The AES Corporation recently announced its Waikoloa Solar + Storage Project is now online and expected to reduce typical residential bills for Hawaii Island customers by around $5 per month.
"The $5 savings estimate is for residential customers but commercial customers also will save," a spokesperson for Hawaiian Electric told Pacific Business News in an email.
Located along Waikoloa Road on a 300-acre parcel, the project is Hawaii Island's first and largest solar-plus-storage project and can generate up to 30 megawatts of power, supported by a 120 megawatt-hour battery energy storage system, according to the announcement. AES will sell energy to Hawaiian Electric at 9 cents per kilowatt-hour under a 25-year power purchase agreement.
The Waikoloa Solar + Storage Project will increase Hawaii Island's Renewable Portfolio Standard, the percentage of electricity generated from renewable resources, from 48% to 54%, according to Hawaiian Electric.
The solar project broke ground in April 2021, and was part of Hawaiian Electric's first phase of procurement for renewable energy resources in 2018, as previously reported by PBN. AES's Waikoloa Solar + Storage project is one of two Hawaii Island projects resulting from the first phase. The other is Innergex Renewable Energy Inc.’s Hale Kuawehi Solar and is expected to be completed in 2024, according to the announcement.
“This project has multiple benefits for Hawaii Island,” Shelee Kimura, president and CEO of Hawaiian Electric, said in a statement. “Adding more renewable resources helps make the island communities more self-sustainable by reducing their reliance on imported fossil fuels and helping to stabilize electricity costs."
