HECO seeks new plant

A Campbell Industrial Park
facility is planned for 2009

Hawaiian Electric Co.'s proposal to build a 100-megawatt power plant in Campbell Industrial Park includes an unprecedented package of incentives to nearby residents, including discounted power for 10 years.

HECO's proposed "give-backs" to the Leeward Coast would recognize it as host for four existing power plants, Oahu's only industrial park, a deep-draft harbor and the island's main landfill, said Robbie Alm, the company's senior vice president for public affairs.

Leading the give-back list is a proposed 7 percent electric rate discount for residents of ZIP code 96707 -- Makakilo, Kapolei, Honokai Hale and Ko Olina.

The discount would not apply to businesses, the military or the Ko Olina resort hotel and would be good only for the first 786 kilowatt-hours of electricity a month, the area's residential average. The discount would not be applied until the plant is built, which is planned for 2009.

Other proposed HECO incentives promise to use recycled water for power plants, provide environmental monitoring and reporting for the Leeward area, fund community-based conservation education and support community activities.

Components of the package were suggested by area residents who attended meetings earlier this year with HECO officials.

Some Waianae Coast residents praised the company yesterday for its proposal.

"I think the give-back is fair, considering all the options that were considered," said William Aila, who is involved in many Waianae Coast community activities and attended some of the meetings.

"This is totally out of the box," Aila said.

"This is finally recognition of the cumulative effect, the price our community has paid for the economic benefit to all the other parts of the island," Aila said.

But renewable-energy proponents said they were not swayed by HECO's basic argument that it needs another oil-fired power plant.

"The best thing they could do for that area is not build the power plant," said Jeff Mikulina, executive director of the Hawaii Sierra Club.

"They don't need this power in July 2009," he said. HECO's own projections of energy use through the end of the decade show "a steady upward climb of demand on Oahu, but it's going to grow incrementally."

Meanwhile, Mikulina said, the cost of oil is likely to keep rising, while the cost of renewable energy sources, including wind, solar and wave power, will go down.

"Sure, they can build a plant for $130 million," Mikulina said. "But can they afford to put fuel into it?"

Henry Curtis, executive director of environmental group Life of the Land, noted: "I don't think Mother Nature is going to accept bribes in the fight over global warming.

"Building a power plant based on fossil fuel is not the answer."

Curtis said HECO must be more aggressive in its promotion of renewable fuels, conservation and decentralized power generation.

HECO is asking to build a 100-megawatt generator and two miles of distribution lines for $130 million.

But, Alm said, the plant will be expandable, if needed, in a second phase to 200 megawatts and in a third phase to 318 megawatts.

The plant would burn naptha, a high-grade petroleum product that is cleaner-burning and more expensive than the heavy oil burned at other generating plants, Alm said. Refineries are now exporting enough naptha to fuel the plant without importing more oil to Hawaii, he said.

The unit also will be "fuel-flexible," able to burn biofuels or hydrogen when they become available.

It is slated for HECO property just north of the city's HPOWER waste-to-energy plant and not far from Campbell Industrial Park's two private power generators -- AES-Hawaii, a 180-megawatt coal-fired plant built in 1992, and Kalaeloa Partners, a 180-megawatt oil-fired plant, built in 1991. Both private producers sell their power to HECO.

A state Public Utilities Commission decision on HECO's application for the new power plant and affiliated give-backs, which was filed yesterday, is not expected until next year. Before a decision is made, HECO must complete an Environmental Impact Statement, which includes public hearings.

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HECO aims to reduce
demand for electricity

According to Hawaiian Electric Co.'s projections, Oahu will need 250 megawatts more of electric power in 2010 than today.

HECO plans to build a 100-megawatt generator, a 40-megawatt wind farm at Kahe Point, and to reduce projected demand by at least 100 megawatts through conservation programs for homes and businesses, sometimes called "nega-watts."

Potential nega-watt sources include:

» Continuing $750 HECO rebates to homeowners who install solar hot water heaters. The rebates, in combination with $1,750 in state tax credits and low-interest city loans, encourage people to invest in the heaters.

» Assisting large customers in building small power plants on their sites, which would burn synthetic natural gas to generate up to 11 megawatts of electricity and simultaneously use the "waste" heat to provide water heating or air conditioning. Potential customers include large hotels, hospitals or military bases. The PUC is considering how it would regulate this "distributed generation" or "combined heat and power."

» Having commercial customers sign up to have electric appliances of their choice turned off by the utility in times of need.

» Having residential customers volunteer to have water heaters controllable by a wireless signal. Participants would get a $3 monthly credit on their bill for participating, regardless of whether their water heater actually was shut off.

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HECO offers incentives
to build plant

These are the key "give-back" incentives that Hawaiian Electric Co. proposes in conjunction with building a new 100-megawatt power plant.

» A 7 percent base electric rate discount for residents of the 96707 ZIP code -- Makakilo, Kapolei, Honokai Hale and Ko Olina. The rebate would begin when the plant begins operation, and it would last 10 years. It would only apply to the first 786 kilowatt-hours of electricity (the monthly average in the area). It would not apply to businesses, hotel/resorts or the military. Estimated cost to HECO: $5.5 million.

» Using recycled water, instead of drinking water, for functions at HECO's Kahe Power Plant and at the new plant.

» Construction and maintenance of three air-quality monitoring stations on the Leeward Coast, downwind of the new plant and other power plants, and regular reporting of the data. Estimated cost to HECO: $1 million.

» Resuming testing of Waianae Coast edible fish for the presence of toxins, a program stopped in the 1990s because no toxins were being found, and regular reporting of the data. (Cost included with air testing.)

» Regular "report cards" to Leeward Coast residents about environmental health issues in the area, including Campbell Industrial Park, renewable energy and energy efficiency.

» Financial support of a community-created conservation awareness education program on energy, water and land conservation for youths and adults. Estimated cost to HECO: $500,000.

» Continued financial and volunteer support of Leeward/Waianae community activities.

These give-backs would be in addition to the $130 million for a new 100-megawatt power plant, bringing the total package cost to about $142 million, said Robbie Alm, HECO vice president for public affairs.