News

Hawaii Governor announces end of fossil fuel based electricity

Alexander Richter 28 Aug 2015

With the U.S. military representing about 50% of electricity demand in Hawaii and its drive towards renewables, the goal to replace petroleum-fuelled electricity plants seems not too unlikely for the state.

Following an earlier push towards renewables, Hawaii’s Governor David Ige has now announced that “his administration will not use natural gas to replace the state’s petroleum-fuelled electricity plants, but will make a full-court press toward 100 percent renewables by 2045.” In his efforts he has a rather unlikely and enthusiastic partner, the U.S. military.

About 50% of Hawaii’s electricity goes to the U.S. military, so the support of this largest power user is probably the key factor in this ambitious announcement.  There is an overall drive by the U.S. military to use more and more renewable energy for the energy needs of its installations in the U.S. and internationally.

Geothermal represents a great opportunity, particularly on the Big Island of Hawaii. While there is some strong opposition, the experience of fellow Polynesians, the Maori of New Zealand in profiting from geothermal on their land is seen as a good example that could help gather more support. With the volcanic activities in Hawaii, geothermal is a concrete and valid option for baseload renewable power in the state of Hawaii.

Source: The Nation