The limits of HVDC transmission

Renewable energy is abundant, but not necessarily near the urban centers where it will be used. Therefore, it must be transported; and this transport entails a systemic energy penalty. In this paper simple qualitative calculations are introduced to show (i) that high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) power lines for megameter and greater distances are unlikely to achieve power capacities much beyond 2 GW, although they can be paralleled; (ii) that most sources and sinks of electric power are rather less than 10,000 km apart; (iii) that such long lines can be constructed to have transmission losses<-tilde 2%; and (iv) that lines of such low loss in fact meet minimal standards of intergenerational equity. - Highlights: • Renewable Energy is abundant, but not necessarily near population centers. • Its transportation requires energy and can be a major systemic inefficiency. • HVDC can be transmitted 10,000 km with 2% loss and near-optimal embodied energy. • Such transmission meets the requirements of intergenerational equity