Hawaiian Electric hits 38% renewable energy in 2021 Return of geothermal boosts Hawai‘i Island to 60%

Hawaiian Electric hits 38% renewable energy in 2021
Return of geothermal boosts Hawai‘i Island to 60%
HONOLULU, Feb. 8, 2022 – Buoyed by a full year of geothermal production and an increase in
private rooftop solar, Hawaiian Electric achieved a 38% consolidated renewable portfolio
standard in 2021.
The 38.4% is the consolidated RPS for Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi Island and Maui County, up from 34.5%
in 2020. Over the past decade, the company has nearly quadrupled the amount of renewable
energy on its electric grids, up from just under 10% in 2010.
“Everyone owns a piece of this remarkable progress,” said Shelee Kimura, president and CEO
of Hawaiian Electric. “It marks a huge step forward in Hawaiʻi’s transition away from reliance on
imported fossil fuels and by continuing to work with our communities, government and other
stakeholders we’re confident we can achieve our goal of reducing carbon emissions from power
generation 70% by 2030.”
The RPS represents the renewable energy used by customers as a percentage of total utility
sales. Other 2021 RPS highlights:
• Hawaiʻi Island hit 60% RPS, up from 43.4% in 2020, achieved mainly by a full year of
production from Puna Geothermal Venture returning to service at partial capacity. PGV
came back online in November 2020 after it had been damaged by the Kīlauea eruption
in 2018.
• Maui County achieved 50.2% RPS, down slightly from 50.8% in 2020. Although
renewable production was up across Maui County in 2021, electricity sales also
increased by 9%, mainly due to the strengthening of the tourism industry.
• Oʻahu recorded 32.8% RPS, up from 30.5% in 2020. A full year of production at the Nā
Pua Makani wind facility contributed to the nearly 7% increase in renewable output.
In 2021, 4,956 private rooftop systems with 53 megawatts of capacity were added to the
company’s five island grids. This 6% increase contributed to the higher RPS percentage.
Overall, the increases in renewable energy were partially offset by an approximate 2% increase
in electric sales.
The next RPS milestone required by state law is to reach 40% by 2030.