Case announces $40M to improve resiliency of Oʻahu power grid serving both military and civilian communities

A federal grant award of $40 million will fund the Puʻuloa Micrgrid, a renewable energy project at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam that aims to provide 99 megawatts of firm energy and interconnect to the Oʻahu grid.

The announcement from US Representative Ed Case on Saturday pushed forward a project picked up by developer Ameresco, Inc., partnered with the US Navy and Hawaiian Electric, in December 2023.

“Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam plays a critical role in promoting national security throughout the Pacific theater,” said Rep. Case. “Especially given its importance, the Department of the Navy has identified energy resilience gaps that could significantly impact its ability to respond to and recover from grid outages. Further, new state and federal policy directives have required the Department of the Navy to improve resilience and reduce carbon emissions from the installation.”

The Puʻuloa Micrgrid received these funds as part of the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program, which was established by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and administered by the US Department of Energy.

“As the US Congressman in whose district JBPHH is located and a member of the House Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Defense, I have focused on the installation’s grid challenges and the potential for disruption of service to our civilian communities as well, and on assuring available funding to address these issues,” said Case. “This GRIP funding is critical to enabling this project to succeed.”

According to the project description, the project will not only enhance energy resilience and reliability for Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH), but also provide significant benefits to the broader Oʻahu community.

The Puʻuloa Microgrid aims to detect loss of power during grid outages, disconnect from the broader grid, and then direct power from Puʻuloa Energy to supports JBPHH’s national security needs while maintaining civilian community service. During a full island outage, the system will provide black start capabilities. The project is also designed to improve power quality to JBPHH and the local grid through ancillary services such as frequency response and voltage support.

Details of the project can be found here.