Supergrid Information
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Why have an HVDC Grid? | News | Priorities | Diary |
Against Supergrid | Barriers | Who opposes HVDC? |
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Barriers to Import of Electricity via HVDC
Local Planning issues are substantial. There is a growing consensus that it may ultimately be cheaper to pay the extra (two or three times) expense of laying underground to avoid many of the objections.
In addition detailed exploration should be made of the use that can be made of existing rights of way (always remebering that HVDC cabling is far smaller and less intrusive than HVAC).. such rights of way should include railways, canals, rivers and roads.
There is a great concern that there is a substnatial interest for local generators to compartmentalise the market and thereby preserve their monoply.
Concerns have been raise that areas of cheap electricity (eg Scandinavia) will have problems justifying the export of electricity as the effect will be to raise its value. It would seem the obvious answer is to return the additional value to the owners - the public - whether by tax of additional tarrifs..
We see certain interests as potentially affecting the desire to assist in allowing free transmission of elecitricty. We have mentioned the political problems casued by increased prices where electricity is particularly cheap.
We are concerned that circumstnaces may favour nationalities close to a good source of renewables and dmage those further away. We wonder what interest the nations of the mediterranean will have in allowing transnational export of North African solar power in twenty or thirty years when the effect will be to raise its cost. These issues need to be addressed now by way of EU treaty obligations and a fundamental commitment to a free market in electricity.
Overcoming Barriers - the positive aspects