6 ms·
High-voltage direct current has losses of less than 3% per 1000km according to the Wikipedia article. That's not China-to-US stuff but definitely low enough to
by _Microft 8y ago
High-voltage direct current has losses of less than 3% per 1000km according to the Wikipedia article. That's not China-to-US stuff but definitely low enough to move energy around in Europe.
- tialaramex 8y agoAnd they do. Up to 3-4GW of the power (maybe 10% of typical power demand) in the UK is imported from its neighbours - some Ireland and the Netherlands, lots of France - at the moment. The French have a LOT of Nuclear power, and idling a nuclear power station, though possible, is economic insanity, so it makes sense to sell it at a discount to the British.
- rsynnott 8y agoIt's worth noting that this is a two-way street; GB sometimes exports electricity, particularly to Ireland when there's not much wind, but also sometimes to France.