After years of fitful development, geothermal energy is picking up steam throughout Hawaii island and Maui. With a new report showing enough geothermal resources to power the entire state, and Native Hawaiians extending support rather than intense opposition, the time appears ripe to forge ahead to develop this firm, renewable energy source that comes from Hawaii’s special asset — its volcanoes.
Early attempts to make electrical use of the Hawaii island’s underground heat was cancelled in 1990 after attempts to drill wells in pristine rain forests were blocked by protests from Native Hawaiians and environmentalists. Undeterred, a consortium called Puna Geothermal Venture eventually built a plant that went online in 1993. The plant, now operated by Nevada-based Ormat Technologies Inc., generates 25-30 megawatts and is preparing to add 8 megawatts of generating capacity in the next few months. Puna also is looking at the possibility of a first geothermal plant on the southwestern slopes of Maui’s Haleakala.
At prices less than those of solar energy or even oil, geothermal certainly bodes well, not only on Maui and Hawaii island but potentially throughout the state.
And it’s a proven technology. Puna now supplies 17 percent of Hawaii island’s total generating capacity, and its expansion would increase that to 20 percent. The company leases the land it uses and pays royalties that plant manager Mike Kaleikini has said totals up to $3 million a year — about one-tenth of the project’s revenue — to the state, county and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.
So it makes sense that Hawaiian Electric Co. wants to expand this part of its portfolio. The utility has requested information from developers, landowners and others covering issues related to geothermal development in Hawaii, including cultural, historical and environmental.
Among those engaged in the discussion is Honolulu-based Innovations Development Group, headed by former Office of Hawaiian Affairs chief of staff Patricia K. Brandt, founded in 1998 by Native Hawaiian Robbie Cabral and advised by longtime prominent Hawaiian activist Mililani Trask. Along with a New Zealand technical and financial partner, the company has focused on developing geothermal energy on a native Maori land trust, to be used as a "native to native" model for a Hawaii project it proposes.
Whether the group will succeed in becoming a significant provider of geothermal energy remains an open question. But its participation illustrates a shift in perception about the use of Madame Pele’s resources.
It came as no surprise to Cabral that the Pele Defense Fund, which fought geothermal development in the 1980s and 1990s, fizzled out this year. "The issues have changed since 20 years ago," she said.
Global warming has become a major factor in types of energy favored, Cabral points out. Also, she said, geothermal technology has advanced, as gasses that once vented into the atmosphere now are cycled back into the earth.
Still geothermal energy faces serious challenges. The cost of drilling test wells is high, and in a tight economy, the ability of ratepayers to cover the costs of developing the resource is limited.
HECO’s attempt to contract with Aina Koa Pono to buy liquid biofuels was rejected by the state Public Utilities Commission as too costly — with customers paying at least $100 million more over the 20-year contract. There is a cost ceiling that even renewable energy cannot exceed. Those who would develop geothermal energy should understand that, unlike magma, a ratepayer’s wallet is not inexhaustible.
Nonetheless, renewable energy offers a bright future for Hawaii, which is blessed with so many ways to generate it, including active volcanoes. Geothermal is, and should remain, a growing part of the state’s energy portfolio.
