Hawaii Sets 100% Renewables Goal

Hawaii will never have a problem attracting business people that want a glamorous overseas trip. But now those in renewables have an even stronger business reason to visit the island state.

This month, Hawaii governor David Ige signed a bill stating that the US island state should run on 100% renewable energy by 2045. The aim is to build on the state’s existing goal of 70% renewable energy by 2030; and save the $5bn a year that the state currently spends on foreign oil imports.

It is a sensible ambition given the current uncertainty over oil prices. Yes, they may be low at $60 a barrel, but it is difficult to predict how long that will last. Two years? Five years? Longer? However long it is, as long as Hawaii depends on oil imports it will always be keeping an eye on what Middle Eastern oil producers, led by Saudi Arabia, are doing with production and how that affects prices.

Because one thing is for sure. Oil prices will not stay at this current low level forever. Saudi Arabia is keeping them low at present because it makes sense to put financial pressure on political rivals in Syria and Russia; and on rival energy sectors, including shale gas and renewables. But at some point it will restrict production and prices will grow to well over $100 a barrel, maybe even $200.

Hawaii wants to do what it can to reduce its dependence on oil before that happens. This opens up opportunities for developers in sectors including wind and solar who want to build large projects on the island; and also for manufacturers to want to sell community- or residential-scale technology.

Both of these sectors will be supported by developments in energy storage, which means excess power generated at times of high production and low demand can be stored and then used later at times of low production and high demand. We are seeing great progress in this sector, from firms including Elon Musk’s Tesla, and we expect this technology to continue developing at pace.

Hawaii’s commitment to renewables is good for both large and small renewables companies. The larger developers include the likes of Denmark’s Alpha Wind, which submitted a plan in March to build two floating wind farms off the Hawaiian coast totalling 816MW. The US Department of the Interior has to decide whether to grant it a lease, but the 100% renewables goal will do no harm.

Meanwhile, the target also opens up opportunities for firms that make residential- and community scale energy solutions. Hand-in-hand with the 100% target, the governor also signed a bill that would create a community-based renewables programme to allow residents and businesses to buy renewable energy from a community facility, if they are unable to install their own technology.

So if you work in renewables and want a trip to Hawaii, then what are you waiting for? There is surely no better time to visit.