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Long distance transmission of massive amounts of electricity is a solved problem, it just requires funding and political will to do it. Look at the Pacific DC i

Long distance transmission of massive amounts of electricity is a solved problem, it just requires funding and political will to do it. Look at the Pacific DC intertie which takes power from the massive hydroelectric dams associated with the Columbia River down to California. There is no serious reason why solar power plants in the UT, CA, NV, NM and AZ deserts can't transmit power 1000 to 1500 km to far-away loads.

PaulDavisThe1st 3y ago
1500km from those deserts doesn't even begin to reach most major population centers. It needs to get much further than that to be impactful on the bulk of the population.
Animats 3y ago
This is what modern long distance transmission looks like.[1] This is a 12 gigawatt line running at 1.2 million volts. China does a lot of this, because the good power sources are in northwest China, and the big loads are in the Southeast. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ2KfrP_R3s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ2KfrP_R3s
- seanmcdirmid 3y ago
  Did they ever get their ultra high voltage grid going? Last I checked, it was still in the planning stages, and they were still running coal in the east because they couldn’t tap renewable power from the west. Looks like they are still building: https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chinas-state-grid-invest-22-bln-ultra-high-voltage-power-lines-report-2022-08-03/ https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chinas-state-grid-in... So one link at least according to your video, I would be curious about actual numbers about how much they can move already.
  - Animats 3y ago
    As of 2020 there was about 400 GW of installed UHV transmission in China now. For comparison, Hoover Dam is about 2 GW.
    - seanmcdirmid 3y ago
      Source? According to https://rethinkresearch.biz/articles/chinas-uhv-transmission-to-more-than-double-by-2025-to-105-gw/ https://rethinkresearch.biz/articles/chinas-uhv-transmission..., they will be at 105 GW by 2025 (the article is dated 2022). 50% of the power on these lines will be from renewables by 2025 (right now at 43%). I can't find any .cn estimates of UHV capacity.

PaulDavisThe1st 3y ago

1500km from those deserts doesn't even begin to reach most major population centers. It needs to get much further than that to be impactful on the bulk of the population.

Animats 3y ago

This is what modern long distance transmission looks like.[1] This is a 12 gigawatt line running at 1.2 million volts. China does a lot of this, because the good power sources are in northwest China, and the big loads are in the Southeast. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ2KfrP_R3s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ2KfrP_R3s

seanmcdirmid 3y ago
Did they ever get their ultra high voltage grid going? Last I checked, it was still in the planning stages, and they were still running coal in the east because they couldn’t tap renewable power from the west. Looks like they are still building: https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chinas-state-grid-invest-22-bln-ultra-high-voltage-power-lines-report-2022-08-03/ https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chinas-state-grid-in... So one link at least according to your video, I would be curious about actual numbers about how much they can move already.
- Animats 3y ago
  As of 2020 there was about 400 GW of installed UHV transmission in China now. For comparison, Hoover Dam is about 2 GW.
  - seanmcdirmid 3y ago
    Source? According to https://rethinkresearch.biz/articles/chinas-uhv-transmission-to-more-than-double-by-2025-to-105-gw/ https://rethinkresearch.biz/articles/chinas-uhv-transmission..., they will be at 105 GW by 2025 (the article is dated 2022). 50% of the power on these lines will be from renewables by 2025 (right now at 43%). I can't find any .cn estimates of UHV capacity.