The Hawai‘i Public Utilities Commission has approved a power purchase agreement for a second new solar-plus-storage project on Kauaʻi with the energy company AES.
If successfully developed, AES’ Mānā Solar + Storage project, coupled with AES’ previously approved Kaawanui Solar project, would bring Kaua‘i to nearly 90% renewable generation by 2030, according to a news release from Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative.
“We’re grateful to the PUC for the timely approval so these projects can move forward and attempt to capture available incentive tax credits that will expire at the end of 2029,” said KIUC’s President and Chief Executive Officer, David Bissell. “The PUC approvals could not have happened without the support of the Consumer Advocate, Kaua‘i’s state legislative delegation and the Kaua‘i Mayor’s office.”
AES’ Mānā Solar + Storage project is a proposed 35-megawatt facility with 4-hour storage capacity that would produce an average of 86,000 megawatt hours annually of dispatchable renewable energy over the 25-year PPA. The project would be located on land owned by the Agribusiness Development Corporation (ADC) on the Mānā Plain. If brought to fruition, the Mānā project would displace the use of 5.9 million gallons of diesel per year.
Coupled with AES’ Kaawanui Solar, located on land owned by Robinson Family Partners and managed by Gay & Robinson, Inc., the two projects are expected to save members at least $13.4 million in the first year of operation, with a total savings over the 25-year PPA term of roughly $800 million.
“With these projects in operation, Kauai ratepayers will have much less exposure to cost spikes, as we are now encountering, from volatile fossil fuel,” said Bissell. “If they were in service today, our average residential member would be paying about $27 less for their electricity in May.”
In total, the projects would account for 35-40% of KIUC’s annual energy production and would power more than 30,000 homes.
Each project will include a component of compatible agriculture. AES Hawai‘i expects to partner with local, Kauaʻi-based companies who bring deep expertise in land stewardship and sustainable practices and will co-locate agricultural activities on the sites.
“The PUC’s approval of Mānā Solar + Storage, together with its previous approval of Kaawanui Solar, are significant milestones that will enable AES and KIUC to continue delivering on their shared goal for clean, reliable energy for Kaua‘i,” said Nick Molinari, Senior Director of Development, AES. “We are grateful for the continued partnership with KIUC as we work together to support Kaua‘i’s renewable energy goals, and we look forward to working with the governmental agencies, stakeholders, and community toward securing the remaining approvals needed for the Mānā project to move forward.”
The Mānā and Kaawanui projects would be the third and fourth renewable energy projects developed by AES Hawai‘i for Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative.
In 2019, AES and KIUC made history together by bringing online the Lāwa‘i Solar + Storage Project, which was the largest operational solar and energy storage system in the world at the time. In 2021, in collaboration with the U.S. Navy, AES’ Kekaha Solar + Storage project, also known as the AES PMRF Project, was placed into service.
