page_title: High-voltage direct current
section_title: Renewable electricity superhighways
hierarchical_section_title: High-voltage direct current / Applications / Renewable electricity superhighways
caption_attribution_description: English: Crossing of HVDC transmission lines CU and Square Butte situated at 47d 2m 48s N, 100d 5m 49 s W, about 17.5 km south-east of Wing, North Dakota. Picture taken facing to the West in a mosquito-filled cow pasture June 2, 2010. Thanks to my very patient wife for spending the day driving out to the middle of nowhere for me to photograph this. Square Butte uses +/- 250 kV DC and single conductors per pole and is the line of towers on the left in this picture. CU uses +/- 400 kV, two conductors per pole and is the line of towers on the right. As far as known, this is the only crossing point of two HVDC overhead powerlines in North America.
context_page_description: A high-voltage, direct current electric power transmission system uses direct current for the bulk transmission of electrical power, in contrast with the more common alternating current systems. For long-distance transmission, HVDC systems may be less expensive and have lower electrical losses. For underwater power cables, HVDC avoids the heavy currents required to charge and discharge the cable capacitance each cycle. For shorter distances, the higher cost of DC conversion equipment compared to an AC system may still be justified, due to other benefits of direct current links, such as interconnecting power systems operating at different frequencies.
  Most HVDC links use voltages between 100 kV and 800 kV. A 1,100 kV link in China was completed in 2019 over a distance of 3,300 km with a power of 12 GW. With this dimension, intercontinental connections become possible which could help to deal with the fluctuations of wind power and photovoltaics.
  HVDC allows power transmission between unsynchronized AC transmission systems.
context_section_description: A number of studies have highlighted the potential benefits of very wide area super grids based on HVDC since they can mitigate the effects of intermittency by averaging and smoothing the outputs of large numbers of geographically dispersed wind farms or solar farms. Czisch's study concludes that a grid covering the fringes of Europe could bring 100% renewable power (70% wind, 30% biomass) at close to today's prices. There has been debate over the technical feasibility of this proposal and the political risks involved in energy transmission across a large number of international borders.
  The construction of such green power superhighways is advocated in a white paper that was released by the American Wind Energy Association and the Solar Energy Industries Association in 2009. Clean Line Energy Partners is developing four HVDC lines in the U.S. for long distance electric power transmission.
  In January 2009, the European Commission proposed €300 million to subsidize the development of HVDC links between Ireland, Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, and Sweden, as part of a wider €1.2 billion package supporting links to offshore wind farms and cross-border interconnectors throughout Europe. Meanwhile, the recently founded Union of the Mediterranean has embraced a Mediterranean Solar Plan to import large amounts of concentrated solar power into Europe from North Africa and the Middle East.
caption: Two HVDC lines cross near Wing, North Dakota.
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