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Innovation enables us to shape Hawaii’s preferred energy future, integrating new and evolving technologies that have the potential to increase our state’s energy self-sufficiency.
To fulfill the promise of these new technologies, we must work together in partnership with the public and private sectors; with the utility and other energy providers; and with you, our customer. This is a community challenge.
At Hawaiian Electric, we’re committed to meeting the long-term energy needs of Hawaii’s people in a reliable, economical and environmentally sound way.
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Commitment
The Hawaiian Electric Company, Maui Electric Company and Hawaii Electric Light Company are committed to Less and Local when it comes to electricity.
Everyone needs to use less whenever possible -- without sacrificing safety, comfort or convenience. Through energy efficiency and conservation, we all need to use energy wisely everyday.
In addition, the Hawaiian Electric companies pledge to lead the Hawaiian Islands in the increased use of local, renewable energy.
In the past, it was efficient and made more sense for Hawaii to import crude oil, refine it into the gasoline, jet and marine fuel we need and use the residue to generate electricity.
Today, concern about Hawaii’s energy security, our island economy and the world’s environment are requiring us to act differently.
Now, our preferred energy future must be based on using innovation and changing our lifestyles to use energy wisely and reduce our dependence on imported oil and replace it with local, clean, renewable resources.
Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative
On October 20, 2008, in the chambers of Governor Linda Lingle, an historic agreement was signed between the State of Hawaii and the Hawaiian Electric companies.
The energy agreement, part of the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, puts Hawaii on a path to supply 40 percent of electricity needs and 70 percent of overall energy needs (including transportation) using clean sources by 2030, a far-reaching change for a state now over 90 percent dependent on imported fossil fuels.
As a state, we have strong motivation to achieve the goals of the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative. Our dependence on imported fossil fuel has adverse security and economic impacts. Much of the oil we import comes from foreign countries not friendly to the United States. Most experts predict oil prices will rise as the world economy picks up and the cost of controlling carbon emissions is added through a tax or cap-and-trade system. Hawaii exports between $6 billion and $7 billion annually to buy fuel for the Hawaiian Islands, a huge figure for a string of remote islands with a population of only about 1.2 million (plus over six million visitors a year.)
To these concerns, we now add our new understanding of greenhouse gas emissions and global climate change. It is now clear the energy system that powered Hawaii well for decades when oil was plentiful and cheap cannot be sustained.
Hawaii’s total production of greenhouse gas may be small, even on a per capita basis, but as an island state in a tropical hurricane path, we are among the most vulnerable places on earth to rising sea levels, more intense storms and even drought.
The energy agreement was negotiated amongst the Hawaiian Electric Companies, the Governor of the State of Hawaii, the Energy Division of the State Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, the State Consumer Advocate and the U.S. Department of Energy.
We can not afford inaction and, we believe, the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative puts Hawaii on the right path.
"Global warming policy"
In January 2007, the Hawaiian Electric companies’ Board of Directors established this policy on global warming:
"Hawaiian Electric Company shares the very serious concerns of many regarding the potential effects of global warming and human contributions to this phenomenon, including the burning of fossil fuels for electricity production, transportation, manufacturing, agricultural activities and deforestation.
To effectively address global warming, actions addressing all contributing sources must be taken with priority given to those which provide the greatest benefit for the costs involved. To be successful, the response to global warming requires commitment by private sector businesses, all levels of government, and every member of the public.
At Hawaiian Electric, we remain committed to taking direct action to mitigate the contributions to global warming from electricity production. Such action has and will continue to include promoting aggressive energy conservation and transitioning to clean, efficient and eco-effective energy production in all markets that we serve."
How are we doing?
According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration, Hawaii ranks third in the nation (after Maine and California) in use of renewable energy relative to the state's total electricity production (1). In 2007, the Hawaiian Electric companies achieved a consolidated Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) of 16.1 percent, an increase from the 13.8 percent level achieved in 2006 and 11 percent achieved in 2005. This means that 16 percent of Hawaiian Electric, Maui Electric and Hawaii Electric Light companies’ sales came from renewable energy (including solar water heating) and quantifiable energy efficiency.
“Traditional” renewable energy generation (as compared to energy savings from solar water heating or energy efficiency technologies) makes up over half the total RPS percentage for 2007.
(1) This figure is based on the EIA-906 data from 2006, and this does not include hydro-electric power from massive dams, which are not possible in Hawaii and many do not consider to be environmentally sound.
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