$95M in federal funding will harden Hawaii power grid | News, Sports, Jobs
A cut-up downed power pole rests along Honoapiilani Highway in Lahaina on Aug. 21. After the high winds on Aug. 8 downed multiple poles and lines, the U.S. Department of Energy announced $95 million to help harden Hawaii’s electric grid by replacing wooden poles with fire-resistant materials, relocating the Maui control center and other preventative actions. The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photo
The U.S. Department of Energy is providing $95 million “to harden Hawaii’s power grid” in light of the wildfires on Maui, President Joe Biden announced Wednesday.
The funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law aims to improve service, limit damage during future events and help prevent failures in the future that could lead to severe events, according to a news release from the White House.
According to the White House and Hawaiian Electric, funding will go toward:
• Replacing poles and conductors on high-priority transmission lines, including two on Maui.
• Hardening circuits serving critical facilities such as hospitals, water facilities, emergency response and the military.
• Replacing wooden poles with fire-resistant material.
• Placing portions of certain distribution circuits underground.
• Deploying intelligent switches and materials to help reduce wildfire risk, and placing cameras, sensors, reclosers and other equipment in areas prone to wildfire.
• Removing off-right-of-way trees that are weak, diseased or structurally compromised and pose a risk to power lines.
• Relocating the Maui control center to a more secure and elevated location to avoid flooding, and developing a backup control center on Oahu.
Hawaiian Electric said in a news release Wednesday evening that the federal funding would pay for half of its proposed $190 million Climate Adaptation Transmission and Distribution Resilience Program, which was submitted to the state Public Utilities Commission for approval in June 2022.
The federal matching funds would reduce the cost of the program to customers by 50 percent.
“We appreciate the support from the Department of Energy and the Biden Administration as we work with our partners on Maui to restore and rebuild areas devastated by the wildfires,” said Shelee Kimura, president and CEO of Hawaiian Electric. “This funding significantly alleviates the cost burden on customers as we intensify work to strengthen our grids on Maui and across the islands we serve. We agree with the president and our local leaders about the importance of working with our communities as we rebuild and make these improvements to defend against more extreme weather events in the future.”
Hawaiian Electric applied for the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act grid resilience funding in April, which was supported by both regulators and the state Consumer Advocate, the utility said. Hawaiian Electric submitted a filing Wednesday with regulators to now approve the climate adaptation plan, given the federal government’s willingness to underwrite half of the project.
The funding announcement comes in the wake of criticism over Hawaiian Electric’s equipment and the risk that it posed during high winds. Maui County and multiple residents have filed separate lawsuits alleging that HECO’s downed lines and failure to shut off the power caused the Lahaina fire that destroyed more than 2,000 structures and left at least 115 dead.
HECO said earlier this week that falling power lines appear to have caused the early morning fire on Aug. 8 in Lahaina but that the power had been off for more than six hours by the time the second fire flared up and destroyed much of the town.
Despite the legal disputes, HECO and government officials sought to show a united front with another red flag warning in effect today as high winds and low humidity raise the risk for fires.
Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, adjutant general with the Hawaii Department of Defense, Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen and HECO’s Kimura said in a joint statement on Tuesday evening that they will work to keep the public safe.
“With high winds and severe drought conditions continuing to threaten parts of Maui, we are working together to minimize the risk of wildfire and ensure public safety,” the statement said. “In our lifetimes, Hawaii has never been tested like this. We will do what we have always done when confronted by hardship and heartbreak — we will stand together for our people and communities and work to keep them safe.”
A cut-up downed power pole rests along Honoapiilani Highway in Lahaina on Aug. 21. After the high winds on Aug. 8 downed multiple poles and lines, the U.S. Department of Energy announced $95 million to help harden Hawaii’s electric grid by replacing wooden poles with fire-resistant materials, relocating the Maui control center and other preventative actions. The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photoToday's breaking news and more in your inbox
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