{"id":7912,"date":"2016-10-31T20:24:23","date_gmt":"2016-11-01T00:24:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/hawaii-leads-the-march-towards-100-renewable-energy\/"},"modified":"2016-10-31T20:24:23","modified_gmt":"2016-11-01T00:24:23","slug":"hawaii-leads-the-march-towards-100-renewable-energy","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/hawaii-leads-the-march-towards-100-renewable-energy\/","title":{"rendered":"Hawaii Leads the March Towards 100% Renewable Energy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hawaiians pay 2.25x the national average and 30% more than the next closest state (Alaska) for their electricity usage due to Hawaii\u2019s unique geographic constraints [1].\u00a0 Driving that cost is Hawaii\u2019s unique need to burn oil for electricity, using oil for about 70% of its energy needs versus less than 1% for the rest of the country [2].\u00a0 These high costs mean the economics of shifting to renewables are much more favorable for Hawaii than other states.\u00a0 Consequently, the state is poised to build the blueprint for other states to follow in shifting its energy usage to renewable sources.<\/p>\n

\"hawaiis-electric-costs-relative-to-the-us-average-from-2006-2015\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Figure 1. Hawaii\u2019s Electric Costs Relative to the U.S. Average from 2006 – 2015 [3]<\/p>\n

\"electricity-production-by-source-big\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Figure 2. 2014 Electricity Production by Source [3]<\/p>\n

Hawaiian Electric Industries<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hawaiian Electric Industries (HEI), a publically owned utility, is on the vanguard of the renewable shift.\u00a0 Hawaii state legislators, with the support of HEI, passed a 2015 law mandating that renewable sources contribute to 70% of all electricity sold in 2040 with an increase to 100% by 2045 [4].\u00a0 While this is an aggressive goal, Hawaii benefits from lots of sunshine and wind and stands to gain the most from energy efficiencies.<\/p>\n

Solar and wind energy make up a respectable percentage of Hawaii\u2019s energy sources (6%, excluding customer rooftops [5]), but some nontraditional sources are contributing as well.\u00a0 In 2015, 5.6% of Oahu\u2019s power came from solid waste [6].\u00a0 The Honolulu Program of Waste Energy Recovery (H-POWER), a state owned facility, burns 3,000 tons of garbage per day in a furnace that powers a turbine generator.\u00a0 Not only is this a renewable energy source, but it also reduces trash sent to the landfill by 90% [7].\u00a0 Additionally, HEI captures underground volcanic heat to produce geothermal power, which contributes to 20.2% of Hawaii County\u2019s electricity [8].<\/p>\n

Challenges to Transitioning to Renewable Energy Sources<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hawaii\u2019s transition to renewable energy has not been without its challenges.\u00a0 The inability to store energy produced by renewables has led to two major problems.\u00a0 The first is the traditional problem of struggling to match supply and demand during peak demand periods.\u00a0 The second is residential solar panel customers generating excess power and sending it back through the grid.\u00a0 On Oahu, 13% of homes have solar panels and residents produce almost four times more solar power than the next highest state (California) [9].\u00a0 Not only is this straining the grid, designed to be a one way path of electricity, but it also means that thousands of customers are receiving rebate checks from HEI instead of paying a monthly bill.\u00a0 In a twist similar to what is happening in states with a large electric\/hybrid car presence where customers are paying less in gas taxes and causing a road maintenance shortfall, HEI is left paying customers who are both not contributing towards revenue and straining the system.\u00a0 As a result, HEI stopped accepting customer requests to install solar panels and asked the state to cut rebate payments in half [10].\u00a0 Customers were outraged and confused by this response, with some leaving the grid completely, a rather serious concern for HEI [11].<\/p>\n

A Unique Elon Musk \/ SolarCity \/ Tesla Partnership<\/strong><\/p>\n

HEI has responded to the power storage problem by contracting with Elon Musk\u2019s SolarCity to build a 13-megawatt solar farm combined with Tesla batteries in Kauai that will provide about a quarter of that island\u2019s midday power needs [12].\u00a0 Not only is HEI demonstrating bold initiative by being the first utility to attempt to store renewable energy on a large scale, it is also saving money as it will pay SolarCity only 14.5 cents per kilowatt hour versus the average current cost of 24.2 cents [13].<\/p>\n

Paying for Progress<\/strong><\/p>\n

Customer costs are a significant concern for both HEI and the Hawaiian government and they know the shift to renewables will be gradual.\u00a0 HEI, without the support of the Hawaiian Governor, has decided to pursue an intermediate option of replacing fossil fuels with liquid natural gas, which will be less costly than switching immediately to renewables while also delivering cleaner energy [14].\u00a0 The utility feels this intermediate step is necessary because they will not have the budget for the capital expenditures necessary to shift immediately to renewables.\u00a0 The expected capital expenditures under the renewable plan over the next 30 years are $25.8 billion, with $13.6 billion coming from HEI and the remainder from customer bills and state tax incentives [15].<\/p>\n

Achieving Results<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hawaii\u2019s march towards 100% renewables has been admirable to date.\u00a0 In 2015, renewable sources generated 23.2%* of all electricity statewide and 48.7% of electricity in Hawaii County [16].\u00a0 This is even more impressive considering that in 2011, renewables made up 8.7%* of electricity sources [17].\u00a0 Other states should take note by studying Hawaii\u2019s challenges and adopting its successful practices.<\/p>\n

\"hawaii-renewable-portfolio\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Figure 3. Hawaii Renewable Portfolio 2005 \u2013 2015 [3]<\/p>\n

Word Count: 789<\/p>\n

Sources<\/strong><\/p>\n

[1] \u201cElectric Power Monthly,\u201d U.S. Department of Energy, https:\/\/www.eia.gov\/electricity\/ monthly\/epm_table_grapher.cfm?t=epmt_5_6_a, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[2] Rebecca Smith and Lynn Cook, \u201cHawaii Wrestles with Vagaries of Solar Power,\u201d Wall Street Journal<\/em>, June 18, 2015, http:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/hawaii-wrestles-with-vagaries-of-solar-power-1435532277, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[3] \u201cHawaii Energy Facts and Figures,\u201d Hawaii State Energy Office, May 2016, http:\/\/energy.hawaii.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/FF_May2016_FINAL_5.13.16.pdf, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[5] Act 097, HRS 269-92, Hawaii State Law, http:\/\/www.capitol.hawaii.gov\/hrscurrent\/ Vol05_Ch0261-0319\/HRS0269\/HRS_0269-0092.htm, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[6] \u201cHawaii Energy Statistics,\u201d U.S. Department of Energy, http:\/\/energy.hawaii.gov\/resources\/ dashboard-statistics, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[7] \u201cAbout our Fuel Mix\u201d, Hawaiian Electric Industries, https:\/\/www.hawaiianelectric.com\/ clean-energy-hawaii\/clean-energy-facts\/about-our-fuel-mix, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[8] \u201cH-POWER,\u201d Hawaiian Electric Industries, https:\/\/www.hawaiianelectric.com\/clean-energy-hawaii\/clean-energy-facts\/renewable-energy-sources\/biomass\/h-power, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[9] \u201cAbout our Fuel Mix.\u201d<\/p>\n

[10] Smith and Cook, \u201cHawaii Wrestles with Vagaries of Solar Power.\u201d<\/p>\n

[11] Diane Cardwell, \u201cSolar Battle Puts Hawaii at Forefront of Worldwide Changes,\u201d New York Times<\/em>, April 18, 2015, http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2015\/04\/19\/business\/energy-environment\/solar-power-battle-puts-hawaii-at-forefront-of-worldwide-changes.html?_r=0, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[12] Ibid.<\/p>\n

[13] Cassandra Sweet, \u201cElon Musk Has Big Hopes for Storage Batteries, but the Market Is Small,\u201d Wall Street Journal<\/em>, August 8, 2016, http:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/elon-musk-has-big-hopes-for-storage-batteries-but-the-market-is-small-1470676986, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[14] Katie Fehrenbacher, \u201cSolarCity to Use Tesla Batteries for Project in Hawaii,\u201d Fortune Magazine<\/em>, February 16, 2016, http:\/\/fortune.com\/2016\/02\/16\/solarcity-tesla-batteries-hawaii\/, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[15] \u201cPower Supply Improvement Plans Update Report,\u201d Hawaii Electric Industries Report, April 1, 2016, p. ES-9, https:\/\/www.hawaiianelectric.com\/Documents\/about_us\/our_vision\/ psip_executive_summary_20160401.pdf, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[16] Ibid., p. ES-13.<\/p>\n

[17] \u201c2015 Renewable Portfolio Standard Status Report,\u201d Hawaii Electric Industries Report, February 26, 2016, p. 3, https:\/\/www.hawaiianelectric.com\/Documents\/clean_energy_hawaii\/ rps_report_2015.pdf, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

[18] \u201cRenewable Energy in Hawaii,\u201d Hawaii Economic Issues<\/em>, June 2011, http:\/\/files.hawaii.gov\/dbedt\/economic\/data_reports\/reports-studies\/2011-renewable-energy.pdf, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n

* Exact percentages vary slightly by source.<\/p>\n

Cover Photo: Sean Reilly, “Wind Farm Controversy,”\u00a0Neojourno<\/em>,\u00a0http:\/\/blog.hawaii.edu\/neojourno\/2012\/10\/24\/wind-farm-controversy-by-sean-reilly\/, accessed October 2016.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hawaii has the highest electricity costs in the nation, making it uniquely motivated to lead the country in seeking 100% renewable energy generation by 2045.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1925,"featured_media":7913,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[96,1237,1239,87,1238,128,1240],"class_list":["post-7912","hck-submission","type-hck-submission","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-elon-musk","category-hawaiian-electric","category-renewable-storage","category-renewables","category-solarcity","category-tesla","category-utilities"],"connected_submission_link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/assignment\/climate-change-challenge-2016\/","yoast_head":"\nHawaii Leads the March Towards 100% Renewable Energy - Technology and Operations Management<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/hawaii-leads-the-march-towards-100-renewable-energy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hawaii Leads the March Towards 100% Renewable Energy - 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