• Tinidril@midwest.social
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    3 days ago

    That’s not correct. What you need for long distance is high voltage, and it’s easier/cheaper to step up/down AC voltage than DC. If conversion costs were eliminated, DC is actually more efficient.

    If you get to even longer distances of over 300+ miles, DC’s efficiency becomes worth the additional cost of conversion. There are many HVDC interregional connections.

    • lengau@midwest.social
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      2 days ago

      At distances closer to a quarter wavelength you can also have some pretty gnarly reactions if a line goes down. That’s why stuff like the Kahora Bassa power plant uses HVDC for transmission.