The U.S. Urgently Needs a Bigger Grid. Here’s a Fast Solution.
www.nytimes.com
A rarely used technique to upgrade old power lines could play a big role in fixing one of the largest obstacles facing clean energy, two reports found.
  • slazer2au@lemmy.worldEnglish
    29·
    2 months ago

    Replacing existing power lines with cables made from state-of-the-art materials could roughly double the capacity of the electric grid in many parts of the country,

    Ah but that costs money and eats into profits.

    • perestroika
      9·
      2 months ago

      Coincidentally, there’s a cheaper way too. :)

      The ratings of existing power lines can be recalculated on an hourly basis according to outdoor temperature and wind.

      That however, requires software and agility, which big companies seldom have… and it doesn’t help during a heat wave with no wind, of course.

      • slazer2au@lemmy.worldEnglish
        131·
        2 months ago

        But that won’t happen this quarter. So why pay for it from this quarter’s budget when we can deferr it until after I my promotion. Got to keep my number good.

      • Monument@lemmy.sdf.org
        English
        4·
        2 months ago

        What will happen is that utilities will take about a year to file an IRP with a rate increase, have it under consideration for a year, and then when it’s invariably passed, they will subcontract the work to a corporation the utility owns (at a big markup), complete about 40% of the work, report a massive profit to their shareholders while reporting to your utility commission that they need more rate hikes, citing extenuating circumstances, the economy, the usual “please give us socialism” corporate nonsense.

  • Liz@midwest.socialEnglish
    41·
    2 months ago

    Do we though? Can’t we ramp up local storage and production with solar and batteries on and in buildings?

    • SomeoneSomewhere@lemmy.nz
      5·
      2 months ago

      Batteries are expensive, short lived, less efficient, and polluting. They’re better than fossil fuels, but if they can be avoided they should.

      Solar also isn’t very practical in CBDs, so you end up generating excess power in more rural areas and transporting it into densely populated areas, like most other commodities.