Hawaiian Electric and Eurus Energy Arm signs PPA

Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. recently signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with EE Ewa LLC, a unit of Eurus Energy America Corporation, to buy electricity from a 46.8-megawatt Palehua wind project. The company has submitted a proposal regarding this project with Public Utilities Commission, requesting for an approval. 

Palehua project will be online by December 2022 if approved. The wind farm will be built covering an area of nearly 1,600 acres on the eastern slope of the Waianae Range. The project will have 13 wind turbines, capable of generating about 150,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of energy annually. This power generation will be sufficient to serve nearly 25,000 homes power requirement every year. 

Per the terms of the PPA, EE Ewa will sell electricity to Hawaiian Electric at a levelized cost of 10.975 cents per kilowatt hour (KWh), making it one of the state's lowest-cost renewable resources. The project will be beneficial for Hawaiian Electric's customer by offering electricity at a cheaper rate than costlier fossil fuel power. 

Once operational, the project is expected to reduce fossil fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions. This project will add nearly 2% to the Hawaiian Electric's renewable energy portfolio during the 22-year term of the agreement.