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The Maui News
Hawaiian Electric customers on Maui, Lanai, Molokai and Hawaii island will see lower rates in September reflecting the first significant drop in oil prices since spring, the company announced Thursday.
Oahu customers will see a smaller rate increase than expected with the shutdown of the AES coal-fired power plant on Thursday.
Hawaiian Electric is forecasting the following impacts to a typical residential bill for electricity used in September, which will be included in bills most customers receive in October:
• Lanai: Down 9 percent, or about $22.
• Maui: Down 5 percent, or about $11.
• Molokai: Down 14 percent, or about $34.
• Hawaii island: Down 6 percent, or about $16.
• Oahu: Up 4 percent, or about $9. Hawaiian Electric said this is an improvement over the earlier forecast that projected bills would increase 7 percent, or about $15, after the end of the coal plant's operations. Commercial customers will see kilowatt-hour rates up about 2 cents, lower than the 3 cents forecast.
The rates for Oahu are the result of lower oil prices and the addition of the Clearway Mililani I 39-megawatt solar project to the grid, Hawaiian Electric said. Its contracted price of 9 cents per kilowatt-hour is less than a third of the cost of oil used for power generation.
Even with the lower rates, typical bills on all islands are still higher than in March before oil prices began to surge, the company said, Hawaiian Electric said.
The company continues to offer options to help customers manage their energy bills. To review payment plan options, visit hawaiianelectric.com/paymentarrangement.
For information on available financial assistance, visit hawaiianelectric.com/COVID19.