The Hawaii Public Utilities Commission has approved a contract for Hawaiian Electric Co. to purchase power from a photovoltaic power system that Hoku Solar Inc. will install on the roof of the Archer Substation at Hawaiian Electric's Ward Avenue facility. The 218 kW system is expected to be in service by the end of this year.
To take advantage of available tax credits and financing, Hoku or its affiliate will own and operate the PV system and charge Hawaiian Electric for power at a fixed rate over 20 years.
‘There is a tremendous upsurge in photovoltaic energy worldwide, including in Hawaii,’ says Dave Waller, Hawaiian Electric's vice president for customer solutions. ‘Hawaiian Electric has had demonstration projects and continues to promote Sun Power for Schools, and this will be our first utility-sited, larger-scale commercial PV project.’
SOURCE: Hoku Scientific
