AES Hawaii Inc., the state’s only coal-fired power plant, isn’t altering its plans to convert to renewable fuel sources despite President Donald Trump’s executive order last week seeking to ramp up coal production.
Robert McCann, interim plant manager at AES, said Friday the facility is going to continue with its efforts to transition away from using coal.
“The administration’s executive order to review the Clean Power Plan does not change AES Hawaii’s current position on supporting the goals of protecting the environment,” he said. “We remain steadfast in our commitment to help the state of Hawaii achieve its renewable goals. With respect to our facility in Kapolei, we will continue to pursue ways in which it can increase its operational flexibility and transition away from coal responsibly.”
AES does not have a timeline for when the facility will discontinue its use of coal.
When signing his energy independence executive order Tuesday, Trump revoked a ban on coal mining on federal land, and initiated a review of President Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan initiative.
The Clean Power Plan, signed into law by Obama in 2015, aimed to close hundreds of coal-fired power plants and stop construction of new plants. The plan also set a target of a 32 percent reduction in greenhouse gases emitted by power plants from 2005 levels by 2030.
Trump said his executive order would put an end to America’s “war on coal” and generate jobs for members of the coal industry.
Despite federal actions, Hawaii has to end its use of coal before 2045. That’s when the state will require that 100 percent of its electrical utilities’ sales comes from renewable energy resources.
Currently, the AES coal facility supplies 20 percent of Oahu’s energy. AES, which is one of eight independent power producers that sell energy to Hawaiian Electric Co., is the cheapest source of power on the island. AES gets its coal from a mine in Indonesia.
The plant has roughly five years to find a new fuel source.
AES’ contract with Hawaiian Electric Co. expires
Sept. 1, 2022, when the utility is required to be well on its way to adopting its 2030 benchmark to have 65 percent of electricity coming from renewable energy resources. HECO has said its contract with the coal plant will not be renewed because of the utility’s need to reach its clean-energy goals.
“Our ability to integrate more renewable generation onto the grid in coming decades is improved without a large, inflexible single generator such as AES,” according to HECO’s power supply plans submitted to the state Public Utilities Commission in December.
Shannon Tangonan, spokeswoman for HECO, said Friday the utility would be willing to look at a contract with AES if it used biomass.
“We would be willing to look at biofuel or biomass generation as long as it benefits our customers and helps our state achieve its renewable-energy goals,” she said. “The Trump order promoting the use of coal has absolutely no effect on our plans.”
