Hawaii Commits to 70% Renewable Energy by 2030

Hawaiian Electric Company, the state’s largest utility, has entered into an agreement with the state of Hawaii that could break the Islands’ reliance on fossil fuel by generating 70% of it energy from renewable sources for both ground transportation and electricity by 2030.

The plan includes agreeing to build no more coal-fired power plants, integrating 1,100 megawatts of renewable enegy into the grid, and converting existing generators to burn biofuels.

The agreement signed this month between the state and Hawaiian Electric is based on the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, a partnership launched last January between the federal government and the state of Hawaii. Administered by the U.S. Department of Energy, the stated goal of the project is for Hawaii to serve as the model of energy independence for other states to follow.

U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) says that energy independence for the state is essential due to the isolation of the central Pacific archipelago, making it particularly vulnerable to rising oil prices and uncertain supplies (Hawaii has no fossil fuel sources of its own).

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Challenges ahead

Senator Inouye acknowledges that the task will not be easy, but it must be done:

“It’s not going to be easy, but we must do it, because of all the 50 states in the union, our state is the most vulnerable. We have no fossil fuels, so we have to manufacture our own energy”

One major challenge in meeting the goals of the agreement is laying undersea cables for inter-island distribution of wind generated power.  Such cables could cost hundreds of millions of dollars, but nobody is sure of the exact price tag as there have yet to be any formal cost estimates or feasibility studies done.  Whatever they will cost, the source of the funding also remains an unknown, though likely sources include state bond initiatives, federal funding, and help from private sources.

Despite the challenges and uncertainty on the details, officials are determined to make the plan a reality.

Said Governor Linda Lingle:

“We don’t have years and years anymore to make these changes. These are not hopes or dreams or wishes, these are our specific plans that we hope to achieve.”

Incentives and price restructuring

Other aspects of the plan include the creation of incentives to encourage adoption of electric vehicles, simplifying the process for giving credits to utility customers who contribute electricity back into the grid from home solar or wind systems, and restructuring the way Hawaiian Electric is compensated so their business model doesn’t rely on increased energy consumption.

A major step

With only 10% of the state’s energy currently produced from renewable sources, the agreement marks the beginning of a new way of doing business for the utility and is hopefully a big step forward for all Hawaiians toward breaking the dependence on fossil energy. As Hawaiian Electric board chairwomen Connie Lau says, “this is a historic moment for all of us”.

And if Hawaii proves a model, as is the intention  of the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, it could be a historic moment for all of America as well.

Sources and Further Reading:
State of Hawaii Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism
Associated Press

Photo Credit: iStockPhoto

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