High Wire Act

The report examines how electricity transmission acts as either a roadblock or an enabler for renewable energy (RE) deployment in the EU, China, and the US. It identifies common challenges across these regions, including the tension between national and local interests and the difficulty of allocating costs for new infrastructure. In the EU, fragmented planning and member-state resistance hinder grid integration. China faces technical barriers and a lack of connection standards despite aggressive central government spending on ultra high voltage (UHV) transmission. The US is characterized by highly fragmented local management and significant regulatory uncertainty regarding siting and cost allocation. The report concludes that while the EU may have easier approval processes, the US and China possess greater untapped RE potential if transmission constraints are resolved.

• Electricity transmission is critical for renewable energy because RE resources are often location-constrained in remote areas and are intermittent, requiring widespread interconnection to balance production across different regions.
• In the European Union, the transition to a more integrated grid is hampered by fragmented planning and the authority of member states to block cross-border projects that do not provide sufficient local benefit.
• China is investing $59.7 billion in ultra high voltage (UHV) infrastructure to move energy from remote wind and solar sites in the northwest to megacities, though it struggles with inflexible dispatching and a lack of connection standards.
• The United States faces the highest level of fragmentation among the three markets, with RE goals set by states rather than the federal government and unresolved disputes over cost allocation for multi-state projects.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). High Wire Act. https://www.wri.org/research/high-wire-act

Chicago

World Resources Institute. High Wire Act. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/high-wire-act.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=High Wire Act |url=https://www.wri.org/research/high-wire-act |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendhigh, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{High Wire Act}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/high-wire-act}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }