Miles Coulson Blog

From EVs to Smart Grids: The Rising Need for Better Conductors

The electric revolution is accelerating at breakneck speed. By 2030, there will be over 145 million electric vehicles on the road globally, while smart grid investments are projected to reach $61 billion annually.

Yet beneath this transformation lies a critical bottleneck: our aging electrical infrastructure.

Traditional power lines, designed decades ago for a different world, are struggling to meet the demands of our electric future.

We’ve upgraded our cars, our homes, even our refrigerators. But the wires carrying power to all of it? Often still built for yesterday’s demands. That’s where high-performance conductors come in.

These aren’t just wires. They’re smart, resilient, and essential for the energy transition we’re barreling toward. So, let’s talk about why better conductors aren’t just helpful—they’re downright necessary.

Why? Because high-performance conductors can double transmission capacity without requiring expensive infrastructure overhauls.

The Fundamental Shift in the Kind of Demand for Power

EV sales have surged 300% since 2020, with major automakers committing to all-electric lineups by 2035.

Meanwhile, utilities are racing to modernize their grids to accommodate bidirectional power flows, real-time demand response, and massive renewable energy integration.

This isn't just about more electricity—it's about fundamentally different power requirements.

Fast-charging EV stations demand 150kW to 350kW of power, equivalent to supplying electricity to hundreds of homes simultaneously.

Smart grids must handle variable renewable energy sources, manage peak demand dynamically, and maintain stability across increasingly complex networks.

By 2030, millions of electric vehicles will be charging at home, businesses will be powered by solar-plus-storage systems, and AI-powered data centers will be operating 24/7.

The math is sobering: if just 10% of vehicles in a neighborhood charge simultaneously during peak hours, local transformers and distribution lines would be overwhelmed.

Scale this to metropolitan areas with millions of EVs, and the infrastructure challenge becomes clear. Traditional electrical conductors simply weren't designed for this new reality.

How is that?

Most power lines today use aluminum conductor steel reinforced (ACSR) cables, technology that's remained largely unchanged since the 1940s. These conventional conductors face three critical limitations that threaten our electric future.

  1. Thermal constraints severely limit capacity. When electrical current flows through traditional conductors, resistance generates heat. As temperatures rise, the aluminum expands and sags, reducing ground clearance and creating safety hazards. To prevent this, utilities must limit current flow, often to just 50% of what the conductor could theoretically carry under ideal conditions.
  2. Efficiency losses are massive and costly. Traditional conductors waste 6-8% of transmitted electricity through resistive losses. In the United States alone, this translates to $20 billion in annual losses and unnecessary CO2 emissions equivalent to 25 million cars. As electricity demand grows with EV adoption, these losses compound exponentially.
  3. Capacity constraints create bottlenecks throughout the grid. When transmission lines reach their thermal limits, utilities must either build new lines that will cost millions per mile and take years to permit, or accept congestion that drives up electricity costs for everyone. Neither option supports the rapid infrastructure scaling needed for widespread EV adoption.

Enter: High-performance Conductors

High-performance conductors represent a breakthrough in transmission technology, offering double the capacity of traditional wires while operating on existing infrastructure.

The key innovation lies in advanced materials and engineering design that fundamentally change how conductors behave under load.

Why?

Because High-performance conductors are built differently. They're lighter, stronger, and smarter.

Here’s what they offer:

The composite core has virtually no thermal expansion, meaning the conductor maintains its shape and ground clearance even under high loads.

This allows continuous operation at temperatures up to 180°C, compared to 75°C for traditional conductors.

The electrical benefits are equally impressive, carrying twice the current of conventional cables while reducing line losses by up to 40%.

This translates to significant energy savings: a typical 100-mile transmission line upgrade can save 50,000 MWh annually—enough electricity to power 4,600 homes while avoiding 35,000 tons of CO2 emissions.

Perhaps most importantly, these conductors are installed on existing towers and poles without structural modifications.

This "drop-in" compatibility means utilities can double their transmission capacity in weeks rather than years, at a fraction of the cost of new construction.

Smart Grids Aren’t Smart Without Smart Wiring

Smart grids promise dynamic energy management, real-time data, and bi-directional energy flows.

But here’s the twist—none of that works well if your wires can’t keep up.

High-performance conductors make the entire smart grid architecture possible. They’re compatible with:

Think of them as the neural pathways in a brain. Fast, flexible, and responsive.

There’s The Climate Connection Too

Let’s not ignore the big picture. Every kilowatt lost in transmission means more generation is needed. And that has to come from fossil fuels.

By reducing losses and enabling renewables to travel farther, high-performance conductors lower:

They also help grids handle the extreme weather events that are becoming more common, whether it’s heat waves, ice storms, or hurricanes.

Want to decarbonize the grid? You need better wires.

The Upgrade We’ve Been Ignoring

We often talk about the future of energy in terms of generation: wind, solar, and hydrogen. But without upgrading the infrastructure that delivers that power, we’re stuck.

High-performance conductors might not look revolutionary. They won’t show up on billboards or political slogans. But they’re quietly making the grid cleaner, stronger, and smarter.

The EV future? The smart home evolution? The 24/7 digital economy? None of it works without the right wiring.

So next time you charge your car or flick on the lights, remember—it’s not just what creates the electricity that matters. It’s how we carry it.

And that’s where the better conductors come in.