43 million from a loss a year earlier. He also highlighted the potential of Bitdeer's SEAL04 chip design, which shows strong energy efficiency in early tests.
However, other investors have expressed concerns about delays in the rollout of next-generation ASIC technology and a lack of concrete updates on AI leasing potential. The company's financial health grades also indicate significant risks, including a high probability of financial distress based on the Altman Z-Score.
The Massillon, Ohio facility is part of Bitdeer's ongoing expansion of its global mining and data center operations. The company purchased roughly 19 acres for the project for $1.6 million in 2023. The 221-megawatt site is expected to be fully energized in Q1 2026, with an initial 21 MW slated to come online this month. It remains unclear how the fire will impact the construction timeline.
Bitdeer, founded by Bitmain co-founder Jihan Wu, specializes in Bitcoin mining and AI cloud solutions. Headquartered in Singapore, the company has data centers in the U.S., Norway, and Bhutan.
The company's stock closed the day down 14.9% at $15.02, according to The Block. However, it is currently up 2.9% in pre-market trading on Wednesday.
