Electricity is a necessity to any city, and this holds true in Cities: Skylines 2 as well. In this game, you have a few different options when delivering power to your citizens; you can even outsource electricity production and rely on other cities to power your own.
In this guide, we are going to cover everything you need to know about power and electricity in Cities: Skylines 2. This will include setting up your own power grid, as well as how to efficiently power your city with little to no interruption. First, let’s take a quick look at sharing your electricity with other cities.
How To Import Electricity
In Cities: Skylines 2, electricity is an immaterial good that can be traded with other cities. At the start of the game, you can set up your own power grid, but you can also rely on this trade to get your energy.
To do this, you will need to attach a high-voltage power line to the existing power line that leads out of the city. This power cannot be used directly though; instead, you will need to feed the power line into a transformer, which then converts it to a usable (low-voltage) version.
Transformers then attach to the road, which has underground power cables. Any building that is connected to the road will then be able to use this power. It’s important to note that this will cost money. If you are struggling to make money, consider creating your power locally.
How To Set Up Local Electricity
If you don’t want to import your power, you can produce it yourself. There are a few options to choose from at the start of a game, but as you unlock new milestones, you can also unlock new means to make power.
When you start a new city, you can choose from wind power or coal power.
Wind Power
Wind turbines can be placed on windy spots to generate a clean source of power. To generate power this way, you just need to find a flat spot that has a high power output.
When you are placing the turbine, the expected power will display on your cursor; try moving this around under the power increases.
We recommend using turbines when beginning a new game, as they have a cheaper upkeep fee, don’t cause pollution, and cost less in general.
Coal Power
Coal plants can generate a lot of power, but they pollute the surrounding area, including the air. Additionally, you will need coal in order for the plant to function.
Like electricity, coal can be imported from other cities, which costs some money. You can also mine coal directly from the ground in your city, but this is not unlocked at the start of the game.
How To Use Power Lines
As mentioned earlier, high-voltage power lines are used to transfer a non-usable version of power, but when fed into a transformer, you can convert it into a low-voltage version.
Unlike the first Cities: Skylines game, you no longer have to worry about a mess of above-ground power lines everywhere. Nearly every road type comes with built-in underground power cables. This means that anything placed on a street will get power, which eliminates long, aboveground power lines.
Not everything will be connected by a road though, but thankfully, you can use underground power lines. Simply drag these to the location where you want to be powered, and attach the line to the road. Now, every building on this road network will receive power too.
Store Power With Batteries
You will also have the option to store power with batteries. This will hold any excess power that you have. Overall, you don’t really need to rely on batteries, as you can just import power in case of an emergency.
How To Sell Your Local Power
In addition to importing power, you can sell (export) any extra power that you generate. If the location of power generation does not have a high-voltage power node, then you will need to run a low-voltage version through a transformer.
If the power generation site is on a road, you can simply utilize the road’s power cables to bring the electricity to a transformer. We recommend connecting your local power grid to a high-voltage line leading out of the city. This is a great way to earn a bit more money.
All Power-Generating Buildings
Below, you can check out all the available sources of power.
Every source listed below generates noise pollution as well.
|
Power |
Pollution (Ground and Air) |
|---|---|
|
Wind Turbine |
No |
|
Small Coal Power Plant |
Yes |
|
Coal Power Plant |
Yes |
|
Gas Power Plant |
Yes |
|
Geothermal Power Plant |
Yes |
|
Solar Power Plant |
No |
|
Nuclear Power Plant |
No |
|
Hydroelectric Power Plant |
No |
|
Incinerator |
Yes |
Incinerators are waste management buildings that burn trash to make electricity. This is a great way to make electricity while lowering the garbage in your city.
What Is An Electricity Bottleneck?
Bottlenecks occur when too much power is trying to go through a limited amount of power lines.
For example, say you have one main street that feeds into every part of your city. With a coal plant powering this street, you may run into a bottlenecking issue, as the power lines for the street cannot handle the amount of power that is needed.
To fix a bottleneck, we suggest adding a few transformers around your city. From these transformers, attach high-voltage power lines that bring in power from a local or imported source. With the transformers in place, you can use low-voltage power lines to distribute the power in your city. This will allow power to flow without being limited by the power line’s maximum capacity.
From the power overlay, bottleneck locations will be highlighted. You can place the additional transformers around these locations, giving buildings on the ‘other side’ of the bottleneck power.