Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by ordu 747 days ago
The article says they are buying the time. New lines are slow to build, so while they are being built, it is possible to squeeze more from the existing lines.
3 comments

I get it, I'm just baffled with the hint the article gives that the stuff needed now wasn't planned 10 years ago. I guess this is yet another "US infrastructure disaster" article, but with a positive outlook.
this is talking about grant awards that are happening in the current year, so it's not like they were planned 10 years ago.

hindsight is 20/20 but some things like the growth of data centers was probably not predicted, particularly their location. As a general example, Ireland had to put a moratorium on new data centers until 2028. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/15/power-grab-hid...

You don't need to build new lines, just replace the existing. The new conductor tech is incredible

https://www.2035report.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/GridLa...

They're not being built though. Not at nearly the rate needed.

https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/transmission/the-us-is-...

> not being built though. Not at nearly the rate needed

…according to “consultancy Grid Strategies and commissioned by trade group Americans for a Clean Energy Grid (ACEG).” This is like the civil-engineering society perennially failing our civil-engineering spending.

That doesn’t make them inherently incorrect, in the same way that oil companies are correct that building more pipelines is safer and more environmentally friendly than oil trains.
> doesn’t make them inherently incorrect

Did you see a claim that seems to stand on its own?