The US needs 100 new nuclear reactors built to provide the electricity for what the Democrats are demanding.
Wrong.
- There are about 1,050,000 million miles driven by light-duty cars and trucks every year in the United States (statista.com)
- Most electric cars drive about 4 miles on 1 kWh
- 1,050,000,000,000 / 4 = 262,500,000,000 kWh = 262,500,000 MWh needed to power all that driving
- At the end of 2020, the United States had 1,117,475 MW of utility-scale electrical generating capacity. (eia.gov)
- 1,117,475 * 24 * 365 = 9,789,081,000 MWh annual capacity
- In 2020, the US generated about 4,009,000,000 MWh (eia.gov)
- That means we generate 4,009,000,000 / 9,789,081,000 = 41% of our total capacity
- Running every car on electricity requires an additional 262,500,000 / 9,789,081,000 = 2.7% output from the grid
- Total capacity of current generation capacity used if all cars and light trucks are electric: 43.7%
Power generation is not the same as deliverability.
Right now there are power problems in the summer when too many people turn on their ACs.
If everyone plugs their cars in the same time, the peak power demand will overload the grid in that area.
Power is not the same as energy. You can have a billion joules go through your power outlet, but not a billion watts for very long.
If everyone plugs their cars in the same time, the peak power demand will overload the grid in that area.
That's true of everything. If everyone turns on their water at once there will be no pressure. If everyone flushes their toilet at once the sewer will be overwhelmed. Luckily people do not live their lives in synchronicity. Even if they did, most people are going to charge overnight since it will take 8 hours or so to charge their car and that's when prices are cheaper.
No one flushes their toilets for 8 hours together.
Like I said, we already have problems in many areas when the ACs turn on in the summer between 9am-8pm. Not every AC turns on at the same precise time, but during those daylight hours a lot of them are on at the same period of time and we have power problems.
Right now EVs have it easy, there currently exists a fuel infrastructure to take the energy load. Right now we have a dual system, in the future it will be a single system of electricity only, no hedge.
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