Hawaiian Electric Companies are targeting four goals in their latest round of long-term planning: lowering customers’ bills, creating a clean energy future, modernizing the companies’ grids and fairness.
The company, since 2009, has been drafting its latest integrated resources plan. The final draft of the plan was released Thursday, and community members across the state will have the chance to offer their input on the plan at a series of meetings that starts at 6 p.m. Tuesday in Hilo’s Aupuni Center Conference Room.
Additional Hawaii Island meetings are 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Pahala Community Center and 6 p.m. Thursday at King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel.
HEI companies have completed such intensive planning processes in the past, spokesman Darren Pai said. A few things set the latest plan apart from previous ones.
“This time around, the Public Utilities Commission asked us to look at all of the islands in one plan, instead of separate plans for separate islands,” Pai said.
Because the energy industry is “dynamic” with often changing situations, Pai said HEI chose to consider four scenarios that anticipate everything from oil prices skyrocketing to decreasing dramatically, and varying levels of renewable energy technology adoption.
The draft plan offers potential actions, such as procuring more low-cost renewable energy, modernizing the grid and implementing smart grid technologies, and the related possible impacts.
HEI must balance those goals with the challenges the companies face, the plan said. For example, when considering lowering costs for customers, officials must also look at retaining reliable services. The outcomes of achieving energy efficiency portfolio standards are somewhat controlled by others, the draft plan said, and that creates uncertainty.
HEI is also watching the progress of bringing liquefied natural gas here, by building infrastructure here.
Other challenges in the plan include the requirement of the PUC to approve many of HEI’s proposed actions, as well as the quickly changing nature, and quickly rising and dropping costs, of new technology. New technologies officials are watching include energy storage, ocean thermal energy production and fuel cell development, the plan said.
Meetings will continue on other islands through June 20. Pai said after the meetings are done, HEI officials will submit their final application with the PUC by June 28.
