In the course of the listening to in December the court docket heard how Mr Howells had been an early adopter of Bitcoin and had efficiently mined the cryptocurrency.
As the worth of his lacking digital pockets soared, Mr Howells organised a crew of specialists to try to find, get better and entry the arduous drive.
He had repeatedly requested permission from the council for entry to the location, and had supplied it a share of the lacking Bitcoin if it was efficiently recovered.
Mr Howells efficiently “mined” the Bitcoin in 2009 for nearly nothing, and says he forgot about it altogether when he threw it out.
The worth of the cryptocurrency rose by greater than 80% in 2024, and Mr Howells believes his 8,000 bitcoins to now be price greater than £600m.
However James Goudie KC, for the council, argued that present legal guidelines meant the arduous drive had turn into its property when it entered the landfill website. It additionally mentioned that its environmental permits would forbid any try to excavate the location to seek for the arduous drive.
The supply to donate 10% of the Bitcoin to the area people was encouraging the council to “play quick and free” by “signing up for a share of the motion,” mentioned Mr Goudie.
In a written judgement the decide mentioned: “I additionally take into account that the declare would haven’t any life like prospect of succeeding if it went to trial and that there isn’t a different compelling motive why it needs to be disposed of at trial.”
The landfill holds greater than 1.4m tonnes of waste, however Mr Howells mentioned he had narrowed the arduous drive’s location to an space consisting of 100,000 tonnes.
Mr Howells has speculated that, by subsequent 12 months, the Bitcoin on his arduous drive could possibly be price £1bn.
He instructed ORIONEWS Wales exterior the court docket listening to in Cardiff final December that he believed in his case and was prepared to take all of it the best way to Supreme Courtroom.