HEI - Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc.
02/02/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 02/02/2024 18:51
Hawaiian Electric moves forward with plan to add firm renewable energy to Maui’s power generation mix
Hawaiian Electric moves forward with plan to add firm renewable energy to Maui's power generation mix
Maui project is 16th selected in latest round of clean energy procurement
Release Date: 2/2/2024
HONOLULU, Feb. 2, 2024 - Hawaiian Electric has selected a developer for a proposed firm renewable energy project on Maui that is part of the company's latest phase of clean energy procurements aimed at reducing Hawaii's dependence on imported oil for power generation.
The 40-megawatt (MW) biofuel-burning power plant proposed by Ameresco Inc. would help move Hawaii closer to its clean energy goals, while adding critical grid reliability with firm renewable energy. Firm resources differ from variable resources such as solar and wind, in that they are available at all times.
The Maui proposal is part of a larger round of clean energy procurement that includes a total of 16 firm and variable renewable energy projects selected on Maui, Hawaii Island and Oahu. The proposal for firm renewable capacity on Maui was handled separately from the other proposals, which were announced on Dec. 8, 2023.
Hawaiian Electric will undertake contract negotiations with project developers, who will conduct outreach in the communities where they plan to build. For the first time, developers were required to submit community outreach and benefit plans that were evaluated along with technical and financial criteria.
In total, the developers of the projects are expected to produce long-term contracts for approximately 517 MW of variable generation, 694 MW of firm generation, and 2.1 gigawatt-hours of energy storage The proposals employ a variety of renewable energy resources and project design types. Estimated completion dates for the projects range from 2026 to 2033.
Once Hawaiian Electric finalizes contracts with the developers, the contracts will be submitted to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) for review and approval. At that time, more details on price and bill impact will be made public. The selection process was overseen by an Independent Observer and Independent Engineer, selected by the PUC to ensure that all proposals - including projects proposed by Hawaiian Electric - were reviewed fairly and objectively.
The projects selected are the result of a procurement effort that Hawaiian Electric began in May 2022 for Oahu and Maui and in November 2021 for Hawaii Island. For a list of the projects and links to each project website, please see the Renewable Project Status Board page: hawaiianelectric.com/statusboard.