A cryptocurrency fanatic was arrested after allegedly fiddling with his electricity meter to mine coins for free.

Ekaphan Chantrasing, 31, rented the three-storey home and used up enough electricity every day to power a 'small factory' in Nakhon Ratchasima, northeast Thailand.

However, staff from the electricity board became suspicious when they saw that the bill had not racked up any charges in more than six months - despite the massive energy consumption coming from the building.

Police officers joined staff from the Provincial Electricity Authority to check the home on May 19.

They went to check and discovered that the building was still using electricity despite nobody staying there.

Electricity board official Ronnachai Asanphan said: 'The maximum running current is almost 30 amps. Normally, this amount of electricity will be used by small factories and cost about 10,000 Thai Baht per month.'

Staff also found that the electric meter had been tampered with, resulting in zero electricity usage readings. Officers contacted the building's owner, who then referred them to the tenant.

After being probed, Ekaphan reportedly confessed that he had hired technicians to modify the electric meters. He allegedly used the building to mine Bitcoin, but did not want to pay the huge electric bill.

Ekaphan said he will meet with officers at the Pho Klang district Police Station on May 23 to negotiate the terms of payment for the stolen electricity. Police said if he does not show within a week, he may face civil and criminal charges.

Police Captain Arthit Poontaisong said: 'The evidence that the electricity authority collected showed the usage was not normal. The tennant then confessed that he had stolen the electricity. He will have to pay it all back.'

Cryptocurrency mining has received criticism for its huge energy consumption and carbon footprint.

The Columbia Climate School, citing data from the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, said Bitcoin alone uses up around 150 terawatt-hours of electricity yearly - outpacing the energy demands of the entire country of Argentina in the same period.