PUC approves Hawaiian Electric’s request to expand renewables, energy storage

Hawaiian Electric today announced the Public Utilities Commission has approved the company’s Integrated Grid Planning Request for Proposals, which seeks competitively priced renewable energy and storage for Oʻahu and Hawaiʻi Island to meet customers’ growing energy needs, modernize power generation and drive down costs by reducing the use of oil.

The RFP calls for a competitive bidding process to secure nearly 1,650 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of variable renewable energy (i.e. solar, wind), 465 megawatts (MW) of grid forming resources (i.e. solar generation plus battery storage) and 111 MW of firm generating capacity, resources that can be available 24/7. Projects would be in service between 2031-2034.

“We anticipate there will be significant interest from renewable energy developers. The competitive bidding process has proven to be the most effective means to fairly evaluate projects and ensure our customers’ interests are protected,” said Shelee Kimura, president of Hawaiian Electric. “Collectively these projects comprise one of Hawaiʻi’s largest-ever energy procurements and will make significant progress toward stabilizing customer bills and achieving the state’s decarbonization goals.”

In addition to launching the request for proposals, Hawaiian Electric’s plans also call for:

• Retiring aging power plants sooner by accelerating the addition of modern firm generation that can efficiently produce electricity 24/7 when variable resources like wind and solar aren’t available.
• Launching a request for proposals for all fuels by the end of 2026, including liquid and gaseous fuels, to provide a competitive evaluation of such measures as price, sourcing and environmental impact.

This procurement follows Hawaiian Electric’s successful Stage 3 request for proposals, the largest energy procurement in company history. The strong response from developers and resulting portfolio of projects demonstrated the effectiveness of competitive bidding in identifying high-quality, cost-effective energy solutions for customers.

Interested developers can find more information on Hawaiian Electric’s website about the company’s competitive bidding process. Information about the RFP regulatory proceeding can be found on the PUC website under docket number 2024-0258.