State regulators and the solar industry are seeking more input on Hawaiian Electric Co.’s $205 million grid modernization plan.
The Public Utilities Commission invited members of the public and other interested parties Wednesday to comment on the utility’s plan. HECO submitted its modernization strategy to the PUC Tuesday.
Members of the solar industry say they want more collaboration with the utility regarding the plan, which includes the deployment of technologies, such as grid management systems, that primarily deal with how the utility can add more solar energy.
Equipment HECO is seeking to use to help improve the grid’s reliability includes advanced inverters, which enable solar systems to interact safely with the grid and household appliances. Advanced inverters can automatically disconnect when there are problems with voltage. Some upgraded inverters can be remotely controlled to turn off a solar system.
Colin Yost, principal at Honolulu-based RevoluSun, said some of the advanced inverters and batteries HECO is proposing to invest in as part of its plan could be supplied by the solar industry organically as new solar owners use updated technology.
“More collaboration is needed going forward to really … figure how much of the capital improvements proposed are really necessary and how much of them could be served organically by the private sector,” Yost said.
Solar industry representatives said they were concerned that the plan would not fairly credit solar customers for the services they provide to the grid and could result in new solar owners choosing to disconnect from HECO’s grid.
Leslie Cole-Brooks, executive director of the Distributed Energy Resources Council of Hawaii, said that requiring customers to use technology that curtails their solar system to react to grid conditions without crediting system owners reduces the the value of the system.
“There certainly needs to be a balance between cost imposed and value destroyed,” Cole-Brooks said.
In the filing, HECO said that as the use of solar
energy systems and batteries continues to grow, “the need for visibility and controllability of (PV and battery) resources is becoming increasingly critical to maintaining grid reliability and stability.”
HECO’s plan also includes installing smart meters in specific neighborhoods where there are many rooftop solar energy systems. These meters can provide details about homes’ electricity use and can be accessed by the utility. Other equipment in the plan includes the use of sensors at points on neighborhood circuits as well as automated controls and battery storage at substations.
This is the second grid modernization plan the utility has submitted to the PUC. The first plan had a price tag of $340 million.
The PUC rejected HECO’s first plan in January because of concerns with the cost and lack of details.
Written comments on the modernization strategy can be submitted to state regulators by emailing puc.comments@hawaii.gov, making reference to Docket No. 2017-0226. The comment must include the commenter’s name and the organization the commenter represents. The PUC said it will review and consider any written comments received by Sept. 13.
