Hawaiian Electric reports it has seen a significant reduction in the use of electricity as tourism activities cease, businesses close and thousands of residents stay home to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Between March 22 and 29, Hawaii Island customers used 7% less energy than in previous weeks, according to the utility. For Oahu, the average system peak demand (the point of highest energy use) for the week was also 7% less than in previous weeks. On Maui, the decrease was 14%.
Gov. David Ige issued a stay-at-home order on March 23 and soon after imposed a quarantine on visitors, essentially shutting down arrivals.
The company said the reduction in weekday, daytime peak demand on Maui and Oahu was especially pronounced as schools, offices, government buildings, hotels and businesses closed. Peak daytime demand fell 21% on Maui and 16% on Oahu after March 22. Maui saw record lows for daytime generation on sunny days when private rooftop solar systems were supplying the most energy.
“Such fast and pronounced changes in demand are something we haven’t seen before and they’re a measure of how quickly business activity and individual behavior were affected by the pandemic,” said Jim Kelly, vice president of corporate relations at Hawaiian Electric. “Hawaii reflects the trends that utilities everywhere are seeing as economies adjust to the impacts of COVID-19.”
Kelly said adequate supply of electricity isn’t something customers should worry about for the duration of the emergency.
“Especially with consumption down, we have plenty of generation resources available,” he said.
On Oahu, the company stated the reduction in demand means about 200,000 fewer gallons of oil per day are being used to generate electricity.
Hawaiian Electric said it remains operational for generation, emergency repairs and utility maintenance and construction. Other activities – including customer service information and payment processing, customer installations and rooftop solar application processing —remain available online, by phone or mail.
Service disconnections have been suspended through May 17. Customers who are having difficulty paying their bill due to the coronavirus pandemic are encouraged to contact the company to make a payment arrangement.
