Hawaiian utility turns to biomass as clean power source

Hawaii Electric Light Company (HELCO) has entered into a 20-year agreement to purchase 21.5MW of biomass power on Hawaii Island from Hu Honua Bioenergy, a deal requiring approval from the state Public Utilities Commission.

Financial terms were not disclosed. The companies did say that pricing of the electricity is not tied to the price of crude oil.

Hu Honua Bioenergy is converting a former sugar mill into an electric generation plant using biofuel including locally grown biomass, such as eucalyptus. The facility will consist of a biomass fuel yard, steam boiler, turbine and generator. The previous plant used sugar cane waste and later, coal.

Estimates are that Hu Honua will be able to supply about 10% of the island’s electricity needs. The plant is anticipated to be…

Become a Recharge subscriber!

Or try our free trial.

Order Subscription

Already a member?

Login

Recharge App


Dowload the Recharge Mobile App
Get the free Recharge subscriber app on your device running iOS or Android.
Read Recharge anytime and anywhere.
Recharge IOS App