Originally Posted by ddelorenzo

Transmission losses on the highest power backbone lines are in the single-digit percentages even in the 500-1000 mile range, so it's probably not a huge deal for the big coal, nuclear, and hydro plants. I don't know if solar or wind power will hit that sort of scale any time soon, but if you've got a city in the desert you probably don't need to locate the plants hundreds of miles away, either. Storing power for calm or cloudy days is obviously still an issue.