Amid an active eruption at Kilauea volcano, the Puna Geothermal Venture is holding its latest virtual community meeting on Wednesday.
Officials with PGV, Hawaiian Electric Co. and the County of Hawaii will give updates on the geothermal plant's operations in the first such meeting since July.
The latest eruption at Kilauea, which began on Sept. 29, has so far been confined to Halemaumau crater and there have not been reports of it affecting the operations of the Ormat Technologies-owned facility with a 38-megawatt generation capacity.
“October is Energy Awareness Month, and geothermal power is one component of building a sustainable and resilient energy future for Hawaii,” said Michael Kaleikini, Ormat’s senior director of Hawaii Affairs, in a statement. “At PGV, we believe it is important that people know where their energy is coming from. Hawaii Island is fortunate to have a geothermal resource to tap for energy production."
The 2018 Kilauea eruption caused PGV to cease operations as extensive venting threatened its 11 geothermal wells and lava surrounded the facility in the East Rift Zone, but it has steadily ramped back up since November 2020.
Before shutting down in May 2018, PGV helped Hawaii Island achieve a renewable energy percentage of close to 60%. Without PGV in service, the island’s renewable percentage in 2019 was nearly cut in half at 35%.
Kaleikini said output is currently at 25 megawatts.
The public can join the 4 p.m. community meeting at the PGV website and can submit questions in advance.
