Wind Power News: Hawaii
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They are the products of the organizations or individuals noted and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch.
Wind power players
Driving down Kamehameha Highway toward Oahu’s North Shore, one has historically seen a postcard picture of red dirt, pineapples, coffee and Norfolk pine trees with blue corduroy lines ahead, signaling the radical waves that make this place legendary. This drive to the country has changed recently. As soon as Haleiwa comes into view, what catches the eye to the right are the 30 industrial windmills stretched out on the hillside from Chun’s Reef to Waimea Valley. To some, these turbines . . .
No cause, no answers seven months after Kahuku wind farm fire
It was a first of it’s kind technology – that went up in smoke. Seven months after they started spinning, the Kahuku wind mills stopped because of a fire. The fact that they’re sitting idle is having an ripple effect that reaches your electric bill. For seven months they were spinning in the wind. “First seven months of operation it put about 52k megawatts of energy into the system,” said Hawaiian Electric Company spokesperson Darren Pai. A productive project – . . .
Hawaiian Electric seeks developers for utility-scale renewable energy projects
Hawaiian Electric Co. is looking for developers to build utility-scale renewable energy projects in Hawaii that can be up and running quickly and at a low cost per kilowatt-hour. If one or more such projects are chosen, HECO, a subsidiary of Hawaiian Electric Industries (NYSE: HE), will work with the developer to seek a waiver from the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission’s competitive bidding framework. To qualify to seek a waiver, a project must be located on Oahu, be larger than . . .
Lanai wind farm opponents take their case to lawmakers
People opposed to building a wind farm on the island of Lanai are trying to keep the pressure up to kill the project and some of them took their message to state lawmakers in Honolulu Wednesday. Last week, the owners of Molokai Ranch ended talks with the developer that was trying to build a commercial-scale wind energy project on Molokai. But opponents of big wind development on Lanai are still worried a large-scale project may be built on their small . . .
Molokai Ranch ends talks with wind project developer
The company that owns Molokai Ranch said it has ended talks with a developer that was seeking to build a commercial-scale wind energy project on Ranch land. The developer, a joint venture called Molokai Renewables LLC, is the second company to fail in its efforts to secure land rights from Molokai Properties Ltd. for a planned wind farm on the island. “After much consideration and discussions with Molokai Renewables, we made the decision not to renew the agreement for the . . .
Molokai Ranch says no to wind farm proposal
The owner of Molokai Ranch has announced that it will not renew an agreement for a proposed wind farm on its lands. Clay Rumbaoa, CEO of Molokai Properties Ltd., said the decision was made after much consideration and discussions with Moloka’i Renewables, which had proposed building the wind farm. “Our focus is currently on ensuring the success of our newly re-launched ranching operations and our efforts to re-open existing facilities, such as the Maunaloa Lodge, in an effort to create . . .
Molokai Big Wind deal falls apart
The owners of Molokai Ranch have reneged on plans to lease thousands of acres of land to a large-scale wind farm developer. The decision likely spells the end for the Molokai portion of the Big Wind project, an ambitious plan to build about 70 wind turbines on both Molokai and Lanai and bring the electricity to Oahu via undersea cables. Clay Rumbaoa, CEO of Molokai Properties Ltd., commonly known as Molokai Ranch, said in a statement to Civil Beat that . . .
State legislatures tackle renewable energy tax credits
Lawmakers are facing the difficult task of establishing tax credits that support Hawaii’s green energy infrastructure while reducing its fiscal impact on the state’s budget. The Committee on Energy and Environmental Protection reviewed four bills with variations on reforming renewable tax credit today. The proposals vary depending on the type of clean energy — like wind or solar power — to the type of credit — rates based on how much energy is produced over time — versus up front . . .
Group asks Hawaii regulators to revoke waiver for Lanai wind farm
The Friends of Lanai has asked the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission to revoke Castle & Cooke Inc.’s waiver from competitive bidding that was given to the company so it could build a wind farm on Lanai. That request comes months after billionaire Larry Ellison, CEO of Oracle Corp. (Nasdaq: ORCL), bought 98 percent of the island from Castle & Cooke CEO David Murdock in a deal that preserved Murdock’s right to build a wind farm. The “Big Wind” project would . . .
Saving Paradise, by Mike Bond
The “slimy symbiosis” between industrial wind companies and politicians is the setting of Mike Bond’s latest novel, SAVING PARADISE, already being called the environmental novel of the decade. Bond, a best-selling novelist, international energy expert and long-time foe of the wind industry, brings his deep experience of the energy and investment business to bear in this fast-selling eco-thriller. Set in Hawaii, where wind companies and conniving politicians are now attempting to cover huge parts of the State’s two most beautiful . . .
