Developers of Maui’s second utility scale solar project, located on the slopes above Lahaina, have requested another delay, this time until July 25, filings with the Public Utilities Commission said.

The third formal extension for the 2.87 megawatt Ku’ia Solar project between Maui Electric Co. and Kenyon Energy, the project development arm of Sun Financial, was reported to the PUC last month. The project initially was expected to come online Dec. 31, 2016; extensions to Feb. 24 and to May 25 were later agreed upon.

Officials with the developer and MECO said that the project was in the “testing phase,” which is taking longer than expected.

“The testing phase is a critical period to assure all systems are working properly in order to take the steps necessary to deliver, safe, reliable, clean energy to Maui customers,” said a statement from Kamehameha Schools, which is leasing the land for the project.

“While this process is taking longer than we initially projected, we believe it’s more important to get it right and sometimes getting there takes time,” Kamehameha Schools said.

Project Manager Jesse Myers said in April that Ku’ia Solar’s connection with MECO was behind its sister project, South Maui Renewable Resources, because of heavy rain and mud that delayed access to the site near Lahainaluna High School. SMRR, also a 2.87 MW project near the Research & Technology Park, went online May 5.

MECO reported no problems accepting the solar power from SMRR.

The Lahaina solar project had accumulated $122,000 in daily delay damages as of May 25 with $318.90 assessed per day from June 29, 2017, to Feb. 24 and $502.46 since then, the PUC report said. The terms of the extension allow MECO to terminate the contract after July 25, but MECO and the developer both said they expect the project to come online in the summer.

The terms of the extension also allow Ku’ia Solar to have the delay damages taken out of its energy payments once it comes online. MECO will be paying Ku’ia Solar 11.06 cents per kilowatt hour for the solar power.

By comparison, MECO reported paying 13.7 cents per kWh for fossil fuel production in April.

The utility reported that it does not mark up or profit from the solar power, passing savings directly to consumers.

When up and running, the 12,000 solar panels at the Ku’ia Solar project will produce an estimated 7,000 megawatt hours of power year round. That would be enough to power an average of 1,000 homes over a year.

* Lee Imada can be reached at leeimada@mauinews.com.