Electricity: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 17:56, 14 June 2024

Electricity is an optional feature and is only available when energy management is enabled in game settings.

Background

The electrical grid is the intricate system designed to provide electricity all the way from its generation to the customers that use it for their daily needs. These systems have grown from small local designs, to stretching thousands of kilometers and connecting millions of homes and businesses today.

The grid consists of countless complex interconnections, however there are three main sections—electricity generation, transmission and distribution.

Electricity is generated through power plants. Fossil fuel power plants consume natural resources (Oil, Coal, or Nuclear Fuel/Uranium) to generate power and pollution. Solar and wind generate power without pollution but generate much less power than fossil fuel power plants. Solar and wind can be useful as cheap power sources when first starting off.

Electrical transmission is the process of delivering generated electricity - usually over long distances - to substations which connect to the distribution grid located in populated areas. A high-voltage cable (HV cable) is a cable used for electric power transmission at high voltage. A typical high-voltage transmission cable consists of a steel core for support/reinforcement wrapped in multiple layers of conductive aluminum strands. Transmission lines are protected from lightning by overhead ground wires (OHGW) which are unenergized steel cables intended to act similar to a lightning rod. These lines are capable of transmitting multiple circuits of 3-phase AC many kilometers while operating at temperatures of over 150 C (300 F).

In the power distribution section of an electrical power system, there are two main subsections: primary distribution and secondary distribution. In the primary distribution are medium-voltage (MV) cables used. Medium voltage cables range between 6 kV and 33kV. They are mostly produced to be a part of generation and distribution networks for many applications like utilities, petrochemical, transportation, wastewater treatment, food processing, commercial and industrial markets.

The secondary distribution or urban distribution is mainly underground, sometimes in common utility ducts. Rural distribution is mostly above ground with utility poles, and suburban distribution is a mix. The power comes to the customer via a service drop and an electricity meter. The final circuit in an urban system may be less than 15 metres, but may be over 90 metres for a rural customer.

Gameplay

When Energy management is enabled in the game settings, the players republic must be provided with electricity to buildings, electrified railway, street lights, etc. The player has to take care of the power grid by providing electricity and deliver the electricity to buildings. Electricity can be imported from the border at a Foreign power connection or generated at power plants. For long distance transmission of electricity high voltage wires are available, for the primary distribution are medium voltage wires available. The player has to take care of these lines by placing power lines in the world, supplemented with switches. The player places transformers for the secondary distribution. The players doesn't need to connect every individual building, because the transformer provides electricity to all buildings in range.

Generation

Electricity is generated through power plants. Power plants are buildings that generate electricity to power the republic. There are 3 types of power plants in the game fossil fuel, nuclear, and renewable. Gas, coal, and nuclear power plants require resources to operate, while wind and solar generates power depending on the wind speed and sun intensity in the world. Electricity can also be imported through foreign power connections. All power plants, except for wind, require workers to operate. This makes wind power a cheap but intermittent source of power for the early game.

Power plants produce electricity variably and based on the republics demand. If the republics power grid only requires 3.4 megawatts, the power plant will only produce 3.4 megawatts, even if the power plants capacity is higher.

Transmission

High Voltage Wires

Electricity needs to be distributed throughout the republic for buildings to function. This can be done through medium or high voltage wires. High voltage wires can carry more power over longer distances. Medium voltage wires can carry less power over shorter distances. The player can branch off of power lines using Power switches. But keep in mind that switches reduce the voltage, meaning the powerlines can't transfer power as far. Contrary to the name, power switches cannot switch on or off electricity, and are only an interconnection between lines.

Primary distribution

Medium Voltage Wires

High voltage wires can be reduced to medium wires using electric transformers. Electric transformers can take one high voltage connection and split it into 6 medium voltage connections.

Secondary distribution

Electric Substation

The player can distribute electricity to buildings using a electric substation, or some buildings, like the steel mill and aluminium plant have a direct high voltage connection. Substations have one medium voltage connection, and each substation can supply up to 2.5 Megawatts (limited to 2.35 MW due to that being the highest wattage for a medium voltage wire) to buildings up to 325 meters away from the substation.

Trolleybus lines and electrified train lines also must be powered. These are done through trolleybus electric connections and railroad electric connections respectively, both found in the conversion section of the electricity tab.

Notes

Power plant connections/switch yards can only output power from the power plant, and cannot transfer power from one line to another like a switch.
The player cannot connect different types of wires.
A foreign power connection at the border of the world can either import or export electricity, but not at the same time.
When importing electricity the player only pays for the electricity that is needed in the republic.
The maximum range from a substation to a building is 325m.
The player can only provide electricity to the maximum wattage that a substation can deliver, lights will start flickering when the power grid is overloaded.

Buildings related to electricity

Power plants

Name	Cost	Workers	Production	Consumption	Pollution	Energy	Wattage	Storage	Structure		Notes
Coal power plant	See below	20	1400MWh Power	24t Coal 0.40m3/day Water	39.5 tons/year	0.60 MWh	23 MWh	100t Coal	Access	2x footpath access 1x road access 2x high voltage wires 4x medium voltage wires 3x Conveyor connection	The coal power plant is a fossil fuel power Plant. By using coal, the coal power plant produces electricity for consumption or export. It requires workers to function, which can result in periods of low power when workers aren't at the plant.
Coal power plant	See below	20	1400MWh Power	24t Coal 0.40m3/day Water	39.5 tons/year	0.60 MWh	23 MWh	100t Coal	L/U	2
Gas power plant	See below	15	1050MWh Power	8.8t Oil 0.30m3/day Water	35.8 tons/year	3.4 MWh	17 MWh	200t Coal	Access	5x footpath access 1x road access 2x high voltage wires 4x medium voltage wires 6x pipe connections	The gas power plant is a fossil Fuel power plant. By using oil, the gas power plant produces electricity for consumption or export. It requires workers to function, which can result in periods of low power when workers aren't at the plant.
Gas power plant	See below	15	1050MWh Power	8.8t Oil 0.30m3/day Water	35.8 tons/year	3.4 MWh	17 MWh	200t Coal	L/U	2
Solar power plant	See below	8	560MWh Power	0.16m3/day Water	None	0.24 MWh	9.3 MWh	200t Coal	Access	2x footpath access 1x road access 1x high voltage wires 10x medium voltage wires	The solar power plant is a renewable type power plant. By using sunlight, the solar power plant produces electricity for consumption or export. It, unlike wind, requires workers to function, which can result in periods of low power when workers aren't at the plant. Solar power plants obviously do not function at night, and their output is dependent on the sun intensity and the number of workers at the power plant.
Solar power plant	See below	8	560MWh Power	0.16m3/day Water	None	0.24 MWh	9.3 MWh	200t Coal	L/U	None
Small wind power plant	See below	None	15MWh Power	None	None	0 MWh	0 MWh	None	Access	1x road access 1x medium voltage wires	The wind power plant is one of two renewable types of power plants, the other being solar. By using wind, the wind power plant produces electricity for consumption or export. It, unlike solar, does not require workers to function. Wind power plants generate less power at lower wind speeds. Wind power plants are the quickest and cheapest power plants to build but generate the least amount of power of all types of power plants in game.
Small wind power plant	See below	None	15MWh Power	None	None	0 MWh	0 MWh	None	L/U	None
Big wind power plant	See below	None	35MWh Power	None	None	0 MWh	0 MWh	None	Access	1x road access 1x medium voltage wires	See Small wind power plant.
Big wind power plant	See below	None	35MWh Power	None	None	0 MWh	0 MWh	None	L/U	None	See Small wind power plant.
Incinerator - power plant^[1]	See below	20	660MWh Power	60t Mixed waste 0.40m3/day Water	48.00 tons/year	0.60 MWh	11 MWh	30t Mixed waste (Import) 58t Mixed waste (Export)	Access	3x footpath access 1x road access 2x factory connection 1x high voltage wires 3x medium voltage wires	By burning Mixed waste^[1], the Incinerator power plant produces electricity for consumption or export. Only available when Waste management^[1] is selected in game settings.
Incinerator - power plant^[1]	See below	20	660MWh Power	60t Mixed waste 0.40m3/day Water	48.00 tons/year	0.60 MWh	11 MWh	30t Mixed waste (Import) 58t Mixed waste (Export)	L/U	2

Nuclear power plant

Main page: Nuclear power plant

Name	Cost	Workers	Production	Consumption	Pollution	Energy	Wattage	Storage	Structure		Notes
Single reactor nuclear power plant	See below	40 20	4680MWh Power 0.02t Nuclear waste 6.80m3/day Wastewater	0.04t Nuclear fuel 1.20m3/day Water Quality 60% Water	9.0 tons/year	7.8 MWh	78 MWh	3t Nuclear fuel (import) 3t Nuclear waste (export) 91m2 for containers	Access	2x footpath access 1x road access 7x high voltage wires 6x medium voltage wires 2x cooling pipe 3x sewage pipes 2x Water pipes 2x factory connections
Single reactor nuclear power plant	See below	40 20	4680MWh Power 0.02t Nuclear waste 6.80m3/day Wastewater	0.04t Nuclear fuel 1.20m3/day Water Quality 60% Water	9.0 tons/year	7.8 MWh	78 MWh		L/U	3
Twin reactor nuclear power plant	See below	80 40	9360MWh Power 0.04t Nuclear waste 13m3/day Wastewater	0.08t Nuclear fuel 2.40m3/day Water Quality 60% Water	14.2 tons/year	9.6 MWh	156 MWh	3t Nuclear fuel (import) 3t Nuclear waste (export) 88m2 for containers	Access	3x footpath access 1x road access 9x high voltage wires 6x medium voltage wires 4x cooling pipe 2x sewage pipes 2x Water pipes 3x factory connections
Twin reactor nuclear power plant	See below	80 40	9360MWh Power 0.04t Nuclear waste 13m3/day Wastewater	0.08t Nuclear fuel 2.40m3/day Water Quality 60% Water	14.2 tons/year	9.6 MWh	156 MWh		L/U	3
Zaporozie reactor	See below	45 23	5850MWh Power 0.023t Nuclear waste 7.7m3/day Wastewater	0.045t Nuclear fuel 1.36m3/day Water Quality 60% Water	14.2 tons/year	8.0 MWh	97 MWh	3t Nuclear fuel (import) 3t Nuclear waste (export) 209m2 for containers	Access	7x footpath access 1x road access 5x high voltage wires 6x medium voltage wires 2x cooling pipe 2x sewage pipes 2x Water pipes 1x factory connections	Download content pack 1
Zaporozie reactor	See below	45 23	5850MWh Power 0.023t Nuclear waste 7.7m3/day Wastewater	0.045t Nuclear fuel 1.36m3/day Water Quality 60% Water	14.2 tons/year	8.0 MWh	97 MWh		L/U	4	Download content pack 1

Cooling tower

Name	Cost	Workers	Pollution	Energy	Wattage	Structure		Notes
Cooling tower	5322 Workdays, 506t Concrete, 253t Gravel, 203t Asphalt, 65t Steel, 5.2t Mechanical components	None	None	3.0 MWh	50 kW	Access	1x road access 4x cooling pipe
Cooling tower		None	None	3.0 MWh	50 kW	L/U	1
Zaporozie Veza	4566 Workdays, 436t Concrete, 217t Gravel, 173t Asphalt, 56t Steel, 4.4t Mechanical components	None	None	3.0 MWh	50 kW	Access	1x road access 4x cooling pipe	Download content pack 1
Zaporozie Veza		None	None	3.0 MWh	50 kW	L/U	1	Download content pack 1

Cooling pipe connection

Name	Cost	Notes
Cooling pipe	Workdays, Steel, Mechanical components Usage depends on length.

Power switch

Power can be branched off with Power switches. Contrary to the name, power switches cannot switch on or off electricity, and are only an interconnection between lines. Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic provide two types of switches, regular ones and ones with priorities^[1].

The switches with priorities^[1] work like this: The power primarily draws always from the higher priority source and only the rest of the required power will be drawn from lower priority power. The advantage for the players is that they can connect a Solar power plant or Wind farm with a higher priority on the switch. On another source branch a fuel burning power plant can be connected, with a lower priority. So when there is enough sunlight or wind, the power from these sources are used in the republic over the power produced by burning fuel, so saving Rubles/Dollars and keeping the pollution low. Read more about this in community post #67^[2]

Name	Cost	Voltage	Structure		Notes
High voltage switch	102 Workdays, 4.3t Concrete, 3.3t Gravel, 2.6t Asphalt, 1.8t Steel, 0.38t Electro components	High voltage	Access	1x road access 3x high voltage wires
High voltage switch		High voltage	L/U	None
High voltage switch 6x^[1]	146 Workdays, 6.3t Concrete, 4.9t Gravel, 3.9t Asphalt, 2.5t Steel, 0.53t Electro components	High voltage	Access	1x road access 5x high voltage wires
High voltage switch 6x^[1]		High voltage	L/U	None
High voltage switch (Priority)^[1]	200 Workdays, 6.3t Concrete, 4.9t Gravel, 3.9t Asphalt, 4.4t Steel, 0.92t Electro components	High voltage	Access	1x road access 4x high voltage wires	This switch has inputs and has outputs which can have different priorities.^[2]
High voltage switch (Priority)^[1]		High voltage	L/U	None
Medium voltage switch	45 Workdays, 1.7t Concrete, 1.3t Gravel, 1.0t Asphalt, 0.85t Steel, 0.18t Electro components	Medium voltage	Access	1x road access 5x medium voltage wires
Medium voltage switch		Medium voltage	L/U	None
Medium voltage switch 5x^[1]	83 Workdays, 3.1t Concrete, 2.4t Gravel, 1.9t Asphalt, 1.6t Steel, 0.34t Electro components	Medium voltage	Access	1x road access 3x medium voltage wires
Medium voltage switch 5x^[1]		Medium voltage	L/U	None
Medium voltage switch (Priority)^[1]	117 Workdays, 3.1t Concrete, 2.4t Gravel, 1.9t Asphalt, 2.8t Steel, 0.59t Electro components	Medium voltage	Access	1x road access 4x medium voltage wires	This switch has inputs and has outputs which can have different priorities.^[2]
Medium voltage switch (Priority)^[1]		Medium voltage	L/U	None
Foreign power connection^[1]	900 Workdays, 22t Concrete, 17t Gravel, 13t Asphalt, 22t Steel, 2.8t Mechanical components 1.9t Electro components	Medium voltage	Access	1x road access 1x high voltage wires 3x medium voltage wires	Building must be placed at the border.
Foreign power connection^[1]		Medium voltage	L/U	None	Building must be placed at the border.

Transformers

Name	Cost	Voltage	Consumption	Structure
Power transformer	154 Workdays, 6.7t Concrete, 5.1t Gravel, 4.1t Asphalt, 2.7t Steel, 0.55t Electro components	High voltage	18 MW	Access	2x road access 1x high voltage wires 6x medium voltage wires
Power transformer		High voltage	18 MW	L/U	None
Electric substation	51 Workdays, 0.77t Concrete, 0.59t Gravel, 0.47t Asphalt, 2.7t Bricks, 0.89t Boards, 0.66t Steel, 0.068t Electro components	Medium voltage	2.5 MW	Access	1x road access 1x medium voltage wires
Electric substation		Medium voltage	2.5 MW	L/U	None
Electric substation^[3]	51 Workdays, 0.77t Concrete, 0.59t Gravel, 0.47t Asphalt, 2.7t Bricks, 0.89t Boards, 0.66t Steel, 0.068t Electro components	Medium voltage	2.5 MW	Access	1x footpath 1x medium voltage wires
Electric substation^[3]		Medium voltage	2.5 MW	L/U	None

Voltage wires

Name	Cost	Voltage	Throughput	Placement
High voltage wires type "1"	Workdays, Concrete, 181t Gravel, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	High voltage	4 MW	Above ground
High voltage wires type "2"	Workdays, Concrete, 181t Gravel, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	High voltage	6 MW	Above ground
High voltage wires type "3"	Workdays, Concrete, 181t Gravel, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	High voltage	8 MW	Above ground
High voltage wires type "4"	Workdays, Concrete, 181t Gravel, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	High voltage	10 MW	Above ground
High voltage wires type "5"	Workdays, Concrete, 181t Gravel, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	High voltage	13 MW	Above ground
High voltage wires type "6"	Workdays, Concrete, 181t Gravel, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	High voltage	14 MW	Above ground
High voltage wires type "7"	Workdays, Concrete, 181t Gravel, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	High voltage	15 MW	Above ground
High voltage wires type "8"	Workdays, Concrete, 181t Gravel, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	High voltage	18 MW	Above ground
Underground high voltage wires type "1"	Workdays, 181t Gravel Electro components Usage depends on length and depth.	High voltage	5 MW	Underground
Underground high voltage wires type "2"	Workdays, 181t Gravel Electro components Usage depends on length and depth.	High voltage	7 MW	Underground
Underground high voltage wires type "3"	Workdays, 181t Gravel Electro components Usage depends on length and depth.	High voltage	12 MW	Underground
Medium voltage wires type "1"	Workdays, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	Medium voltage	0.65 MW	Above ground
Medium voltage wires type "2"	Workdays, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	Medium voltage	1.2 MW	Above ground
Medium voltage wires type "3"	Workdays, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	Medium voltage	1.5 MW	Above ground
Medium voltage wires type "4"	Workdays, Steel, Electro components Usage depends on length.	Medium voltage	2.35 MW	Above ground
Underground medium voltage wires type "1"	Workdays, 181t Gravel Electro components Usage depends on length and depth.	Medium voltage	0.5 MW	Underground
Underground medium voltage wires type "2"	Workdays, 181t Gravel Electro components Usage depends on length and depth.	Medium voltage	0.95 MW	Underground
Underground medium voltage wires type "3"	Workdays, 181t Gravel Electro components Usage depends on length and depth.	Medium voltage	1.45 MW	Underground