Kaheawa selected for U.S. wind technology research
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Gov. Linda Lingle announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding Monday in Honolulu.
No details of the research effort were released, but UPC Wind, which operates the Kaheawa turbines, has talked about using batteries to store power during off-peak times.
No utility-scale batteries are in service today, but UPC has plans to adopt a military battery.
‘‘So many things are coming out of this little 200-acre site,’’ said Paul Gaynor, president and CEO of UPC Wind. ‘‘We’re trying to make the state more competitive, and we’re trying to do that with lessening dependence on oil.’’
The partnership grew out of Hawaii’s Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, an effort by the state with support from the federal government to attempt to make the islands a national model for how renewable power from the sun, wind, waves and earth can be harnessed to light homes and fuel cars.
Hawaii is aiming to produce at least 70 percent of its own energy by 2030. It currently imports 90 percent of its energy and suffers from the highest gas prices in the nation.
Under the memorandum signed Monday, UPC will become a Remote Research Affiliate Partner Site for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. It will be the first such partner outside the energy laboratory’s base in Colorado. No financial arrangements were announced.
At Kaheawa, UPC will conduct research and development on advanced wind energy technologies, including operational and control studies, energy storage options and integration of renewable electricity into existing grids. The goal is to help maximize the integration of wind into Hawaii’s utility system.
The instability of wind energy has been the basis for a dispute between UPC and Maui Electric Co. over UPC’s plans to nearly double the number of turbines at Kaheawa, now a maximum of 30 megawatts.
MECO has said it wants the next installment of wind to come from Ulupalakua, where Shell Wind is building a 40-MW farm, with a water storage system to provide hydroelectric generation as a way to smooth output.
Among MECO’s concerns is stability of the grid when unstable wind energy is fed into it.
The use of utility storage batteries would turn unstable wind power into firm power, which would tend to eliminate that concern.
“This partnership will provide Hawaii with invaluable technical assistance, access to leading-edge research and relationships with additional national partners as we seek to develop innovative approaches to increase our energy independence and reduce our reliance on imported fossil fuels,” Lingle said.
